Reds need to do it the Phillies way
By HAL McCOY The Cincinnati Reds need to check Amazon.com and order those set of mirrors the Philadelphia Phillies are using to win baseball games. The Phillies are in the same rebuilding mode as the Reds but one would never know it by checking their record and their position in the National League East standings. […]
Hit batsmen and hit homers spice things up
By HAL McCOY CINCINNATI — For two years the Cincinnati Reds and Pittsburgh Pirates have used each other as carnival midway kewpie dolls. And both teams score frequent and direct hits. There were six batsman hit with pitches Wednesday night in Great American Ball Park during a 5-4 Pirates win, another bullpen production-giveaway by the […]
Barnhart wears the ‘Tools of Intelligence’
By HAL McCOY CINCINNATI — Carlton Fisk, who could snarl with the best of them, always snarled when somebody referred to a catcher’s protective gear as, “The Tools of Ignorance.” It is a reference that implies that a baseball player has to be stupid to strap on the chest protector, the shin guards, the hockey […]
Reds play a near-perfect game, nudge Pirates
By HAL McCOY CINCINNATI — If only the Cincinnati Reds could put Monday night’s game in a bottle and put a cap on it, it could be a usable product. They could uncap it and sell it to other teams. Or they could uncap it and use it for themselves. THE REDS PLAYED a near-perfect […]
Another day (even Mother’s Day), another blown save
By HAL McCOY CINCINNATI — On Mother’s Day, for the Cincinnati Reds there was no Zack Cozart, no Billy Hamilton, no Eugenio Suarez, no Tucker Barnhart and no victory. Manager Bryan Price decided to give those four regulars a day off against the Milwaukee Brewers and their stand-ins weren’t up to producing enough runs. And […]
Odd Couple: Votto, Phillips play 1,000th together; Brewers explode against Reds much maligned bullpen.
By HAL McCOY CINCINNATI — Succinctly put, the Cincinnati Reds bullpen is still a mess in progress and Milwaukee Brewers attacked it like ants at a Sunday picnic. And Brewers third baseman Aaron Hill was the point ant — three consecutive home runs and seven runs batted in. The Brewers scored seven runs in the […]
Adleman, ‘The Bullpen’ silence the Brewers
By HAL McCOY There was big news emanating out of Great American Ball Park Friday night. And it had nothing to do with another noteworthy start by out-of-nowhere pitcher Tim Adleman. The big event was the Cincinnati Reds bullpen. It did not give up a run. Repeat. No runs. After giving up at least one […]
‘Los Rojos’ do the Mexican Hat Dance
By Hal McCoy The Cincinnati Reds wore different uniform tops Thursday night and, indeed, they were a different team. They wore ‘Los Rojos’ (Spanish for ‘The Reds’) in honor of Cinco de Mayo. And they did a Mexican Hat Dance on the Milwaukee Brewers, 9-5, in Great American Ball Park. In so doing they vaulted […]
Straily doesn’t stray far from his winning game plan
By HAL McCOY CINCINNATI — It is strange and mystifying the way baseball sometimes works. Or doesn’t work. The pundits and the wise guys in Las Vegas would have labeled Wednesday’s game between the Cincinnati Reds and San Francisco Giants as a mismatch, an off-the-board type of game. After all, the Giants are in first […]