By Hal McCoy
How does a major-league baseball team leave 17 men on base? The Cincinnati Red know it isn’t easy, but they can frustratingly count the ways.
Because they did it.
They left 17 runners standing on the bases, begging for somebody, anybody to drive them home.
But only two scored and the Reds missed an opportunity to sweep the New York Mets in Citi Field, but lost Wednesday night, 4-2.
The Mets took the efficient way, a pair of solo home runs by Juan Soto and Eric Wagaman in the first two innings and an unearned run off Reds starter Andrew Abbott.
The Mets ended a five-game losing streak because the Reds could not beg, borrow nor steal runs out of the 20 men they put on base
After six innings they had stranded 12, the most by any team in baseball this year had left on base after six innings.
They had runners on base in every inning but scored in only two of them via 3 for 15 with runners in scoring position.
After the two Mets home runs, the Reds scored an unearned run in the third when Elly De La Cruz reached on pitcher Jonah Tong’s throwing error and a run-scoring single by Nathaniel Lowe.
The Reds cut it to 3-2 in the sixth on Tyler Stephenson’s leadoff double and Sal Stewart’s run-scoring single on a dribbler that trickled and stayed fair up the third base line.
And how did the Reds strand 17? Count ‘em up and count the ways.
FIRST: With two on and one out, Sal Stewart grounded out and Eugenio Suarez struck out.
SECOND: With two on and two outs, Blake Dunn flied to center.
THIRD: After scoring a run, they had two on with two outs and Spencer Steer struck out.
FOURTH: With a runner on first and one out, Dunn hit into a force play and De La Cruz flied to center.
FIFTH: With two on and two outs, Spencer Steer lined out to left.
SIXTH: After scoring a run, they had the bases loaded with two outs and Suarez flied to right.
SEVENTH: With two outs and one on, pinch-hitter Dane Myers lined out to center.
EIGHTH: With a runner on first and no outs, De La Cruz flied to right, JJ Bleday popped to the catcher and Stewart took a called third strike.
NINTH: With the bases loaded and one out, Myers struck out and Dunn struck out.
The ninth inning deserves special mention. New York closer Devin Williams took the mound to protect the 4-2 lead.
For his career, Williams had held the Reds to 1 for 47 with 26 strikeouts.
But he opened the ninth by walking Suarez and Nathaniel Lowe, both on 3-and-2 counts.
He struck out Steer, who owned the only hit any Cincinnati batter had against him. Then he walked P.J. Higgins, again on a full count to fill the bases with one out.
So the Reds had the potential tying runs on third and second and the potential go-ahead run on first base.
That’s when Williams stuck out Myers and Dunn to end it.
So the Reds are 1 for 50 with 30 strikeouts against Williams. He has pitched 15 straight scoreless, hitless innings against them.
In his previous appearance, Williams gave up a walk-off grand slam home run in Miami to the Marlins.
Reds manager Tito Francona was asked if he thought his team had Williams against the ropes and he said, “Ah, man. That’s one of those. . .yeah, yeah. . .until we walked in I thought we were going to win the game.”
And the first eight innings?
“We hit some balls hard, just not quite far enough,” said Reds manager Tito Francona. But so did the Mets.
“We had some good at bats, but what happened is gonna happen.”
Other than the two home runs, Abbott was good as tried to win his fifth game in his last six starts. He pitched six innings and gave up three runs (two earned), walked one and struck out four, a quality start..
“Abbott gave us a great chance to win,” said Francona. “The two runs were the two solo homers. That’s what he can do. I don’t think it was altogether easy, but he gave up two solo homers.
“He knows what he’s doing, I know he feels way better about himself and his confidence is growing, as it should,” Francona added.
Abbott’s assessment of himself was not overly harsh.
“I missed two spots (the homers),” he said. “I got punched for it and that’s gonna happen,” he said. “I thought I rebounded well, first-pitch strikes. I gave the team a chance and that’s all you can ask and that’s all I went to do anyway.”
On a positive note for the Reds, left-handed relief pitcher Caleb Ferguson, on the injured list since spring training, made his Reds debut and retired the final four Mets on a fly ball, a strikeout and two ground balls.
“Ferguson came in and did a hell of a job,” said Francona.
He couldn’t say that about all the guys standing in the batter’s box staring out at teammates standing on the bases.
Hello Hal!
Brayan O’Malley over in Norway here.
I’m glad I re-found your website, it’s been a while.
You write better than any other scribe that covers the Reds, despite not being in the clubhouse or maybe even at the ballpark.
I don’t know how you maintain the drive – retirement apparently isn’t part of your vocabulary.
As far as the Reds…. After 60 years of Reds fandom (dating back to my first visit to Crosley when I was 4-5), the Reds are losing me. I don’t understand how the individual talent never adds up for the Reds the way it does for other young teams (Brewers, Rays, Diamondbacks, Blue Jays… 2016 Chubbies). It is so frustrating!! Being over in Europe, it’s easy not to subject myself to nightly suicidal thoughts, but day games are primetime games over here – which I have watched religiously for years, and I’ve always gotten up an hour early and watched the last 5-6 innings when they’re on the West Coast.
But the frustration, combined with life’s priorities has me just shrugging my shoulders and doing other things than living and dying with the Reds from day-to-day.
The Castellini’s – and the ice cream owner (cannot recall his name) before them – have ruined the franchise. Tossing out bobbleheads, filling the merchandise store with all-black, all-red and all-ugly uniform versions (to make money!) and spending money on the Reds HoF instead of the on-field product.
Irritating.
Thank again for hanging in there. You know I appreciate your work.