Author: Hal McCoy

By HAL McCOY

CINCINNATI — Jackson Brown sang a song called, ‘Running on Empty,’ something Jackson Stephens knew nothing about Saturday afternoon in Great American Ball Park.

Jackson Stephens, a rookie making his major league debut for the Cincinnati Reds, and facing the defending World Series champion Chicago Cubs, worked with a full tank all afternoon and won his first MLB start, 5-3.

Not only did he hold the Cubs mostly at bay for five innings, he used his bat for something other than a walking stick, poking a two-run single in the fourth inning that turned a one-run deficit into a one-run lead that the Reds never relinquished.

AS A MATTER OF FACT, his tank was overflowing when he began. The reports said he threw 91 miles an hour, tops. But that’s not what catcher Tucker Barnhart saw.

“Out of the gate, he threw 95, hit 96, and (pitching coach) Mack Jenkins and I were looking at each other after the first inning and saying, ‘Where the heck did that come from?’ He was at 91 in Triple-A, but he was blowing 94, 95 and even 96 today. It was impressive.”

ALLEGEDLY STEPHENS WAS a stand-in, a one-game fill-in starter — face the Cubs and go bak to Class AAA Louisville.

But after winning and holding the Cubs to three runs — all in one inning — and six hits with eight strikeouts, might he have gained a reprieve?

“A tip of the hat for a really great debut for a young guy,” said manager Bryan Price. “There a lot of balls up in the air on this one. What is most important is that he has an outing under his belt that says, ‘Hey, I can do this.’ He faced the world champs and they had Kris Bryant back in the lineup and Ben Zobrist on the bench activated. They looked a lot more like the team that won the World Series.

“He did a really nice job and I’ll leave it at that. I really enjoyed watching him pitch and if he stays in our rotation I’ll continue to enjoy watching him pitch,” Price added.

Said Stephens, “I feel like I belong, but that’s not my decision My thing is to go out there and compete and give my team a chance to win. That’s all you can do. You can’t control that other stuff. Give it your all and embrace the opportunity. That’s all I tried to do.”

STEPHENS GAVE UP TWO hits to open the second — two on, no outs. But he struck out Javier Baez. Then, with two strikes, Addison Russell ran on a pitch. Stephens struck out Albert Almora Jr. and catcher Tucker Barnhart threw out Russell to end the inning on a strike-‘em out-throw-‘em-out play.

Jon Jay led the third with a home run. Stephens walked Anthony Rizzo with one out and Willson Contreras homered for a 3-0 Cubs lead.

Stephens, though, didn’t blink and retired six of the seven he faced in his final two innings, three via strikeouts.

PRICE THOUGHT STEPHENS lost a bit of concentration and confidence after Jay homered, but Stephens insisted it wasn’t the case.

“I thought he got out of sorts a bit after he gave up th home run to Jay,” said Price. “”Then he gave up the two-run shot to Contreras and now it is a three-run ball game. It is what I saw in the aftermath of that three-run inning that made the difference. It said a lot. He threw strikes, which is challenging for young pitchers who sometimes try to overthrow and miss the bats. He didn’t. He challenged in the zone. He threw two more very strong competitive innings in innings four and five.”

That’s not the way Stephens saw it, though.

“No, the Jay home run didn’t bother me,” he said. “I didn’t locate that pitch very well and he got it. It really didn’t bother me. I just tried to pound the zone and that’s all you can do after a home run.”

OF THE OVERALL EXPERIENCE, Stephens said he had the normal flutters in his stomach, but nothing he couldn’t handle. And he added, “This was unbelievable, a childhood dream. It was go out to compete and have fun.”

The Reds staged their comeback against Cubs starter Eddie Butler with a four-run fourth that culminated in the two-run single up the middle by Stephens that turned a 3-2 deficit into a 4-3 lead.

Adam Duvall’s run-scoring double and a bases loaded walk on a great at bat by Barnhart made it 3-2 and gave Stephens his opportunity.

“Brian told me, ‘If that first pitch is there, swing at it,’” said Stephens. “I was like, ‘All right,’ and he put it right there and I got just got enough of it to get it by the shortstop.”

PRICE SAID HE DIDN’T consider pinch-hitting for Stephens with two outs, the Reds down a run, with the bases loaded.

“In theory, baseball people are going to have their opinions of whether that was the right move or the wrong move, even though he got the hit,” said Price. “But the people who know best — the manager and coaches — know we’re down to a seven-man bullpen and it’s only the fourth inning.

