Double displeasure for Reds — Two losses in one day

By HAL McCOY

The Cincinnati Reds doubled their displeasure Saturday afternoon. They lost two games in different venues, both with some inefficient pitching.

They split the squad and sent one to Scottsdale to play a split-squad San Francisco Giants team. And lost, 9-7.

They sent the other half to Peoria to play the Seattle Mariners and lost, 7-6.

Both starters were uninspiring.

SCOTT FELDMAN, WHO HAD one foot firmly planted in the starting rotation when he arrived as a free agent, started against the Giants.

Feldman pitched 3 1/3 innings and gave up four runs and six hits. Three of the hits were home runs, two by Michael Morse.

Brandon Finnegan started against Seattle and pitched only 2 1/3 innings and gave up three runs, six hits and a pair of walks, pushing his spring earned run average to 8.59 in three appearances.

THE REDS OWNED A 6-2 lead over the Giants in the fourth inning, but the bullpen couldn’t hang on. The Reds owned a 3-1 lead over Seattle and were tied 6-6 after seven but the bullpen couldn’t hang on to this one, either.

The team in Scottsdale scored a run in the first inning off former teammate Johnny Cueto, making his first spring appearance. And they scored five runs on six hits against Matt Cain in two innings to take that 6-2 lead.

The Reds still led, 6-5, after six, but Tyler Mahle gave up two runs in the seventh on a two-run home run to Conor Gillaspie in the seventh.

Austin Brice pitched the eighth and it was plug ugly. It went like this: single, walk, wild pitch, stolen base, another wild pitch for a run, another walk and a run-scoring single by Austin Slater.

In all, Reds pitchers gave up 14 hits, walked five, threw two wild pitches and hit a batter.

OFFENSIVELY THE REDS had 10 hits, two by Tony Renda to lift his spring average to .440 in his bid for a spot on the 25-man roster, and two by Scott Schebler, pushing his average to .182 as he tries to win the starting right field spot.

Left fielder Adam Duvall also had two hits, including a home run and three RBI.

IN PEORIA, THE REDS climbed from a 6-3 hole with two runs in the sixth and one in the seventh to tie it, 6-6.

Desmond Jennings popped a two-out, two-run home run in the sixth and Brandon Dixon led the seventh with a game-tying home run.

The Mariners scored the run they needed in the eighth against Michael Lorenzen on a one-out walk to Boog Powell, a single by Joe DeCarlo and a line drive run-scoring single by pinch-hitter Rayder Ascanio.

The Reds lineup against Seattle was heavily laden with regulars — Jose Peraza, Zack Cozart, Joey Votto and Eugenio Suarez, but that foursome went 2 for 11 and Cozart had both hits.

So the losing streak, winning streak, losing streak modus operandi continues. The Reds began the spring exhibition season with six straight losses, won five straight and now have lost five straight.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Reed shows up, Reds hitter don’t

By HAL McCOY

It was a rare night game in the desert for the Cincinnati Reds and while starting pitcher Cody Reed wasn’t exactly lights out, he rocked the Colorado Rockies in the second and third innings at Goodyear Ballpark.

Reed, one of the three lefthanded pitchers the Reds obtained from Kansas City in exchange for Johnny Cueto, is in the hunt for one of the wide-open rotation spots.

He gave up two runs, two hits and a walk in the first inning, but he struck out the side in the second. He struck out the first batter in the third, too, and pitched a runless, hitless inning.

Reed, who was 0-and-7 last season, gave up two runs, two hits, walked one and struck out four.

It was his third appearance of the spring. He pitched two perfect innings in his first appearance against Arizona and gave up two runs and four hits while walking one and striking out four in 2 1/3 innings against Kansas City.

THE REDS, THOUGH, LOST for the third straight time, back on the losing highway. They lost their first six, won their next five and now have lost three straight, this time by 5-4 to the Colorado Rockies.

Thanks to three errors in the first two innings by the Rockies, the Reds led, 4-2, after two innings.

But that was it for their suddenly dormant bats. After getting three hits in the first two innings they collected only three more in the final seven.

