Notes from a Memorial Day weekend in Cincinnati...
It's maybe not everyone's idea of a vacation destination, but the Queen City's downtown and waterfront are pleasant and scenic. Both the Great American Ballpark and Paul Brown Stadium sit along "The Banks," a stretch of parkland abutted by freeways along the Ohio River, with Kentucky just across the water. A nice walk on a nice day. And on game nights, the two-block-long "DORA" (Designated Outdoor Refreshment Area) next to the ballpark is replete with restaurants, sidewalk cafes, clubs, and plenty of foot traffic. We were made to feel most welcome despite wearing enemy colors, and while we're at it, here's a shout-out to the numerous Giants fans we met over those three days. We'll also add props to the Reds' house DJ, who treated us to a lot of Motown and Stax over the weekend.
The weather swung from a chilly, rain-soaked evening on Friday to a sweltering, humid, sun-splashed Sunday morning, and the baseball action seemed to follow suit. They may be a last-place club, but the Reds are playing much better than they did a month ago. After that horrendous 3-19 start they'd gone 11-11 as we and the Giants arrived in town, and they were within sight of fourth place as Friday's game began.
It began late, following a two-hour rain delay. After waiting for the game to start, we waited, and waited, and waited some more for the Giants to snap out of what amounted to a nine-inning torpor. Cincy sent out rookie Graham Ashcraft, with four major-league innings on his resume, against Carlos Rodon that evening, and the resulting pitching lines, while not quite a mismatch, were mostly one-sided-- the wrong way. Rodon clearly did not enjoy pitching in a steady drizzle that occasionally amplified into a steady downpour, and the Reds punched through three runs in his five innings as most of us scrambled to the safety of the overhang. It let up eventually, and Ashcraft held his unlikely shutout into the seventh.
The Giants got their only real chance against reliever Alexis Diaz in the eighth, loading the bases with one out as Art Warren took over against Joc Pederson. A group near us in section 112 had begun an impromptu Pederson "fan club" that evening, perhaps energized by the pregame dustup Joc had with the Reds' Tommy Pham. The catcalling subsided when Warren hit Pederson with the pitch, forcing in the Giants' only run, but it worked out nicely for them as Brandon Crawford then grounded into a double play that settled the issue. We'd rather have seen Pederson get a chance to swing the bat.
Saturday, from our perch in the upper boxes, was an excruciating test of character, or something like that. Tommy LaStella opened the game with a double down the right-field line, went to third on Mike Yastrzemski's sac fly, and died there, an outcome that we would see repeated again and again that day. In the Reds' first, Alex Wood allowed a hit, a walk, and a three-run homer to Kyle Farmer. Then, having got that out of his system, Wood settled down and worked steadily into the sixth, allowing just two more hits and nothing close to a run. For his part, Reds starter Vladimir Gutierrez, 0-6 with a ERA north of 8 coming in, held his own in what turned into a pitchers' duel with Wood. And Gutierrez earned his first win of the year, because that squandered first-inning chance became a whole series of blown chances. The Giants rapped out twelve hits, drew two walks, put sixteen men into scoring position-- and brought one of them home, Yaz scoring on Pederson's double in the third.
Cincinnati, meanwhile, left no one on base at all until the sixth. By then it was a one-run game, thanks to Evan Longoria's solo homer in the top of the frame. And the denouement, the final indignity, awaited us in the top of the ninth. Curt Casali opened with an encouraging single, and Joey Bart went in to run. Yaz, 2-for-4 on the day, drew a walk, moving the tying run to second. With two down and the tension high, Wilmer Flores drilled a base hit directly to rookie right fielder Aristides Aquino on one bounce. Known informally among Reds faithful as "The Automatic Out" for his struggles at the plate, Aquino has a fine throwing arm, and he proved it right then and there. His throw home was on the money and Bart was easily tagged out to end the game. As we shuffled dispiritedly toward the exits, we wondered aloud whether third-base coach Mark Hallberg had let a moment of quiet desperation override his common sense as he waved Bart to his doom.
11:35 on a Sunday morning is the earliest we've ever attended a major-league ballgame, and it was bright and sunny from the start. But the continuing sense of desperation slowly settled in as Alex Cobb worked his finest start of the season, and got no help. Cobb struck out 8 and allowed only two runs over six innings, the last on Joey Votto's ringing double, the 2,044th hit of his fine career. But across the way, Tyler Mahle was pitching-- well, he was pitching a no-hitter, and somehow that seemed totally fitting given the way the weekend had gone. All but resigned to personally witnessing our guys being swept by a last-place team, we had the stirrings of baseball history in the air as Mahle got the 19th and 20th outs opening the seventh. Then, on his 104th pitch, Thairo Estrada crushed a double off the wall in right-center. History, and brother Mahle, made a quick exit-- and so did the Giants again. We endured yet another indignity as our old friend Hunter Strickland came in, struck out Luis Gonzalez, and walked off with just a hint of the old swag.