“And we’re trying to see players, trying to see how this kid handles if after throwing 80 pitches in four innings,” Price added. “He really needed to go back out on the mound. We felt there was enough time left in the game to continue to add on runs.”

And they did. They added two more.

“The premium was really on Stephens going back out and pitching the fifth,” said Price. “That outweighed pinch-hitting with two outs.”

And so after a long losing stretch, the Reds have won four of their last five against the NL Central’s two best teams — two of three from the Milwaukee Brewers and two straight from the Cubs.

By HAL McCOY

CINCINNATI — With Kris Bryant (sprained ankle), Kyle Schwarber (minor league demotion), Ben Zobrist (minor league rehab) and Miguel Montero (insensitive mouth) all absent, the Chicago Cubs were Silly Putty in the hands of Scott Feldman Friday night in Great American Ball Park.

There were 39,501 looking on, a majority dressed in Chicago blue, as Feldman flicked aside the underachieving Cubs. He painted seven shutout innings and gave up only two hits en route to a 5-0 victory.

Feldman took a no-hitter into the sixth inning and had two outs. Second baseman Jose Peraza booted a ground ball for an error and Ian Happ singled for the first hit. Feldman also gave up a one-out single to Addison Russell in the seventh, but that was it.

HIS STERLING SILVER PITCHING line was seven innings, no runs, two hits, two walks seven strikeouts.

The Reds signed the 34-year-old Feldman in the off-season as a possible fifth starter and now he stands atop the rotation with a team-best seven victories against five losses.

And he came out of the bargain bin. As recently as 2014 he was paid $12 million a year by the Houston Astros. The Reds, though, signed him for an incentive-filled $2.3 million, about what one might think a pitcher with an 83-87 career record is worth.

But he has been gold for the Reds, filling one of the rotation gaps vacant because of injuries to Homer Bailey, Anthony DeSclafani and Brandon Finnegan.

WITH FELDMAN’S AGE and the Reds in a rebuild era, manager Bryan Price was asked if Feldman might be trade bait to a team looking for pitching help.

Price said that is an organizational decision, but he wants Feldman wearing a Reds uniform all year — and maybe beyond.

“I love Scott Feldman and think the world of him,” said Price. “And it isn’t just what he has done from a performance standpoint. He is great in the clubhouse and great with the younger guys and he is a gamer. You need guys like him for your young players to be around to sell the right way to play the game.”

ASKED IF FELDMAN IS a saving grace due to the rotation injuries, Price said, “When we signed him I thought, ‘Well, if he doesn’t make the team as a starter we can use him in the bullpen,’ But as soon as I saw him I said, ‘This guy is a starter.’ We are lucky to have him. You look at our rotation and look for one constant and it is the quality of Scott Feldman.”

FELDMAN SAID THE REASON he signed with the Reds, sifting through other offers, was because what has happened is what he hoped would happen — an opportunity in the rotation.

“Part of the reason I signed here is because after I talked to Price and the front office I believed there was an opportunity for me to start. They brought me in here to pitch and even though some people were uncertain about my role I knew they had a lot of confidence in me.

“It makes a huge different when the manager has confidence in you and runs you out there every five days,” he said.

Asked how many innings he has ever gone with a no-hitter, Feldman smiled and said, “Honestly, I have no idea. Probably not more than an inning. I knew about it (the no-hitter). I always glance out there to see what the score is and my pitch count. I knew after the first inning I hadn’t given up a hit.”

Feldman held the toothless Cubs at bat for four innings at 0-0 until Adam Duvall delivered a three-run home run in the fourth off left hander Mike Montgomery.

After Billy Hamilton doubled but was thrown out trying to stretch it into a triple, Zack Cozart singled for his first hit since coming off the disabled list before the game. Joey Votto doubled over the first base bag to put runners on third and second and Duvall delivered his 19th home run, an opposite-field punch over the right fiield wall.

DUVALL WAS INVOLVED in the fourth run, too, leading the sixth with a walk. He stole second and scored on a safety squeeze bunt base hit by Jose Peraza.

Duvall said he was loving what he saw from Feldman while he stood in left field watching frustrated hitters.

“When a pitcher has three pitches he is throwing for strikes, like he was, it makes it tough on a hitter,” said Duvall. “He was throwing first-pitch breaking balls and sinkers on the corners. It was very fun to play behind him tonight. They were completing missing his sinkers.”

By HAL McCOY

CINCINNATI — Giving up home runs is as common as a denominator for the Cincinnati Reds. Biff, bam, boom.

