Cactus League 2/28/13 Split Squad Rox/Snakes

[texasdave]

Split squad today. Early highlights:

Arizona:
Frazier reaches on an error and is doubled home by Donald.
Leake hurls the first two innings, giving up a run on two hits. He walked none and struck out three.

Colorado:
Chapman goes two hitless innings. No walks and one K.

[texasdave]

Colorado:
Xavier Paul loses a ball in the sun, leading to a Rox triple. Ondrusek gets the next batter to ground out to Brandon to end the threat.
Bottom of the 4th. JJ Hoover on. He Ks the first batter he faces. A single and a double lead give the Rockies a 1-0 lead. Hoover Ks two in his inning of work.
Top of the 5th: First two Reds reach - singles by Hannahan and Phipps - before Cozart hits into a 5-4-3 triple play.

[texasdave]

Arizona:
Choo leads off the bottom of the third with a single. Nice.
Votto draws a one-out walk.
Ludwick singles to drive in Choo.
A balk and a walk to Bruce loads them up.
Frazier up. Wild pitch scores Votto. Todd grounds into a force out at home.
Donald singles home a run.

[Maker_84]

chapman is solid just as everyone thought. The question is can he endure an entire season?

[texasdave]

Ex-Reds' farmhand Jeff Francis pitched three scoreless frames. Ex-Red Matt Belisle now on for Colorado.

Xavier Paul with his second hit of the game. He has singled and doubled. Slidin' Billy pinch-running for Paul. Hamilton was picked off of first yesterday.
Phillips one-hops the wall in right and Hamilton strolls home. Flynn (?) and Kelch said Billy 'glided' around the bases. They were impressed.

[texasdave]

Is Alfredo Simon pitching his way off the squad? 2.1 IP so far. 6 hits 3 earned runs.
Corky Miller helps him out a little by gunning down a would-be base stealer at second.

[texasdave]

Manny Parra comes on and pitches a scoreless inning and two-thirds.

[texasdave]

George Foster must live in the Tri-State area. He does a lot of local commercials.

[texasdave]

Neftali Soto with a lead-off single off Belisle.
Mejias-Brean, on the first pitch he sees this spring, doubles down the left-field line. Second and third, nobody out.
Dennis Phipps Ks.
Zach Vincej is getting his first look this spring with one away. He gone. Second and third, two outs.
Mesoraco up for the first time today.
Devin gets the green light on 3-0 and he lines a single that plates a pair.

[texasdave]

Arredondo pitched a scoreless top of the sixth against Arizona.
Jason Donald doubles for his third hit of the game but gets gunned down at third.

[texasdave]

Arrendondo walks the lead-off batter in the 7th. Surprise!

[texasdave]

MARCH 1ST:
Mesoraco with his second bomb of the spring.
Negron goes deep.
Hamilton singles to left and the promptly swipes second and third.
Latos two scoreless frames.

[Tuff Nut]

'Cause of work, I can't get on here much during game day, but keep the updates coming fellas....love hearing how the team is doing.

[texasdave]

March 2nd. Reds at White Sox

Bats are quiet through 7.5.
A single by Phillips. A double by Votto. A handful of walks.
Billy Hamilton is 0 for 1 with a walk and his third stolen base of the spring.

Arms:
Arroyo 2IP 5H 2ER
Galarraga 3IP 2H 1ER 1HR
Christiani 1IP 1H 1HR
Contreras 1IP 1H 0ER
Drew Hayes 1IP 1H 0ER

Reds threatened in the top of the 8th with walks to Hamilton and Rodriguez but Lutz whiffs with runners on second and third.

Marty and Cowboy raving about Soto's defense at first, saying he has made a number of fine plays in the first week of spring training. Brantley opines that Soto can really 'pick it'.

Reds 9th: Bruce lines a single. His first hit of the spring. Now 1 for 12.
Burriss with a looping liner. Two on.
Nevin Ashley grounds one through the legs of the pitcher but the shortstop fields, steps on second and fires on to first. Two down.

Reds blanked 4-0.