IT WAS MOSTLY AN illegitimate lineup for the Reds — no Billy Hamilton, no Zack Cozart, no Joey Votto, no Adam Duvall, no Tucker Barnhart (out with a stiff shoulder).

The one regular who did play, Jose Peraza, continued his torrid spring with two hits in three at-bats with two runs scored, pushing his average to .423.

And Patrick Kivlehan, trying hard to earn a roster spot, is even more scorching — two hits in two trips and is batting .522.

Raisel Iglesias followed Reed’s three innings with two innings and gave up a run, two hits, walked one and struck out two.

Lisalverto Bonilla was charged with a blown save and a defeat when he gave up two runs and four hits in his two innings — back-to-back run-scoring doubles to Ramiel Tapia and Dustin Garneau that turned a 4-3 lead into a 5-4 deficit in the sixth.

PERAZA IS REPLACING traded Brandon Phillips at second base and for those who wonder, Phillips was 2 for 2 for the Atlanta Braves Friday in a 5-2 win over the New York Mets and DatDude is hitting .389 for the Braves this spring.

And Jumbo Diaz, who was placed on waivers early his week, was claimed by the Tampa Bay Rays.

Diaz was removed from the 40-man roster to make room for Christian Walker, picked up on waivers from the Braves.

Walker was 0 for 2 Friday and is still looking for his first hit in a Reds uniform. He came to bat in the eighth with two runners on and two outs and flied to right field. The Reds were 1 for 7 with runners in scoring position.

‘Masked Man’ knocks off Flyers, 73-67

By HAL McCOY

Davidson’s Jack Gibbs wears a face mask, padding on his shoulder and a knee brace. He probably should play in a suit of armor.

But on Friday afternoon he also wore a halo and a set of angel wings against the University of Dayton in the Atlantic 10 Conference tournament.

Gibbs put up a couple of prayers in the last minute and both were answered — two three-point daggers that lifted Davidson to a 73-67 upset victory over the feisty Flyers.

Gibbs, A SIX-FOOT SENIOR guard from Westerville, Ohio, scored 34 points, but his last six — with Dayton defensive dandy Kyle Davis face-up in his mask, sealed the deal.

It was 65-all with a minute left when Dayton’s Kendall Pollard missed a desperation three from the right side as the shot clock was expiring.

Gibbs took the ball to the deep left corner and launched a highly contested shot that swished for a 68-65 Davidson lead.

Scoochie Smith hit a floater down the line to cut the lead to one, but Gibbs then hit a step-back three from out front for a 71-67 lead with 17 second remaining and that was that.

FOLKS WHO FOLLOW THE Flyers know entering most games that their blood pressure and heart beats will be tested.

The Flyers usually fall behind, sometimes by large margins, and then come scrambling back.

And so it was Friday. They fell behind by 16 points in the first half to the No. 9 seeded Wildcats. And the top-seeded Flyers trailed 37-25 at the half.

The Flyers were loose on defense in the first half, with Gibbs tossing in 17 points, and UD was plagued by offensive fouls and an inability of Kendall Pollard to finish at the rim.

As they usually do, the Flyers dialed it up defensively the second half and moved and shared the ball at a quicker clip.

A FOUR-POINT PLAY BY Charles Cooke, a three-point shot and a free throw, drew UD within four, 39-35, early in the second half and the scuffle was on.

The Flyers scored the first basket of the game and led, 2-0, but eventually fell behind, 35-19, before coming alive.

They put on a 17-6 run to start the second half to grab their first lead since 2-0.

Scoochie Smith hit a three with 3 1/2 minutes left to tie it, 60-60. Cooke drove for a basket to give the Flyers the lead, 62-60 and followed his two with a three with 2:08 left for a 65-62 lead.

Jon Axel-Gudmundsson buried a three to tie it, 65-65. . .and it was time for the Flyers to say, “Who was that masked man?” But they knew who Gibbs was. He scored 27 in their first meeting at Davidson

AND THIS GAME WAS eerily reminiscent of that game. In the regular season game the Flyers fell way behind and scrambled back to put the game into overtime. Scoochie Smith, who had only six free throws in the first 40 minutes, hit three straight three-pointers and a two to score 11 points in overtime and the Flyers won.