It doesn’t matter what team or what nickname, it doesn’t matter what position a player plays and it doesn’t matter where the player bats in the order.

Somebody at some point is going to hit one — or two or three — baseballs out of the ball park.

On Thursday night it was six. S-i-x. And it was ‘Homers by Homer.’

HOMER BAILEY, MAKING HIS second start of the season, gave up three home runs — one in each of the first three innings that launched the Milwaukee Brewers to an 11-3 victory Thursday night in Great American Ball Park during which they unleashed six home runs.

—Ryan Braun homered with two outs in the first inning, his 24th career home run in GABP, the most for any visiting player in stadium history. Braun broke the record held by Houston’s Lance Berkman.

—Manny Pina hit a one-out home run in the second and Jonathan Villar hit a leadoff homer in the third.

—After Villar led the third with a home run, the Brewers scored three more on a hit batsman and three straight two-out hits.

And midway through the inning manager Bryan Price was ejected by home plate umpire/crew chief Fieldin Culbreth for arguing a challenge that went against the Reds. Arguing a challenge is automatic ejection.

For those keeping count, it was Price’s 11th career thumb-job, second of the year and his third for arguing a replay decision.

IT WAS THE 22ND STRAIGHT game in which Reds pitchers have given up home runs. The Baltimore Orioles went into Thursday night’s game against Toronto with 26 straight games, tying the all-time major league record and it ended when the Orioles shut out the Blue Jays, 2-0.

Reds pitchers have given up 135 homers in 78 games and are marching relentlessly toward the Major League record of 258 for the season, set by the Reds last year.

Bailey was finished after three innings and despite giving up six runs and six hits his earned run average declined from 43.20 to 27.00.

WITH A SEAT IN HIS OFFICE after his ejection, Price had a TV view of the game and said of Bailey, “He is still getting his sea legs under him.

“I could see where pitches ended up and what quadrants they were in,” said Price. “I could see the bite of the pitch. He has made two starts and the two starts have not been very good. We are just going to have to keep giving him the ball every fifth day and let him work through, finding his way.

“He is getting good coaching, he had a good game plan, he has thrown to both catchers. There are no excuses. He just hasn’t been very sharp and his pitch quality certainly hasn’t been what we saw when he was healthy back in 2014,” Price added.

“From our reports and what I saw when he pitched in D.C. there is no reason to believe he won’t make a full recovery and give us quality innings again,” said Price.

Bailey believes, too.

“The action on my pitches look good, the velocity is there,” he said. “I just need to get back to the speed of the game and take my time and just be a little bit sharper. That little bit of sharpness is the difference between the home run and ground ball or the home run and the pop out. It is just going to take a little bit of time.”

BAILEY WAS REPLACED BY rookie Kevin Shackelford, the 12th rookie to make his major league debut with the Reds this season.

And the first batter he faced, Villar (need you guess), hit a home run. Then he gave up two singles and a three-run home run to Jesus Aguilar, playing first base in place of Eric Thames.

The sixth home run was hit by Domingo Santana, leading off the eighth inning against rookie Ariel Hernandez.

With the win the first place Brewers avoided a three-game sweep by the Reds and they ducked that indignity without power hitter Eric Thames in the lineup. He was given a mental day off after he struck out four straight times Wednesday, his second four-strikeout game in nine days.

MEANWHILE, WHILE THE Brewers were threatening to sink a few boats on the Ohio River, the Reds were hopeless and helpless against Jimmy Nelson.

He retired 10 of the first 11, issuing a walk to Joey Votto in the first. Then Votto ruined his no-hitter and his shutout in the fourth inning with Votto’s 22nd home run.

Nelson retired eight in a row after Votto’s home run, then Votto hit his second home run of the game, 23rd of the season, 13th career multi-homer game, the first this season.

Nelson went seven innings and gave up two runs, three hits, walked one and struck out 11. Only Votto bothered him and Votto bothers everybody.

HIS 23 HOME RUNS ARE the most he has ever had before the All-Star break and he has 10 more games before the break.

“I have never seen him on a power streak like this,” Price said of Votto. “It was about this time last year that his on-base percentage and hitting went crazy after he hit about .200 the first two months.

“All the damage started to come then,” Price added. “I’ve had the good fortune to see him really, really good. However, I have never seen this type of power display since I’ve been here.”

Unfortunately, watching his pitchers gave up home runs in bunches is not a new experience.