[texasdave]

March 3rd: Reds hosting KC Royalty.

Homer Bailey flinging bullseye arrows at the Royals for two innings. He gave up a hit, walked nobody and struck out five.
Cingrani came on in the third. He struck out two and walked noone. But Alex Gordon took him deep.

Joey Votto with a two-out, bases-empty double. Devin Mesoraco doubled to start the third.

Logan Ondrusek comes in and works an extremely shaky fourth. A double, a single and two walks. He did strike out two. Jay Bruce makes a long-run, sliding catch in deep right to save three runs.
Jose Arredondo also working out the kinks. An infield single, a rocket to left caught by a diving Xavier Paul, a stolen base, a ground ball out, a rocket to the right field corner for a double, and a fly ball to right all add up to another Royalty run.

Marty in midseason hyperbolic form. Noting KC's 8-0 record he asserts, as only Marty can, that Ned Yost is the early-season Manager of the Year in the American League.

A brand new lineup for the Reds in the top of the sixth.
Hannahan
Negron
Burriss
H. Rodriguez
Lutz
LaMarre
Y. Rodriguez
Barnhart
Lotzkar

Lotzkar walks the first batter he faces and then the second batter singles. A force at second and a second walk has the bases juiced. A rocket liner right back at Lotzkar for out number two. A line drives in the fourth Royal run. JJ Hoover comes and promptly gives up a two-run single. 6 zip and I have heard enough. And before I can type the trivia note a bloop single makes it 7-0.
We have a Willy Taveras sighting. He skies softly to left to end the 6th-inning carnage.

Trivia: Xavier Nady is actually Xavier Nady VI. His son is Xavier Nady VII.

Reds avoid the schneid on 8th-inning doubles by Negron and LaMarre. Fall 8-1.

All this talk about who will be the backup middle infielder among Izturis, Burriss, Donald and Rodriguez got me to thinking; hey, what about Negron? Word has it that he is an excellent fielder in both the infield and outfield. That sort of versatility is nice. He might not hit much. But then again neither did Valdez or Janish or Cairo (v2012).

[Tuff Nut]

You da mon, dave. :beerme: Nice report.

[texasdave]

March 4th. Reds at Diamondbacks:

Pitching:
Johnny Cueto looks good in three innings of work. He gives up just one run on a walk and a hit. He strikes out four.
Marshall works a scoreless fourth.
Parra and Hensley work the next 2 and two-thirds and get little help from their defense.
They give up a combined 6 runs, only two were earned.
Partch on to the last out of the seventh promptly gives up a run-scoring single. He whiffs the next batter to end a four-run Snake 7th.

Hitting:
Yawn.
Cozart with a solo shot in the first.
Paul doubles and comes around to score on a Henry Rodriguez grounder to short.
Jason Donald has a single for the only other Reds' hit through seven.

Fielding:
Cozart with a fielding error.
Henry Rodriguez with a pair of throwing errors, making four errors for the spring for Rodriguez.


Baserunning:
You know it is Spring Training by the simple fact that two Diamondbacks have stolen bases against Johnny Cueto.

Corky Miller singles to start things off for the Reds in the 8th, as they trail 7-2. Tucker Barnhart flares to right for the first out. Burriss lines to Campana for the second out. Donald bounces out meekly to the mound.

Daniel "Little Johnny Cueto" Corcino will work the bottom half of the 8th. Tony Campana grounds hard to the right side. Burriss makes a diving stop and guns him out at first. Can of corn to shallow right for the second out. A sharp comebacker and Corcino has himself a 1-2-3 innings.

Last chance for the Reds' sticks. Five to tie and six to take the lead. 2-10 looks like a certainty. Lutz with a routine fly to Campana in center. A glimmer of hope as Paul garners his second hit of the game, slapping a single to left. Derrick Robinson with a sharp single to left. Yay! Henry Rodriguez bounces into a force at third. Down to their last out. LaMarre lines hard to right. LaMarre is 0-2 in the game but hit the ball hard both times. And this one belongs to the Snakes.