Not this time. Gibbs made certain of it.

Gibbs accomplished his 34 points with 12 of 22 shooting, 5 for 11 from three, and 5 of 6 from the foul line.

UD HAD ITS USUAL balanced scoring, four players in double figures. But the top scorer, Cooke, had only 14. Xeyrius Williams and Smith each had 13 and Pollard had 12. Pollard, though, was 6 for 16 from the field and missed several at the rim. And he was 0 for 3 from the line when he did get fouled.

Now the Flyers must wait until Sunday to discover their fate. UD is 24-7, a record that should get them an NCAA bid. It would help their chances if Virginia Commonwealth, the A10’s second best team, wins the tournament and gets the automatic bid. If another team wins the tournament, it isn’t certain that three teams (the tournament champion, UD and VCU) would be chosen.

As baseball pitcher Joaquin Andujar once said, “I’ll say it in one word. Youneverknow.”

Reds pitchers take walk on the wild side (10 walks)

By HAL McCOY

While college basketball teams are punching their tickets into the NCAA big dance, Cincinnati Reds pitcher Tim Adleman probably tore up his ticket into the team’s starting rotation and is watching everybody else dance.

Adleman, who had pitched well this spring, suffered a nightmarish meltdown Thursday afternoon in Scottsdale, Ariz.’s HoHoKam Park.

AND IT WAS NIGHTMARE on Elm Street for the Reds, too. They gave up 10 runs in the first two innings en route to a 12-5 whacking by the Oakland Athletics.

Adleman and Kevin Shackelford walked seven A’s in only two innings and gave up seven hits. For the day, Reds pitchers gave up a untenable 10 walks.

Adleman pitched 1 2/3 innings and gave up five runs, three hits, four walks and threw a wild pitch. Shackelford pitched only a third of an inning and gave up five runs (three earned) and walked three.

ADLEMAN WAS LAST SEASONS’ heartwarming story after he was signed out of an independent league. The 29-year-old righthander made 13 starts the second half of last season and was 4-and-4 with a 4.00 earned run average.

He entered spring training as one of the legitimate candidates for one of the three available rotation spots.

Then came Thursday and this is how his disastrous day transpired:

FIRST INNING — Matt Joyce singled and then came two walks. A third straight walked forced in the first run. Then came a two-run double by Trevor Plouffe and it was 3-0. A sacrifice fly made it 4-0.

SECOND INNING — Adleman walked Matt Joyce to open the inning and then got an out. He was replaced by Shackelford and he walked Ryan Healy.

Shackelford struck out the next hitter, the second out, and was one out away from getting out of the inning.

But the A’s scored six runs.

Stephen Vogt doubled for two runs and a 6-1 score. Plouffe walked. Marcus Semien singled for a run. 7-1. Former Reds No. 1 draft pick Yonder Alonso singled for a run. 8-1. Shortstop Zack Cozart made a throwing error to load the bases. Joyce walked for the second time in the inning to force in a run. 9-1. Jed Lowrie punched an infield single for another run. 10-1.

The A’s scored a run in the third on a double by Kris Davis and a single by Plouffe against Barrett Astin to make it 11-1.

ROBERT STEPEHSNON, ANOTHER rotation candidate came on to pitch the fourth and the beatdown continued.

He began the inning with, what else?, a walk to Alonso. With two outs, Lowrie singled. Healy singled for a run to make it 12-1.

After a shaky first inning, Stephenson recovered with two scoreless innings and his three-inning line read: three innings, one run, three hits, two walks and three strikeouts.

THE REDS SENT A representative team to HoHoKam, mostly regulars, and got a solo home run from Adam Duvall and a solo home run from Arismendy Alcantara, two of the four hits through five innings by the regulars.

Billy Hamilton was 0 for 3 and is hitting .211. Zack Cozart was 0 for 3 and is hitting .231. Joey Votto was 0 for 1 with two walks and a strikeout and is hitting .235. Duvall was 1 for 3 (a homer) and is hitting .171. Eugenio Suarez was 1 for 3 and is hitting .389.