By HAL McCOY

CINCINNATI — While 32,000 fans in Nippert Stadium watched FC Cincinnati in a soccer defensive struggle, 21,842 in Great American Ball Park watched the Cincinnati Reds slap some strangling defense on the Milwaukee Brewers.

The heavy-duty glove work and the not-unusual dash around the bases late in the game by Billy Hamilton produced a 4-3 victory.

Defense, though, was the shining light this night for the Reds. Scott Schebler, Adam Duvall, Jose Peraza, Tucker Barnhart and Scooter Gennett all used defense to make this game a winner, the Reds’ second straight over the first place Brewers.

—The Play of the Night was in the second inning when Schebler went above the right field wall to bring back a three-run home run bid by Travis Shaw, turning it into a one-run sacrifice fly.

—Before Schebler’s catch in the second inning, he lost a fly ball with two runners on and nobody out. Center fielder Billy Hamilton, seeing Schebler’s perplexed predicament, ran several yards to cut in front of Schebler and make the catch.

—Peraza made two above-and-beyond stops-and-throws to get outs at critical times.

—And the game ended when the Brewers tried a trick play and catcher Tucker Barnhart and second baseman Scooter Gennett put the double kibosh on it.

THE BREWERS PUNCHED two singles in the ninth off closer Raisel Iglesias, putting runners on third and first.

With two strikes on pinch-hitter Jesus Aguilar, Orland Arcia broke for second, hoping to draw a throw and get into a rundown so the runner on third, Jonathan Villar, could score the tying run from third.

Catcher Barnhart never hesitated when Aguilar struck out for the second out. He ripped a throw to second. Arcia tried to dodge Gennett, but he slapped a tag on him — a game-ending double play.

OF ALL THE DEFENSIVE spectaculars, Barnhart said first of his play, “They were trying to put on a play where he got into a rundown, but Scooter made great quick tag.”

Asked if he looked Villar back to third before making the throw, Barnhart said, “No, I was blind by the (right handed) hitter, so I was just throwing, to be honest. As soon as I let go of it, I thought, ‘Oh, no.’ But Scooter made that great play.”

And the overall defense?

“We’re always going to play defense,” he said. “The term ‘defense’ really makes sense with this team. We a lot of really, really, really good defenders all over the field, including guys who come off the bench.”

ANOTHER ‘DEFENDER’ NEARLY forgotten was rookie pitcher Luis Castillo, making his second major league start after skipping Triple-A and coming directly from Class AA Pensacola. He pitched 5 2/3 innings and held the offensive-minded Brewers to two runs and five hits with three walks and nine strikeouts.

Said Barnhart, “Man, his stuff is electric. It really is. What is going to help him, and he works on it in the bullpen, is running the ball in on right handers. When he starts to be able to do that it is going to open up more for me. He was really good tonight. He got out of some jams and for a guy to be able to come out of Double-A and do that, limiting damage, is huge.”

ALONG WITH STEALING THIS one on defense, the Reds stole it on the basepaths, too, and it is always obvious who the thief-in-the-night was.

It was master baseball criminal Billy Hamilton whose two thefts late in the game broke a 3-3 tie and provided the winning run.

With the game against tied in the eighth inning, Hamilton worked a full-count walk from relief pitcher Corey Knebel.

After Knebel threw over to first base three times, Hamilton swiped second on his first pitch. Then with one out Hamilton stole third base, his 33rd theft this season.

THAT MADE IT EASY for him to score on Adam Duvall’s infield hit that was stopped by diving third baseman Travis Shaw, who couldn’t make a throw.

And the Reds didn’t beat a slouch. Knebel struck out Gennett in the eighth inning, the 39th straight game he has struck out a batter, tying a major league record for relief pitchers, set in 1977 by Bruce Sutter of the Chicago Cubs. Said Reds manager Bryan Price, “I voted for him for the All-Star game.”

Duvall homered in the second. And Gennett’s two-run home run was the second Reds hit and that’s all they had through six innings, three runs and two hits.

Duvall drove in two runs, the first with a home run in the second inning. Gennett cracked a two-run home run in the third but through six that’s all the Reds had — thee runs, two hits. But they led, 3-2, when Tony Cingrani started the eighth. He struck out the first two then gave up a game-tying home run to Travis Shaw to tie it.

HAMILTON, THOUGH, SAVED the day as Duvall provided the infield hit that permitted Hamilton to score the game-winner.

“There was some real nice plays made in the outfield tonight,” said Duvall with a gross understatement which affected the outcome of the game — good defense, timely hitting.”