Reality show being taped out here. Former first-round choice, and LSU quarterback, Josh Booty is working Arizona broadcaster Tom Candiotti on a knuckleball. Charlie Hough and Tim Wakefield are also involved.

NOTE: Dusty Baker was talking to Marty Brennaman in the pre-game and stated that he would like to see the Reds scoring more runs. Eight runs total in their last five games. I wonder why he would say that if spring training doesn't matter?

[WVRedsFan]

Great reports, Dave. Keep them coming.

Since the multitudes will say "it's only Spring Training," and "Small sample size," I will refrain from being alarmed over the Reds' 2-10 record, and fully realize that our main cogs have only played 2-3 games at the most. However, it sure is disheartening to see the L everyday.

[jmac]

I just got in and read about this incident today on twitter.
If it has been posted, sorry as I made a quick check but may have overlooked it !

In the original Reds lineup posted on Monday vs. the D-backs, Shin-Soo Choo was leading off as the designated hitter. That was the plan manager Dusty Baker wanted to go with because Choo had missed a few days with tight right quadriceps and he didn’t want to use him in center field just yet.

Arizona manager Kirk Gibson had a different plan.

“He wanted his pitcher to hit and I wanted Choo to DH,” Baker said. “They sent over word that’s what they wanted to do. It would have been fine with me to do both. It’s up to the home team of what they want to do. Usually here we let teams DH early.”

In the new lineup, 2B Cesar Izturis — originally the second hitter — moved up to bat leadoff and the rest of the order moved up one spot.

Reds pitcher Johnny Cueto had to bat for the Reds and struck out looking in the third inning.

“That was a big surprise. I was not allowed to swing the bat,” Cueto said.

For all the desire of wanting Brandon McCarthy to hit, the D-backs starter also had one plate appearance in the third and grounded out to the catcher.

At the exchange of lineup cards, there were words between the two managers. Gibson offered to shake hands and Baker refused.

“We didn’t have a very pleasant encounter at home plate,” Baker said. “That’s how it goes. It’s over.”

[texasdave]

I just got in and read about this incident today on twitter.
If it has been posted, sorry as I made a quick check but may have overlooked it !

In the original Reds lineup posted on Monday vs. the D-backs, Shin-Soo Choo was leading off as the designated hitter. That was the plan manager Dusty Baker wanted to go with because Choo had missed a few days with tight right quadriceps and he didn’t want to use him in center field just yet.

Arizona manager Kirk Gibson had a different plan.

“He wanted his pitcher to hit and I wanted Choo to DH,” Baker said. “They sent over word that’s what they wanted to do. It would have been fine with me to do both. It’s up to the home team of what they want to do. Usually here we let teams DH early.”

In the new lineup, 2B Cesar Izturis — originally the second hitter — moved up to bat leadoff and the rest of the order moved up one spot.

Reds pitcher Johnny Cueto had to bat for the Reds and struck out looking in the third inning.

“That was a big surprise. I was not allowed to swing the bat,” Cueto said.

For all the desire of wanting Brandon McCarthy to hit, the D-backs starter also had one plate appearance in the third and grounded out to the catcher.

At the exchange of lineup cards, there were words between the two managers. Gibson offered to shake hands and Baker refused.

“We didn’t have a very pleasant encounter at home plate,” Baker said. “That’s how it goes. It’s over.”

Seems like something pretty trivial to get upset over. If the home team gets to make the call then what is the rub?

[cumberlandreds]

Todays game against the Angels is on FSN-West and MLBTV. So we can finally see a Reds game this spring.

[757690]

Seems like something pretty trivial to get upset over. If the home team gets to make the call then what is the rub?

It's spring training. Most teams let other teams do what they want in order to help their teams get ready for the regular season. I've even seen teams let other teams bring players back into a game after they were replaced. There was no reason for Gibson to deny the Reds to use a DH, other tha being a jerk.

[texasdave]

It's spring training. Most teams let other teams do what they want in order to help their teams get ready for the regular season. I've even seen teams let other teams bring players back into a game after they were replaced. There was no reason for Gibson to deny the Reds to use a DH, other tha being a jerk.