Years ago on the Giants usenet discussion board, some fans came up with the concept of "Earnest Ragging," the practice of chastising or ridiculing a favorite player with the fervent hope that it'd help him snap out of whatever slump or funk was plaguing him. One of our party was deeply into this with Evan Longoria on Sunday. In the eighth, "Longo" came up with runners on first and second and two out. Pederson had just broken the shutout and made it a one-run game with a seeing-eye single, and the whole scene had the feeling of The Last Opportunity for the Giants. Our companion kicked the ragging into high gear. "He's already made his quota for the week!" was the claim, referring to Longoria's too-little too-late homer Saturday. "Now he can go back to striking out!"
It had already been a tough day for Longoria; he was 0-for-3 with two strikeouts. On the last K, a 3-2 pitch, "Longo" had taken what he thought was ball four. Umpire Shane Livensparger had waited until Longoria bent down to to unsnap his shin guard before calling a rather ostentatious strike three, earning a long staredown from the player.
Now, on a close 3-1 pitch, recent history repeated itself. Longoria reached for his shinguard clasp; Livensparger barked out a strike-two call. Straightening up, Longoria faced one nemesis, then turned and faced the other, pitcher Art Warren. In came the pitch, and out it went, a no-doubt-about-it opposite-field blast, and Lord have mercy, it was as though a dam had broken. The Giants' dugout, directly in front of us, erupted with whoops and hollers we could hear above our own noise. Flores and Pederson came in and waited for the big guy to finish his round, with high-fives everywhere. And the runs came thick and fast after that. Crawford walked, Estrada beat out a base hit, and Gonzalez ripped an opposite-field shot into the corner in left as they both came around to score. It ended with Darin Ruf, who had opened the inning as a pinch-hitter and taken a called third strike, batting for the second time in the inning and striking out again. You can bet his teammates showered a little "earnest ragging" on him after the game!
Tyler Rogers got a double-play ball to finish the Reds' eighth, and Camilo Doval made it a little too "interesting" in the ninth. As we sat in anticipation, maybe just this side of anxiety, the young fireballer surrendered a two-out two-run homer to Albert Almora jr, making it 6-4. Alejo Lopez then batted for former Giant Aramis Garcia and softly lifted a 1-2 pitch to Gonzalez in left, and we walked out winners at last.
Props to Wilmer Flores, who made a terrific unassisted double play at first base to end the fifth, one of three Giants double plays in Sunday's game. And major props to Cobb, whose fine start gave his team the chance to win. He also made a nifty fielding play, taking an awkward overhand throw from Flores and showing some fancy footwork to beat Garcia to the bag at first. Called safe initially, the call was reversed on replay, and there was no question about it.
The aforementioned Aquino not only can throw, he can run like the wind and field his position. He made the catch of the weekend on a drive hit by LaStella opening the seventh on Saturday. Looking at the replay now, it's still hard to tell whose ball it was, but Aquino, running full speed, snagged what might have been a sure triple out of the air before crashing into center fielder Nick Senzel. Both went tumbling, Aquino held the ball, and they sat there stunned and looking at each other for a few minutes afterward. We may be thankful neither was hurt. Aquino also doubled up Yaz at first base after making a catch in right on Friday: our first indication that the young man has a fine arm.
Joey Bart's struggles continue. Mike Papierski, since reassigned to Sacramento, started behind the plate Friday. Bart replaced him in the eighth and was called for catcher's interference in his one inning. Curt Casali, back from the IL, started Saturday as Bart was limited to (unsuccessful) pinch-running. On Sunday, Bart did get the start, went 0-for-2, and was taken out for a pinch-hitter. He's at .160 right now and offensively his only real contribution is 13 walks in 97 appearances, which boosts is OBP to .299. But then there's the 43 strikeouts.
On a positive note, Yaz, who was hitting in the .220s last time we checked, is back up at .300 and playing full-time after finishing 2021 in a platoon role. Also, both Brandon Belt and Austin Slater are expected back before this week is out, and we hope LaMonte Wade and Steven Duggar can be back before this month is out.
And finally-- finally!-- we got to see the hitherto-invisible Stuart Fairchild in action yesterday. He took over center field in the ninth, with Yaz moving to right and Gonzalez to left, and he made the first putout of the inning. Way to go, young man!
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