Of Schebler’s catch, Duvall said, “Yeah, the best catch I’ve seen this year. That was nice and I got to watch it on the big screen in slo-mo. Whenever an outfielder makes a good play we all get excited. We take pride in doing the little things right.”

OF HIS TEAM’S DEFENSE, manager Bryan Price said, “It has been fantastic all year, it really has. I don’t even know what to say. I write notes during the game on my lineup sheet about the defense.”

So what did he write Wednesday:

“Schebler robs a three-run homer (on Shaw,” he read off the card. “Nice catch by Schebler going back to end the sixth inning. Peraza a really nice play to end the seventh up the middle. I just keep writing them down. Hamilton the saving catch in the second when Schebler lost the ball in the sun. Duvall on the 7-to-4 off the wall to nail Hernan Perez at second. Eugenio Suarez knocked down a liner that Eric Sogard hit and was able to make a play. It constantly shows up. . .and certainly the play by Tucker and Scooter to end the game. Just sensational.”

By HAL McCOY

CINCINNATI — They scheduled a baseball game at Great American International Airport for Tuesday night and it turned into a rehearsal for the All-Star game’s Home Run Derby.

Baseball’s were flying out of GABP like house flies fleeing aerosol cans during a seven-homer game won by the Cincinnati Reds, 8-6, over the Milwaukee Brewers.

And it wasn’t even a hot night. But the obviously tightly stitched baseballs kept disappearing over yonder walls.

THE REDS HIT FOUR OFF Brewers starter Junior Guerra and the Brewers hit three off Reds starter Tim Adleman. By giving up four, Guerra joined a not-so-exclusive club. He is the 22nd major league pitcher this year to give up four home runs in a game. Nobody has given up five, but Guerra escaped because he was removed from the game in the middle of the fifth inning.

It was also the 22nd time seven home runs have been hit in a game in GABP and the record is 10, set in April of 2014 when Pittsburgh hit six and the Reds hit four.

ON THIS NIGHT THE Reds home runs were hit by Billy Hamilton, leading off the bottom of the first, Adam Duval (also in the first), Eugenio Suarez in the third and Joey Votto in the fifth.

Votto’s broke a 5-5 tie to give the Reds an 8-5 lead after they squandered a 4-0 lead in the first.

The Brewers came back from that 4-0 deficit with home runs by Manny Pina and Orland Arcia, both in the second inning, and a three-run rip by Travis Shaw in the third that gave the Brewers a 5-4 lead.

Suarez’s home run in the third tied it, 5-5, setting the picnic table for Votto’s game-deciding blow.

“The Suarez home run went to right center (opposite field), which was nice to see,” said Price.

Shaw, a native of Washington Court House, is a son to former Reds closer Jeff Shaw, who stood behind the third base dugout and applauded his son’s home run.

“I think we hit 15 or 16 balls right on the screws tonight,” said manager Bryan Price. “We were really good on offense, I thought (10 hits). There were some big blows with the home runs, but also some real quality at bats, a lot of barrel on ball.

“Billy Hamilton set the tone with that leadoff home run (only his second career leadoff home run and first since 2014), but he also smoked a base hit in his next at bat. And Scooter Gennett had some good at bats, too (a hit, a walk and two runs scored).”

HITTING, THOUGH, ISN’T usually a major puncture wound for the Reds. It is the starting pitcher and Adleman gave up five runs and five hits in the first three innings.

Then came two scoreless. And it earned him a victory to push his record to 5-and-4.

“After giving up five in the first three innings, he ends up giving us two scoreless,” said Price. “That gave us a chance to have that big game-breaking three-run inning in the fifth.”

The home run hitting and scoring was finished at the end of the fifth inning, except for one run scored by the Brewers in the sixth against Michael Lorenzen.

AND THE GAME ENDED with a close call. Ryan Braun, just off the disabled list, cranked one into the right field corner that Scott Schebler snagged against the wall at full sprint to end the game.

“Schebler running into the corner and making that game-ending catch saved us from having to face Travis Shaw, who is a terrific hitter having a great year, as the potential tying runner,” said Price.

The big blow, though, was Votto’s 21st home run, another big game from a guy having a big year who may not go to the All-Star game. He is far down in the first base voting.

Price, though, believes he belongs on the All-Star roster.

“I do believe he belongs,” he said. “I voted for him and I’m not a guy who just votes for his own players. I don’t do that, I’m not that guy. I vote for whom I think is the best.

“But we’re blessed here in that we get to see him every day,” Price added. “There are so many parts of his game that is so good — the 17 doubles and 21 home runs. More walks than strikeouts. His defense. There are just so many parts of his game that is All-Star caliber.”