That still does not mean you act like a petulant child and refuse to shake hands. After all, like you said, it is spring training.

[texasdave]

The Los Angeles Angels of Arizona via Anaheim are hosting the Reds:

Mike Leake is not going quietly into that good night, pitching three scoreless innings. He gave up four hits in three innings, while striking out two. Leake owes Mesoraco a t-shirt for picking Kendrick off of first and gunning down Mike Trout trying to steal.
Aroldis Chapman toed the rubber next. He worked two innings giving up a solo homer to the first batter he faced, Howie Kendrick. His two-inning line looked like this. 2IP 3h 1ER 1BB 1K 1HR.
Wilkin de la Rosa with a scoreless frame.
To say that Josh Ravin got roughed up would be kind. He faced six batters and five of them reached. All five scored. He recorded one out.
Sharky Rogers came in to clean things up in the sixth.
Nick Christiani looked good in his only inning. A nice play by Jason Donald helped out.



Hitting:
I am assuming Dusty Baker shook someone's hand today as Shin-Soo Choo led off as the DH. Choo went one for three. Billy Hamilton went 0-3 and is now hitting a meaningless .111. Votto singled and walked. Jay Bruce smote a pair of solo home runs. Good to see. Heisey doubled and came around on a single by Cesar Izturis.
Brantley with some nice words about Yorman Rodriguez. Rodriguez walked and hit his second bomb of the spring. Brantley says there is no doubt that Yorman can hit a fastball.

And this one does not belong to the Reds.

Wednesday's game will be played under the lights.

[texasdave]

Back to a little baseball:

Reds have three runs on five hits (all singles) through five. Derrick Robinson, Yorman Rodriguez, Devin Mesoraco have one each, Neftali Soto a pair of singles.
Homer Bailey started and went two innings. He gave up three runs on fours. Only one run was earned as Henry (Manos de Piedras) Rodriguez made his fifth error of the spring.
Manny Parra is pitching his way to Louisville, giving up two runs in his two innings of work. Marshall pitched a perfect fifth, whiffing a pair.
Broxton works a scoreless sixth.

Looks as if the Reds have few if any regulars playing. Nice for them. Off Thursday, rain Friday, off Saturday. A mini-vacation.
Cesar Izturis homered to make it 5-4 Brewers after six.

Ondrusek worked a scoreless seventh, walking one and giving up a hit.
Arredondo came on in the 8th and promptly gave up a leadoff double. A one-out single put runners on the corners. Jose escapes on a 3-2-5-4 double play. Won't see many of those I am guessing.

In the bottom of the 8th, Lutz singled, Hessman reached on an error and Negron walked to load them up. Izturis singled in one and the second run came home on a Corky Miller fielder's choice.

J.J. Hoover worked a perfect ninth to record the save, striking out a pair. It would be a crime if he started the year in AAA.

ATOBTTR!

[SirFelixCat]

Hoover, imo, is the reliever (obviously counting Chapman as a starter) I have the most faith in, for the back end. I think he should be the close/8th inning guy w/ Marshall being the 7th inning reliever.

[jmac]

Hoover, imo, is the reliever (obviously counting Chapman as a starter) I have the most faith in, for the back end. I think he should be the close/8th inning guy w/ Marshall being the 7th inning reliever.
I agree as far as Hoover being at least the 8th inning guy to start out. If Chapman is indeed our starter, I wish Dusty would use Marshall/Broxton as a matchup 9th inning thing.
Take the opening series for example. Pujols at bat, top of the ninth with a runner on and Reds up a run. I wouldnt feel comfortable with him facing Marshall. Likewise same situation and Hamilton up, I would rather see Marshall in than Broxton.
Probably doesnt matter though, as Dusty is always big on numbers and getting guys stats etc. Well, at least in the past, he would mention this on interviews after the games.

[texasdave]

Hoover reminds me of Sam LeCure in his approach, just with better stuff. He doesn't nibble. Just goes right after the hitters.

