By HAL McCOY
That isn’t the Pittsburgh Lumber Company of the 1970s playing in PNC Park this year. Somebody forgot to send the text to the Cincinnati Reds.
For the ninth straight time, the Reds lost Saturday night to the woebegotten Pirates on the banks of the Allegheny River, a 14-0 annihilation.
And no that isn’t a Steelers-Bengals score.
Once again the Reds lost to a pitcher in struggle mode. They acted as if they were facing teammate Trevor Bauer instead of Pittsburgh’s Trevor Williams.
In his previous seven starts, Williams was 2-and-4 with a 7.70 earned run average. Williams, though, held the dormant Reds to no runs an three hits over six innings, pushing his career record against the Reds to 5-and-0.
Reds starter Alex Wood gave up only two hits, but was charged with five runs (four earned) for his 5 1/3 innings.
The Pirates scored two runs in the third with two outs. Wood walked Kevin Newman with two outs, putting runners on third and first. With two strikes, Brian Reynolds shot one down the right field line, scoring the runner from third.
A second run scored when first baseman Derek Dietrich fumbled away the relay throw for an error and a 2-0 Pirates lead.
Everything flew apart in the sixth when Wood walked two and hit a batter, filling the bases with one out.
Manager David Bell brought in Lucas Sims to replace Wood and it was instant disaster.
Jose Osuna singled up the middle off second baseman Freddy Galvis’ glove for a run and a 3-0 lead. Pirates manager Clint Hurdle sent up left hander Colin O’Brien as a pinch-hitter and he crushed one deep into the right field bleachers, a grand slam home run.
That made it 7-0 and the Reds could have packed away the bats and taken off those all-white Players Weekend uniforms that make them resemble ice cream vendors, pharmacists and house painters.
But it was the Pirates painting the park black and gold. Josh Bell put the Pirates in double figures with a three-run home run off Kevin Gausman in the seventh. That gave Bell 101 RBI with his 32nd home run and pushed Pittsburgh’s lead to 10-0.
The Pirates added four more highly unnecessary runs in the eighth against Joel Kuhnel and R.J. Alaniz. Two scored when left fielder Josh VanMeter went back on a fly ball by Starling Marte that fell way in front of him.
Nearly every time the Reds started to put something together, somebody hit into a double play — three times in the first seven innings.
The Reds had only one runner in scoring position through eight innings until Aristides Aquino doubled with one out in the ninth. And that’s where he stayed when Derek Dietrich took a called third strike to end the misery in the PNC horror chamber.
The Pirates had only 10 hits, but Reds pitchers walked five and hit two batters and five of those batters scored.
Trevor Williams, Rich Rodriguez, Kyle Crick and Parker Markel combined for the seven-hit shutout.
Not only did the Reds give up double digit runs, their deficit in the National League Central reached double digits, 10 games out of first place.
The Reds players look mentally out of it. Thats a refection on thier manager and coaches. Im sure Bell will give some excuse for HIS team to look like they are worse than the Pirates!!!. This is not how you end a season looking to get even better in 2020.!!! Sadly 4th ir 5th is ok with this team. Not with its fan base!
Right, Jim on “fan base”. I think the biggest problem with Reds baseball IS vacant seats. I think I read they are 30% off in ticket sales. Lots of competition for entertainment bucks these days.
Always been curious why they have 12 or 13 coaches. So many that several of them sit in the clubhouse on their computers. Maybe someday baseball will conclude that management by computer was a big mistake and managers can return to coaching small ball and playing their “gut”. For now, Reds management has totally bought in to it.
If the ballclub can ever achieve 3rd place or above we may find see this manager is a seat warmer for Barry Larkin anyway. We can also look forward to the potential for another strike over the soon expiring MLB labor agreement, and stupid tinkering by MLB on how the game is played.
I’ll coin Ronald Reagan’s famous comment and apply baseball to it. : “I did not leave baseball, baseball left me “.
I’ll be watching going into next Spring how Bell grows into the job on field decisions such as starters going deeper into games and so forth. Above all, going “oh-for-April” has to stop given the level of play within the division. Then there’s the looming big question on the big buck first baseman who’s slowing down at age 35 (20 some RBI’s at the all star break). He’s produced for roughly half the year three years in a row now. Aging big dollar players are always in the lineup whether they can produce or not. Ownership and managers then always say “we will put always put our best ballclub on the field”.
Take heart though, the Bengals might win 6-games this year !
Please – don’t “Call in” O’Brien! Actually – the unis kinda like jammies – which is appropriate when you are sleep walking. Hey – since Votto has the big salary, dump Bell & make Votto player/mgr. Now that would be entertaining!
– oops – make that: don’t “Call-in” Moran…