By HAL McCOY

When it comes to news about the Cincinnati Reds 2017 pitching staff, all news is bad news.

The latest calamity struck Monday afternoon during the make-up of a rained-out game in St. Louis, a game the Reds eventually lost, 8-2.

Early in the game, while Brandon Finnegan was pitching for the first time since April 15, Jim Day of Fox Sports Ohio did an interview in the dugout with Bronson Arroyo.

BEFORE THE GAME, Arroyo was placed on the 60-day disabled list and he told Day that he has thrown his last pitch, that all medicine and all treatment of his aching shoulder and elbow failed and, “You have probably seen me throw my last pitch.”

Not long thereafter, in the fourth inning, Finnegan threw his third pitch of the inning to Paul DeJohn and Finnegan winced and flinched.

After a conference on the mound with manager Bryan Price and athletic trainer Steve Baumann, Finnegan left the game with tears in his eyes.

After spending three months on the disabled list with a shoulder issue, it is likely that Finnegan will lapse back onto the disabled list after he was diagnosed as a strained left triceps (shoulder again).

DURING HIS BRIEF TIME, Finnegan was charged with three runs, three hits and four walks in three innings.

And like Homer Bailey on Saturday, who also came off the disabled list, Finnegan’s return was a massive struggle, especially with his command and control.

Finnegan walked two of the first three hitters he faced. After he walked leadoff hitter Tommy Pfam, Randal Grichuk hit a shallow fly ball to center field, where Patrick Kivlehan was stationed for the first time in his major league career.

He nonchalantly caught the fly ball and flipped it softly to the cutoff man. Pfam, seeing the lackadaisical demeanor, tagged at first and took second. Then he stole third and scored on a passed ball by catcher Devin Mesoraco, who had two passed balls while Finnegan was on the mound.

Jedd Gyorko ignited a 413-foot home run for a 3-0 Cardinals lead. At that point Finnegan had thrown 18 pitches, only six for strikes.

AND IT WAS THE 19^th straight game in which Reds pitching has given up at least one home run — usually more than one — a club record.

Austin Brice replaced Finnegan in the fourth inning and gave up three runs and four hits, including a home run by Grichuk, his second home run in two days since he was recalled from Triple-A.

Brice ended up giving up five runs and nine hits in only two innings of work.

The top four hitters in the St. Louis batting order combined for eight hits, seven RBI and six runs scored.

MEANWHILE, ON THE OTHER side, St. Louis starter Michael Wacha hadn’t pitched beyond the fifth inning in five of his last six starts.

His perfect remedy is the Reds, whom he nearly always beats. He pitched six innings and gave up one run, five hits, walked one and struck out five.

That was good enough to push his career record against the Reds to 8-and-1 in 14 starts. And it pinned the 13^th loss in the last 15 games on the Reds.

Adam Duvall drove in both Reds runs and Scooter Gennett scored both runs.

AND IT WASN’T TOO long ago that the Reds swept four games from the Cardinals in Cincinnati and the Reds came into the game with a 7-and-2 record this season against St. Louis.

The Reds return home Tuesday night to start a three-game series against first place Milwaukee after going 2-and-5 on the trip to Miami, Washington and St. Louis.

By HAL McCOY

What Scott Feldman did Sunday afternoon just puts extreme emphasis on what the problem is with the Cincinnati Reds.

Starting pitching, starting pitching, starting pitching and, yes, starting pitching.

Feldman pitched seven innings against the Washington Nationals and gave up two runs, seven hits and just two walks to carry the Reds to a 6-2 victory.

What is so special about that? Feldman is the first Reds starting pitcher to win a game since June 8. And Reds starters were 0-and-8 with an 8.48 earned run average for their last eight decisions.

And guess who that starting pitcher was June 8. If you said Scott Feldman you win a pair of those spiffy baseball socks Joey Votto wears.

On June 8 Feldman shut down the St. Louis Cardinals on no runs and four hits over seven innings for a 5-2 Reds victory.

Feldman’s only misstep Sunday against the Nationals was a two-run home run by Michael Taylor in the fourth inning — the 18^th straight game that the Reds have given up at least one home run, a club record.

That was it, though. Feldman was in complete control of Nationals slugger Anthony Rendon to escape two problems. The Nationals had two on and two out in the first inning but Feldman struck out Rendon. The Nationals had two on with two outs in the third but Feldman retired Rendon on a weak ground ball.