Veteran Desmond Jennings, trying to win a spot on the Reds bench, was 0 for 2 with a double play and a strikeout and is hitting .167. First baseman/outfielder Christin Walker, acquired three days ago off waivers from Atlanta, made his Reds debut as a designated hitter and was 0 for 2 with a strikeout.

 

 

 

 

Reds pitching takes big hits in 9-0 loss

By HAL McCOY

It was not a Day to Remember for Cincinnati Reds pitching prospect Amir Garrett Wednesday afternoon in Goodyear, Ariz.

His earned run average did not take a hit because he didn’t give up an earned run in his 2 2/3 innings against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

But it was his own error that led to five unearned runs in the second inning during a 9-0 loss to the Angels, ending Cincinnati’s five-game winning streak.

THE ANGELS SENT A full contingent of regulars, eight of them in the starting lineup, while the Reds didn’t have a single regular playing their normal positions.

Jose Peraza, slated to play second base, was at shortstop as Zack Cozart took the day off. And Scott Schebler, a right field candidate, played center field in place of resting Billy Hamilton.

Completely absent for the day were catcher Tucker Barnhart, first baseman Joey Votto, third baseman Eugenio Suarez, left fielder Adam Duval, Cozart and Hamilton.

THE ‘B’ BOYS WERE no match for the Angels, featuring Mike Trout, C.J. Cron, Kole Calhoun, Ben Revere, Cliff Pennington and Yunel Esobar.

All five Angels runs in the second inning scored with two outs, after Garrett made a throwing error.

After the error, the discombobulated Garrett permitted a double steal with Revere stealing second and Cron stealing home on the throw to second for a 1-0 Angels lead.

Then came a run-scoring single by Pennington, a walk, a two-run double by Calhoun and a run-scoring triple by Trout and it was quickly 5-0.

For his day, Garrett pitched 1 2/3 innings and gave up five runs (none earned), seven hits, one walk, a wild pitch and two strikeouts He gave up three extra base hits in the second.

Evan Mitchell and Drew Storen restored order for 2 1/3 innings, with Mitchell retiring all four Angels he faced.

But the Angels erupted in the sixth for three runs and three hits against Austin Brice and his earned run average ballooned to 15.00.

OFFENSIVELY, the Reds were dormant and moribund. Three hits. All singles by Ryan Raburn, Hernan Irribarren and Phillip Ervin.

The Angels had 14 hits, five for extra bases, including a ninth-inning home run by Nolan Fontana off Lucas Luetge.

And here is a regular cliché issued by managers after their team takes a severe bottom-kicking: “We got our work in today.”

Reds win 5th straight behind glossy pitching

By HAL McCOY

UNSOLICITED OBSERVATIONS from The Man Cave after spending a weekend in Cary, N.C. with the University of Dayton baseball team — and it was colder in Carolina than it was in Dayton.

What did I miss? Oh, four straight spring exhibition victories by the Cincinnati Reds, including two over the world champion Chicago Cubs and an eight-run eighth inning to beat Kansas City, 9-7, after they lost their first six games.

REMEMBER THE MANTRA — it is ONLY spring training, where losses — and wins — mean zero, zip, nada.

Spring training isn’t about wins and losses. It is about seeing all the prospects and the players trying to win spots on the roster showing what they can do and what they can’t do. And it is for the veterans who are guaranteed roster spots to hone and sharpen their games for the regular season.

That being said, as manager Bryan Price likes to say, winning makes the fans happier than losing.

And the Reds made it five straight wins Tuesday afternoon in Goodyear, Ariz., a 7-3 victory over the Kansas City Royals.

Pitching was the word of the day for the Reds.

Sal Romano, in the mix for a slot in the starting rotation, started Tuesdays’ game after two eye-opening performances out of the bullpen.

The 6-5, 270-pound right hander who pitched last season at Class AA Pensacola, had a wobbly first inning, but turned the lights out on the Royals in the second and third.

He gave up a first-inning home run to Mike Moustakas, coming off a year in which he played only 23 games because of a torn Achilles tendon, and a single.

Then he pitched 1-2-3 in both the second and third and his three-inning line was one run, two hits, no walks and four strikeouts. He struck out two in both the second and third and is making a strong statement to be included on the roster, either in the rotation or out of the bullpen.

