Reds work overtime only to lose again
By HAL McCOY When it comes to a Battle of the Bullpens between the Cincinnati Reds and the Washington Nationals, well, the Nationals are going to win every time. And that’s what happened Friday night in the nation’s capital, even though the Reds bullpen was almost perfect. Almost. They argued, scuffled and battled for 14 […]
Reds: The ‘Height of Embarrassivity’
By HAL McCOY After former Cincinnati Reds pitcher Jose Rijo encountered a tough night, he invented a new word to explain how he felt: “It was the height of embarrassivity,” he said. And for the Reds Thursday night, a new word was needed to explain what happened against the Washington Nationals. It was beyond embarrassment, […]
Cubs: Thy name is ‘Bizarre’ against the Reds
By HAL McCOY When the Chicago Cubs play the Cincinnati Reds, fans can expect the unexpected. Except for one thing. It can be expected that the Cubs will punish the Reds with a lot of runs and a lot of home runs. And the Cubs will win. The unexpected? Kris Bryant hitting three home runs […]
‘Mad Man’ Maddon pulls magic act on Reds
By HAL McCOY CINCINNATI — Chicago Cubs manager Joe Maddon managed Tuesday night’s game like a Mad Magician — and got away with a baseball version of sleight of hand. The game with the Cincinnati Reds droned on and on and on into the 15th inning until the Cubs scored five runs in the top […]
Bryant’s blasts bury Reds (3 homers, 2 doubles)
By HAL McCOY CINCINNATI — If ever the Cincinnati Reds were going to beat Jake Arrieta this year, Monday night should have been the night. The Chicago Cubs’ 11-game winner, the guy who pitched a no-hitter against the Reds the last time he was on the Great American Ball Park mound, was off his game […]
DeSclafani keeps ‘cool head’ in brutal heat
By HAL McCOY CINCINNATI — What the Cincinnati Reds needed was a stopper and Anthony DeSclafani was as good as a patrolman stopping traffic at First & Main. He did it with practically perfect pitching. He did it by holding on base the few runners that reached base. He did it by picking off a […]
It wasn’t much fun after Rose’ induction
By HAL McCOY CINCINNATI — The crowd was announced as 40,871, most of which came to see Pete Rose take his rightful place in the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame Saturday afternoon in Great American Ball Park. And there was punishment dealt out, too, for those who dared to sit under a blazing sun and […]
‘Disguised’ Reds don’t fool the Padres
By Hal McCoy CINCINNATI — In honor of the 1976 Big Red Machine, honored before Friday night’s game on its 40-year anniversary, the 2016 Reds wore throwback uniforms against the San Diego Padres. They worry the pullover jerseys with red stripes around the sleeves and belt-less elastic-topped pants. There was a problem, though. Most of […]
A few minutes with Rose worth a fortune
By HAL McCOY CINCINNATI — A few minutes with Pete Rose is like a week with Average Joe Ballplayer. In those few minutes ‘The Hit King’ will provide a lifetime of stories and memories and, mostly, high entertainment. Like Friday. It was my good fortune to spend 30 minutes with Rose before the 40-year Big […]