What it made it much healthier for Feldman was that before the threw a pitch the Reds hav4 a 5-0 lead against Nationals starter Tanner Roark.

The first four Reds reached base to start the game. Billy Hamilton doubled and Scooter Gennett singled him home. Joey Votto singled and Gennett came all the way around to score on right fielder Bryce Harper’s throwing error to third base.

Adam Duvall walked and a couple of ground balls scored a third run. Jose Peraza singled and Tucker Barnhart doubled for two more runs and a 5-0 lead.

The unbelievable Scooter Gennett homered in the second inning, his 11^th homer (fourth in his previous seven games), and he finished the day with four hits, two runs scored and two driven in.

Gennett presents Reds manager Bryan Price with a dilemma. Gennett is starting at second base because shortstop Zack Cozart is on the disabled list. Price moved Jose Peraza to shortstop and put Gennett at second. Cozart is eligible to come off the disabled list Wednesday.

So what is Price going to do with Gennett?

After Gennett’s second-inning home run, the Reds didn’t score again. And after Taylor’s fourth-inning home run, the Nats didn’t score again.

Tony Cingrani pitched one-thir of an inning and gave up a hit, then Raisel Iglesias pitched the final 1 2/3 innings, retiring all five batters he faced with one strikeout.

The win was only the second in 14 games for the last place Reds and the Sunday victory prevented the Nationals from a three-game sweep. Washington hasn’t swept a series from the Reds since 2008.

In addition to Gennett’s four hits, Billy Hamilton had two hits for the second straight game after shedding a career-worst 0-for-20. And Tucker Barnhart had two hits and two RBI.

The Reds left Washington for a one-day stay in St. Louis, where they will make-up a rained-out game against the Cardinals. Brandon Finnegan comes off the disabled list to make the start.

By HAL McCOY

There is no such thing as a one-man cavalry.

Anybody who expected pitcher Homer Bailey to come charging over the hill on a great white horse to save the Cincinnati Reds isn’t dealing with reality.

The much-awaited and much-ballyhooed return of Bailey to the Reds rotation finally happened Saturday afternoon in Nationals Park, but if you blinked you missed it.

It is one thing to make three scoreless rehabilitation appearances in the minor leagues. It is quite another thing to transfer it to the major leagues.

BAILEY’S RETURN TO THE major league mound lasted only 1 2/3 innings against the Washington Nationals and he was charged with eight runs on six hits and three walks. He faced 14 hitters and nine reached bases and three walks.

It was not realistic to expect Bailey, who last started a game in late August of last year, to pitch a three-hit shutout. It will take time for him to grab command of his pitches, it will take time for all the rust to evaporate, it will take time for him to build stamina.

It was only Bailey’s ninth start in the last three seasons because he has undergone three elbow surgeries. His last was this February to remove bone chips.

But, indeed, it was painful and awful to watch as the Reds went on to lose, 18-3, their 13^th loss in their last 14 games.

THE FIRST TWO NATIONALS reached base in the first inning when Bailey gave up a single to Trea Turner and a walk to Brian Goodwin. Both scored on a double by Ryan Zimmerman for a 2-0 Washington led in the first.

It was plug ugly in the second when six Nationals scored and Bailey left the game after his 61^st pitch in only 1 2/3 innings.

Michael Taylor opened the second with a single and was bunted to second by pitcher Joe Ross. Trea Turner singled for a run. Goodwin walked. Zimmerman also walked to fill the bases and Daniel Murphy ripped a three-run double to the right field corner. Anthony Rendon doubled for a another run and Bailey’s day was done.

Lisalverto Bonilla replaced Bailey and quick gave up a double to Matt Wieters for another run that was added to Bailey’s total and it was 8-0.

Amazingly, two of Bailey’s five outs were strikeouts and both were Bryan Harper, Washington’s best hitter.

AND ANOTHER PITCHER WHO has resided on the disabled list for most of the season returns to pitch Monday. The Reds have a one-game stop in St. Louis Monday to make up a rained out game and it will be pitched by Brandon Finnegan.

The Nats didn’t stop after their assault on Bailey. They continued their rampage against Bonilla, scoring four in the fourth when the Reds made two errors and Michael Taylor clubbed a two-run home run, his first of two homers. The Reds have given up home runs in 17 straight games, a club record.

Blake Wood pitched the eighth and gave up four runs and four hits — the first five he faced reached base on four hits and a walk.

Before it mercifully ended, the Nationals had 18 runs, 19 hits and were 12 for 19 with runners in scoring position.