Michael Lorenzen was shaky in 1 2/3 innings, giving up two runs and three hits that included a home run to Billy Burns.

Blake Wood pitched a quick 1-2-3 inning and Tony Cingrani pitched a scoreless inning. He gave up an infield hit to Bubba Starling that probably should have been an error, but then startled Starling by picking him off first base. Cingrani probably has the best pickoff move in the National League and anybody wandering more than three or four feet off first base does so at great peril.

Offensively, Tucker Barnhart singled in the third and scored on Arismendy Alcantara’s triple. Alcantara, trying to win an infield bench job, was 3 for 20 at the time.

Ryan Raburn, trying to win a spot as a backup outfielder, homered in the fourth, his second spring home run.

The Reds broke a 3-3 tie in the fifth when Joey Votto singled for the second straight time and Eugenio Suarez homered.

Patrick Kivlehan continues to make an impression. Entering the game late he had another hit and a stolen and is hitting .556 this spring. Kivlehan can play third, second, first and the corner outfield spots, which would make him a valuable utility player.

After Kivlehan’s single and stolen base, Hernan Iribarren singled to continue his quest for a roster spot. He is hitting .421 this spring.

MEANWHILE, ON A PRACTICE field early Tuesday morning 39-year-old Bronson Arroyo pitched an inning of a ‘B’ game and gave up a run and two hits, struck out one and threw a wild pitch (15 pitches, 10 strikes. catcher Devin Mesoraco made his spring debut behind the plate, catching Arroyo, and struck out in his only at bat.

THE REDS, THOUGH, are not impressing the boys in the desert, as former broadcaster Brent Musburger would say. The Bovado sports book lists the Reds at 75 to 1 to win the National League pennant. They are at the bottom of the list at 75 to 1 with the Milwaukee Brewers. Both the Reds and Brewers are at 33 to 1 to win the National League Central. The Cubs are odds-on at 1 to 5, St. Louis is at 11 to 2 and Pittsburgh is 17 to 2.

On the road with Flyers baseball. . .and the Reds win!!!

By HAL McCOY

On a Buckeye Charter Bus somewhere in the desolation of the Blue Ridge Mountains in Virginia, where cellphones don’t work (Is this where they filmed Deliverance?).

Am spending the weekend with the University of Dayton baseball team in Cary, N.C., not far enough south for baseball weather, but eager to hear the sound of aluminum bats (hate that sound, go back to wood) after 9 1/2 hours on a bus.

This is the Flyers third trip to Carolinas after weekend stops in Greenville, S.C. and Spartanburg, S.C. and tehey are 2-4 when they play Friday against University of Massachusetts-Lowell on Friday, with a game Saturday against William & Mary and a game Sunday against Maryland — all three at the USA Baseball National Training Complex.

Meanwhile, the Cincinnati Reds removed themselves from among the winless Thursday afternoon, finally winning a spring exhibition game after losing their first six.

And they they didn’t do it against another team trying to rebuild from ground zero, they did it against the World Series champion Chicago Cubs. The Cubs sent a split squad team to Goodyear, Ariz., but most of the regulars, other than the pitching staff, were on their bus.

The Reds won with superb shutout pitching for six innings against a strong Cubs batting order that featured Jason Heyward (0 for 3), Kris Bryant (0 for 2), Ben Zobrist (0 for 2), Addison Russell (1 for 2) and Jon Jay (0 for 2).

Making the day miserable for the Cubbies during the Reds 6-2 victory were pitchers Amir Garrett, Tony Cingrani and Michael Lorenzen — six scoreless innnings.

Garrett, the former St. John’s University basketball player who chose baseball over double dribbling, looks as if he made the right decidsion. For the second straight outing Garrett did not give up a run.

He pitched two scoreless innings in his previous start and the 6-foot-5, 210-pound (built for basketball) righthander pitched three scoreless this time — no runs, one hit, no walks and two strikeouts.

So far he is making a slam dunk approach toward winning one of the two or three available spots in the starting rotation. He split time last year between Class AA and Class AAA and was 7-and-8 with a 2.55 ERA. He was 5-and-3 with a 1.75 ERA at Pensacola and 2-and-5 with a 3.46 ERA at Class AAA Louisville.