[texasdave]

A little Sunday afternoon basketball and the sun is shining here today.

Bats:
A leadoff hitter that can get on base. This will take some getting used to. Choo is 3 for 3 so far today. Choo has two singles, a double and a stolen base. Cozart is in the two-spot doing what he does best, leaving folks on. 0 for 2 with 5 LOB. The Toddfather has two hits, including a solo jack. Hanigan is 2 for 2 as well.

Arms:
Johnny went 4 innings today. He gave up 2 runs on three hits and three walks, while striking out the last two batters he faced.

Marty is 'stunned' that the Reds are playing Oakland twice in 2013. I guess it doesn't take much these days.

Reds lead 4-2 going into the fifth.

A one-out single by Ludwick and Frazier's third hit of the game - a double - put the Reds in business with one out. Cesar Izturis continues his hot spring with a two-out hit that plates a pair. Reds lead 6-2. Mesoraco hits for Hanigan and is promptly plunked.

Hensley pitches a perfect bottom of the fifth, striking out two.

Choo leads off the sixth with his fourth hit of the game and then swipes second. Cozart strikes out. Bruce doubles and brings home a run. 7-2.

[texasdave]

Mat Latos on the mound for the Reds.

Dee Gordon singles, steals second and scores on a Mark Ellis single. Latos settles down to get Kemp swinging and get Gonzalez to gound into a 6-4-3.

Choo bounces out. A Cozart single followed by a Votto walks puts runners on first and second with one out. Ludwick strikes out looking on a pitch that was high per Cowboy. Bruce pops to second to end the threat.

Easy second for Latos. Strike out, pop up, can of corn.

Easier second for Beckett. Pop up, soft grounder, punch out.

Mat is dealing tonight as he strikes out the side in the third.

Olivo stirs the desert air and then heads back to the dugout for out number one. Shin-Soo Choo rips a slow curve ball DEEEEEEP over the right-field wall to tie things up at one. Cozart grounds to his opposite number. Votto ropes one to the third baseman who catches it in self defense. Game tied at one.

Dodgers have a stout 3/4 in the persons of Kemp and Gonzalez. Incidentally, the Dodgers' 3-4-5 goes R/L/L. Baker smirks at Mattingly's lack of baseball knowledge.

Mat Latos rolls along in the fourth getting Ellis to ground out and striking out Kemp. Gonzalez reaches on a one-hopper to Cozart. Brantley thought it should have been scored a hit. Bruce tracks down a line drive off the bat Ethier for out number three.

Ludwick still searching for the key, strikes out. Bruce flies out to left. Frazier grounds out. Easy inning for Beckett.

It looks as if Latos' night is done. 4IP 2H (singles by the first two batters) 1ER 0BB 6K.

Sam LeCure will come on in the top of the fifth. Fly ball to left. Fly ball to right. K. 1-2-3.

Spring training attendance is down 35% so far in 2013.

Hanigan Ks. Burriss draws a walk. Beckett is coming out. Paco Rodriguez is on. He is a southpaw. Burriss steals second. Olivo lines to center. Burriss steals third. Heisey comes on for Choo and takes a called third.

Top of the sixth and we have a new team for the Reds:
Soto 1st
H. Rodriguez 2nd
Hannahan 3rd
Izturis SS
Paul LF
Heisey CF
Lutz RF
Mesoraco C

A ground ball deflected off of Lecure puts Amezaga at first and then Sam throws a bunted ball away for an error as Henry Rodriguez did not get over there in time to cover first. Dodgers have runners at second and third with nobody out. Ellis strikes out. Kemp strikes out. I think Marty has found himself a new whipping boy in Rodriguez. If we set up a minor league whipping boy prospect, Rodriguez will easily top that list. Van Slyke grounds out to first. Great comeback by Sam LeCure.

Xavier Paul singles, following ground outs by Izturis and Soto, and stands at first with two down. Lutz booms a rocket off of Ted Lilly that goes all the way to the wall in right-center. Paul scores and Lutz winds up at third. Hannahan Stubbs for out number three. 2-1 Reds.