Trea Turner had five hits and scored four runs. Daniel Murphy had four RBI, Michael Taylor had four hits that included two home runs as he scored four and drove in three as Washington’s No. 8 hitter.

The Reds didn’t score until the sixth when they scored one run and added two in the eighth.

Billy Hamilton was 0 for 20 when he punched his first of two hits. Patrick Kivlehan, batting for Joey Votto, homered in the sixth inning for the Reds first run. And he was 2 for 2. Scooter Gennett had two hits and Tucker Barnhart had two hits.

But the Reds fell 15 runs short.

By HAL McCOY

One would think that if a team scores four runs in the first inning against Washington Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg, that team would win.One would be wrong.

One would think that if the game came down to a battle between bullpens, the worst (Washington) versus one of he best (Cincinnati Res), the best bullpen would win.

One would be wrong.

THAT’S THE WAY IT went Friday night when the Cincinnati Reds lost yet again, this time by 6-5 in 10 innings to Dusty Baker’s Washington Nationals.

The game ended when Bryce Harper, facing Raisel Iglesias with two outs, two on and a 3-and-2 count, drilled the ball off the right field wall to end it abruptly.

But a whole lot happened leading up to that moment.

STRASBURG, ONE OF BASEBALL’S best, brought an 8-and-2 record into the game but the Reds scored four runs on five hits in the top of the first.

And they added a fifth run in the third inning to give rookie Luis Castillo a 5-1 lead.

Castillo, called up from Double-A Pensacola, survived five walks in five innings, including walking the bases loaded in one inning. He gave up two runs and five hits as the 11^th different pitcher to start a game for the Reds this season and the sixth rookie.

He turned a 5-2 lead over to the bullpen. But a tiring bullpen couldn’t preserve a win for him.

MICHAEL LORENZEN GAVE UP two runs, Wandy Peralta gave up the tying run and Iglesias, after retiring the first two batters in the 10^th on strikeouts, gave up three straight hits to lose it.

And that worst bullpen?

Well, four members of the Nationals bullpen gave up no runs and one hit over the last five innings to assure the Reds would lose for the 12^th time in their last 13 games.

Remember last year when members of the Reds bullpen had a penchant for giving up home runs to the first batter they faced?

It’s back.

BOTH LORENEN AND PERALTA gave up home runs to the first batter they faced. And Lorenzen gave up a home run in Tampa Bay to the first batter he faced in his previous appearance.

Lorenzen replaced Castillo in the sixth and the first batter he faced, Daniel Murphy, homered down the right field line to cut the lead to 5-3. Lorenzen then walked the next hitter, Anthony Rendon, on a full count and the third hitter, Matt Wieters, singled.

After a sacrifice bunt, pinch-hitter Stephen Drew hit a sacrifice fly to the left field wall and it was 5-4.

Peralta came on to pitch the eighth and the first batter, Brian Goodwin hit his second home run of the game — two of the four the Nationals hit — and it was 5-5.

IGLESIAS RENDERED BOTH Ryan Raburn and pinch-hitter Michael Taylor helpless to start the 10^th, striking out both.

Trea Turner dropped a single into shallow right field and took third on Goodwin’s single to right.

When Harper came to the plate the Nationals were 0 for 8 with runners in scoring position. Harper remedied that as the Nationals came from behind to win for the 19^th time this season.

BILLY HAMILTON, 0 for 18, STRUCK out to start the game. Then the Reds performer a merry-go-round against Strasburg.

Scooter Gennett clobbered his 10^th home run. Joey Votto singled and Adam Duvall doubled. Eugenio Suarez walked to load the bases. Scott Schebler hit a sacrifice fly, Devin Mesoraco singled for a third run and Jose Peraza singled to make it 4-0.

Goodwin hit his first home run of the game in the bottom of the first against one of Castillo’s searing fastballs. His fastball was between 97 and 100 for all five innings.

MESORACO, WHO WAS ON base four straight times with two singles and two hit by pitches, singled in a run in the third for a 5-1 Reds lead and the offense was finished.

“Our inability to put some add-on runs on the board really hurt,” manager Bryan Price told writers after the game. “That’s one that was just sitting there for us to win. We weren’t able to get it done.”

Anthony Rendon homered in the fourth, a 454-foot rip, to start the Nationals comeback and the Reds have given up home runs in 16 straight games, one game shy of the club record.

Homer Bailey makes his 2017 debut Saturday afternoon after undergoing elbow surgery in February. He posted a 1.08 earned run average in three minor-league rehab starts.