After Garrett did his duty, lefthander Tony Cingrani pitched an inning and walked two, but didn’t give up a run or a hit. Then it was bullpenner Michael Lorenzeon’s turen and he turned in two nearly perfect innings — no runs, no hits, one walk.

The only pitching blip for the day came from Luis Castillo, who turned a 4-0 lead into a 4-2 lead in the seventh by giving up two runs, three hits and a walk in one inning.

Before Castillo, the Garrett-Cingrani-Lorenzen triumverate gave up one run over six innings.

Offensively, manager Bryan Price put Billy Hamilton and Jose Peraza at the one-two spots in the batting order and it worked. Hamilton had a single and scored a run. The scorching Peraza had two more hits and drove in two and is hitting .583 this spring.

The Reds unleashed 11 hits and scored in the third, fourth, sixth and eighth innings.

Catcher Stuart Turner and Hamilton singled in the third inning and with two outs Peraza tripled to left field for two runs.

Adam Duvall led the fourth inning when he was hit by a pitch and came around to score on a ground ball and Hernan Iribarren’s two-out single to make it 3-0.

Patrick Kivlehan reached bases with two outs on the sixth on a error and scored on a single by Desmond Jenninings and it was 4-0.

The Cubs scored two off Castillo in the seventh but the Reds retrieved those two eruns in the eighth. Tony Renda singled to open the inning and took third on a wild pitch. Chad Wallach doubled Renda home and Wallach scored on Patrick Kivlehan’s double.

On a bright not for the Reds, the first four runs all scored with two outs and five of their six runs for the game scored with two outs.

Another day, another loss for the Reds

By HAL McCOY

Despite some awesome and outstanding scoreless pitching from the second through the eighth innings, the Cincinnati Reds’ losing streak now stands at a half dozen.

Their sixth straight spring exhibition loss came Wednesday, 3-2, when the Milwaukee Brewers scored a run in the bottom of the ninth.

After starter Livsalverto Bonilla gave up two runs in the first, Reds pitching held the Brewers scoreless over the next seven innings — until the ninth.

Ariel Hernandez walked the first batter, Mauricio Dubon, in the ninth on four pitches and moved him to second on a wild pitch. Dubon took third on a ground ball and Lucas Erceg singled on the first pitch to right field to end it.

Cincinnati Reds shortstop Zack Cozart made his spring exhibition debut Wednesday afternoon in Maryvale, Ariz. and his first at bat was four stars.

Cozart, batting second in the top of the first, took the first pitch he saw for a ball and then whacked the second pitch over the left field fence for a home run.

Because of late season injury problems last season, the Reds are easing Cozart back into activity. He was expected to make his debut Tuesday but was held back after an all-night rain made playing conditions soggy.

Cozart played five innings and was 1 for 3.

AFTER COZART’S HOME RUN the Brewers came to bat in the bottom of the first to face Reds starter Lisalverto Bonilla, a pitcher the Reds signed off waivers a day before spring training began.

The first pitch he threw to Keon Broxton was drilled over the left field fence for a game-tying home run. Then Jonathan Villar doubled and Scooter Gennett singled to make it 2-1. Bonilla then walked Hernan Perez and threw a wild pitch.

But he escaped an eventual bases loaded disaster with a strikeout and all three outs he recorded came on strikeouts.

Bonilla, a 26-year-old Dominican right hander, appeared in five games last season for the Texas Rangers and was 3-and-0 with a 3.65 earned run average in three starts and two relief appearances.

He pitched 20 2/3 innings and gave up 13 hits and struck out 17, but walks were a problem, 12 of them.

AFTER THAT THE REDS receive notable pitching, especially another excellent outing from Rookie Davis, acquired from the New York Yankees in the Aroldis Champman trade. And the 23-year-old right hander’s name actually is Rookie, a name his father hung on him to make sure he would think about baseball.

Davis pitched two innings, the second and third, and gave up no runs, no hits, a walk and struck out two.

Sal Romano followed with two scoreless innings, giving up three hits and striking out one. Romano, 23, throws righthanded but bats left. He was a 23rd round draft pick in 2011 and is 32-48 with a 4.38 ERA for his 120 minor league starts over five years.