Manny Parra gives up a line single to the lefty Ethier. Two fly balls and a ground ball later and the inning is over.

Mesoraco with an infield single to start the Reds seventh. He is forced by Henry Rodriguez. Donalds hits a bullet to third and Rodriguez is doubled off of first on some poor baserunning per Cowboy.

Ondrusek on and he strikes out the first batter. Ted Lilly singles. A double play ball to short but the Reds only get one as Rodriguez makes a poor relay throw. Marty with the obligatory verbal whip crack on Rodriguez. Kemp grounds to Soto as Ondrusek hangs a goose egg.

Heisey works a walk to lead off the Reds' 8th. Izturis with a ground double down the line. Runners on second and third. Soto pops up on the infield. Paul is intentionally walked to juice the bases. Lutz grounds to first. Van Slyke comes home for the force but the catcher comes off the plate too soon in an attempt to double Lutz. Bases still juiced as Heisey scores and the Reds lead 3-1. Hannahan strikes out for out number two. Devin Mesoraco is en fuego as his double - a rocket to right-center - clears the bases. He is now hitting .471 with 9 ribeyes. 6-1 good guys. JJ Hoover is warming up and will probably come into the game in the 9th. Broadcasters complimenting Mesoraco's defense this spring. They also say he is much more selective at the plate. Rodriguez Ks looking. On to the ninth, leading 6-1.

Screaming liner to left-center sends Van Slyke to second with nobody out. Hoover strikes out Matt Angle. Infield hit puts runners on the corners with one out. Wallach is struck out on a 1-2 pitch but Hoover does not get the call. On 2-2, Wallach lines a single to right. 6-2. Castellanos flies out to Heisey as Herrera moves to third. Hoover having trouble with his breaking pitch tonight. Lutz hauls one in in right field for the third out.

ATOBTTR

[texasdave]

Reds take on Barry Zito and the WC San Francisco Giants. Reds will counter with Bronson Arroyo. How often will you see a matchup in which neither starter will touch 90? Reds go for their (meaningless) fourth in a row.

Bronson pitches a 1-2-3 top of the first.

Choo grounds out to start the proceedings for the Reds. Cozart doubles and Soto singles to produce a run. Ludwick whiffs. Bruce grounds to second. 1-0 Reds.

Arroyo starts the second with back-to-back strike outs. A single, stolen base and opposite field double tie things up at 1. Old buddy Wilson Valdez sends one deep to the pitcher's mound (the more things change....) but Bronson throws it over the head of Soto. Giants lead 2-1. Quiroz swings and misses. Top of the second is in the books. Grounder to second and the Giants third is in the books in scoreless fashion (copying Cowboy).

Zito comes back from a 3-0 count to strike out the Toddfather for out number one. Izturis pops out. Olivo pops out. TBH, I think I would rather have Corky Miller as the emergency catcher in AAA than Olivo.

Andres Torres doubles down into the right field corner but is gunned down by Izturis trying for three. A nice throw by Bruce as well. Ludwick hauls one in down the line in left.

Xavier Paul is DHing today and gets a chance to face the left Zito and promptly pulls a ground single to right. Choo with a looping liner single to center sets the Reds up with runners at first and second with nobody out. Paul was going on the pitch but lost sight of the ball (pickup your coach maybe?) and stops at second. Cozart hits on the screws but right at Keischnick in right for the first out of the inning. Soto walks to load them up for Ludwick. Ludwick's bat looks 'tired' down there in Goodyear, Arizona as he 'rolls' into an inning-ending double play.

BA works a quick 4th. Fly out, ground out, fly out.

Jay Bruce swings and misses. Frazier with a dribbler to third which he beats out. Izturis lines hard to center for the second out. Olivo with a checked-swing ground out. Still 2-1 Giants.

Sean Marshall, working the top of the fifth, is greeted with a lead-off single. Giants start the runner and it pays off as Valdez grounds to short with the only play at first. Runner on second. One out. Ground ball eats up Frazier and the Giants add another run. Quiroz stands on first. Brown with a line drive to left. Line drive to right caught by Heisey. Marshall strikes out Brandon Belt for out number three. Marty has a visitor from North Carolina and I think he might be speaking English. Not 100% sure. He sounds a lot like Gomer Pyle.

