By Hal McCoy
The Cincinnati Reds offense continues to run on a lean mixture.
When a team’s first six batters in the order go 1-for-20, the team loses.
When a team has one more hit (four) than it makes errors (3), the team loses.
When a relief pitcher puts eight straight batters on base, the team loses.
And that was the Reds Sunday afternoon in Great American Ball Park during a 7-1 loss to the Miami Marlins.
And to think the score was 0-0 in the eighth inning and Reds relief pitcher TeJay Antone had two outs and nobody on.
But Heriberto Hernandez drove a 3-and-1 sweeper over the left field wall and the Marlins led, 1-0.
That’s where it should have stayed, but the next batter, Agustin Ramirez, grounded directly to shortstop Elly De La Cruz. The degree of difficulty was zero, but his throw pulled first baseman Sal Stewart off the bag, an error.
Antone then gave up a single and a walk to fill the bases and walked pinch-hitter Griffin Conine to force in a second run and it was 2-0 with the bases still loaded.
Ron Marinaccio came in and struck out Esteury Ruiz to keep it at 2-0.
The Reds had only two hits through seven innings. Tyler Stephenson, barely acknowledging his 30th birthday, pinch-hit in the bottom of the eighth and drove Michael Andersen’s first pitch over the right field wall.
It was Stephenson’s 11th pinch-hit home run and cut Miami’s lead to 2-1.
Unfortunately, Marinaccio went back out for the ninth. And just like Antone, he retired the first two batters.
Then the next eight reached base, a five-run inning that included another De La Cruz error and a three-run home run by Javier Sonoja.
All seven Miami runs came after they had two outs and nobody on base.
With a doubleheaders scheduled for Monday against the St. Louis Cardinals, Reds manager Tito Francona did not want to ravage his bullpen, which is why he sent Marinaccio back out for the ninth.
“We were kinda up against it,” said Francona. “Pretty much anybody who pitched today would be down tomorrow.
“Ron (Marinaccio) came in and got the out (in the eighth), then the next inning, a couple guys on and the error (by De La Cruz) and we just couldn’t stop the inning.”
Besides the two errors, De La Cruz was 0 for 3 at the plate and is 2-for-30. Obviously, he is tired by playing every game other than his time on the injured list.
Francona said De La Cruz has got a little long with his swing and explained it with, “He’ll be OK, he is just going through a little dry spell. Everybody does it.”
The Reds were completely bewitched, bothered and bewildered by Miami starter Eury Perez, a pitching clone of Sandy Alcantara.
Alcantara held the Reds to one run and three hits over seven innings Friday, a game the Reds won, 1-0. The run was scored on a misplay by Miami left fielder Hernandez.
He made up for it Sunday by ending the 0-0 tie with his eighth-inning home run.
Perez, a 6-foot-8 righthander who is as skinny as a house downpipe, held the Reds to no runs and two hits over six innings. Both hits were singles by catcher Jose Trevino.
The Reds took no advantage of five walks issued by Perez.
“He has exceptional stuff and we knew that coming in,” said Francona. “They have a couple of starters (Alcantara, Perez) who are on the league’s high end as far as stuff. We did a decent job with his pitch count (100 in six innings), but we had nothing to show for it.”
On the other side, Reds starter Nick Lodolo blanked the Marlins on no runs and three hits over five innings, but told Francona his tank was on ‘E’ after five innings and 73 pitches.
“He was about out of gas. When a pitcher says he’s had it, I’ll never send him back out there,” said Francona. “He kept ‘em off the scoreboard. That’s progress. We just have to get him built up so we can get him out there a little farther.”
Julian Garcia followed Lodolo and was near perfection — two innings, no runs, one hit and four strikeouts.
Then it was Antone and he was out of sorts for the second straight game. On Saturday he entered in the eighth with the Reds leading, 4-3.
He hit two batters, gave up a single and a sacrifice fly and was charged with two runs and a loss when the Marlins won, 8-4.
That the Reds squirm against good pitching, and sometimes against mediocre pitching, is well-documented. They are last in MLB with a team batting average of .227 and last with a .212 average with runners in scoring position.
And grabbing the final wild card spot is a tail light facing into the distance. They are seven games back with only 38 games remaining.