Then came Jackson Stephens and two more scoreless innings — one hit, two walks and two strikeouts.

THE REDS TIED THE GAME, 2-2, in the fourth on a single by Scott Schebler and a double by Eugenio Suarez. Suarez moved to third on a ground ball and died there when Dilson Herrera struck out on three pitches and Tucker Barnhart flied to center.

The Reds threatened in the eighth when they opened the inning with back-to-back one-out singles by Aristides Aquino and Patrick Kivlehan. But Aquino was thrown out trying to steal third after he was caught lingering too far off second base.

Phillip Ervin walked on four pitches and the inning ended with no runs when Joe Hudson flied to center.

 

 

 

Rally comes too late — Reds drop fifth straight

By HAL McCOY

What does a beleaguered team have to do to shed a losing cocoon?

A four-run first inning and a 5-1 lead after two innings was not enough for the Cincinnati Reds to win their first spring exhibition game of 2017.

The Chicago White Sox, playing split squad games, kept their best players at home for a game against the Seattle Mariners. They sent a group of non-regulars and minor league prospects to Goodyear, Ariz. to face the Reds.

That group beat the now 0-and-5 Reds, 10-9. with the Reds scoring four runs in the bottom of the ninth and coming within a hit of thing game. The White Sox regulars who stayed home lost to the Mariners, 8-1.

THE REDS HAD FIVE HITS in building that 5-1 lead after two, then had one hit over the next five innings, a fifth-inning 0-and-2 single by Joey Votto, his first hit this spring.  Things did get interesting in the bottom of the ninth when the Reds scored four runs, including a run-scoring double by Tony Renda and a double by Dilson Herrera, his second hit in two at bats.

And that put the tying run at the plate and Jesse Winker grounded to second and the ball was booted for an error and another run scored. The Reds were within one — but Hernan Iribarren grounded out to end it.

Things began swimmingly for the Reds with a four-run first. Jose Peralta, who might be a better option for leadoff than Billy Hamilton, singled to start the game and had hits in his first two at-bats and his average at the time was .625. Peraza was 2 for 3 and stole two bases, giving him three thefts for the spring.

Joey Votto followed Peralta’s single with a walk and Adam Duvall doubled over the center fielder’s head for two runs.

RYAN RABURN, A VETERAN who will be 36 in April, is trying to win a bench spot and if he played the White Sox more often he might be an All-Star.

He followed Duvall’s double with a two-run home run. Back in 2007 while playing for the Detroit Tigers, Raburn went 4 for 5 with two homers, a double and seven RBI against the White Sox. In 2008, while still with the Tigers, he had four hits in a game against the White Sox.

The Reds added a run in the second on a sacrifice fly by Desmond Jennings, another veteran trying to secure a utility job.

And that was it — until the bottom of the ninth.

ANTHONY DESCLAFANI WAS scheduled to make his spring debut Tuesday but elbow tenderness force manager Bryan Price to back him off and start left hander Brandon Finnegan.

He gave up a run in the first inning on a double and a ground ball, but pitched well over two innings — one run, one hit and a strikeout.

Raisel Iglesias followed Finnegan and pitched two scoreless innings, giving up no runs, one hit, one walk and he struck out two.

FROM THERE THE OFFENSE and defense went south of the border, down Mexico way.

Drew Storen, counted upon to be at the back end of the bullpen with Iglesias, Michael Lorenzen and Tony Cingrani, gave up three runs on three hits after putting the first three on base in the fifth — a triple, a walk and a single for a run. He was within an out of escaping with only one run, but he gave up a 2-and-2 bloop two-run single to Leury Garcia and the White Sox were within 5-4.

It started to shred in the sixth with Jumbo Diaz on the mound. He gave up back-to-back singles to start the inning. He then retired the next two before Roberto Pena lined one to left field. Tony Renda got his glove on it but dropped it for an error and two runs scored for a 6-5 White Sox lead.

The White Sox scored three in the seventh off Nefti Ogando and that was that, other than for the Reds to make a spirited comeback attempt in the bottom of the ninth.