Reds go quietly in the fifth. Phipps ground out for Choo, Donald for Cozart.

Broxton will work the sixth. A soft line to Heisey and a grounder to second and the first two batters are retired. Heisey makes a running snag of a line drive. 1-2-3.

Donald Lutz, facing a lefty, continues to rattle baseballs off the wall. He stands at second with nobody out. Derrick Robinson singles to right to score Lutz but he is out in a rundown trying for second. Chris Heisey jumps all over a hanging breaking ball to tie things up at 3. That ball cleared everything. It was crushed. Hannahan rolls one over for the second out. Henry Rodriguez grounds to third. 3-3 after six.

Arredondo on for the 7th. He strikes out the first batter he faces. Wilson Valdez grounds to second. Another grounder. 1-2-3.

Corky Miller goes up hacking and lines hard to right on the first pitch. Burriss retired on a roller to second. Phipps rips an 0-2 fast ball back up the middle for a single. Donald lines the next pitch to right to put runners on the corners. Donald Lutz takes a big cut but comes up empty for strike three.

Pedro Villarreal shows why he isn't getting any votes in the prospect's poll. A fly ball to right for the first out and then single, homer (no-doubt rocket to center), homer (next pitch home run to deep left), single, single, double, and single plate six runs. Mercifully, Villareal is replaced by Curtis Partch. 9-3 Giants.

And it is smelling like dinner is ready. Adios.

Finishing up, Partch looked good, inducing a popup and then striking out Gary Brown.

Reds 8th saw Robinson and Heisey strike out. Hannahan and Henry Rodriguez stroked two-out singles. Corky Miller skied to center.

In the 9th, Partch gives up a leadoff double and then retires the next three.

Reds try to rally in the bottom of the 9th. Burriss reaches on an error. Phipps doubles for his second hit of the game. Donald's infield hit plates one. Lutz' sac fly is the first out. Robinson gets his second hit. Heisey flies out to center and Hannahan follows suit.

9-5 Giants.

[Tuff Nut]

Man, the way HRod has been playing, I'm surprised he is getting this long a look.....I know more outta necessity, because of BP, but the dude sure isn't doing himself any favors.

[texasdave]

It's a mixed bag Thursday. Lots of regulars have the day off:

Pitching:
Homer went four innings today. Good news. He didn't walk a batter. Bad news. He only struck out one, gave up 3 ER on 6 hits. Morse took him deep. Pitch fx was working today. Bailey's was sitting 91-93 on his fastball.
Hensley came on next. Good news. He struck out 5 in 2 innings of work. He gave up 4 ER on 3 hits and a walk. Morse took him deep.
De La Rose worked a scoreless 7th, striking out 2 Mariners.

Hitting:
Heisey had two hits, including a double. Zack Cozart with a pair of safeties, knocking in two. Denis Phipps pounded out a pair of two-baggers. Jason Donald stroked a pair of singles. Devin Mesoraco stayed out going 1 for 2. Neftali Soto had a double as did Henry Rodriguez. Derrick Robinson singled.

Reds jumped out to a 7-1. But it is all knotted up at 7 apiece heading into the 8th. Michael Morse was a one-man wrecking crew. He blasted a double and two homers. He scrored three times and knocked in five.

Robinson stole a base while Mesoraco was caught. Cozart made a throwing error, his third error of the season.

Drew Hayes on to pitch the 8th. The first batter lined hard to Selsky in left. The second batter, Zunnino jacked one over the 410 marker to give the Mariners an 8-7 lead. Hayes has been touching 94. Hayes Ks a batter and then gets a grounder to short. That was Hayes first run given up in the spring. When you have a #84 (Hayes) facing a #93 (Taylor), you know it's spring training.

Reds top of the 9th coming up. Lohman, Soto, Lutz and hopefully Selsky. They will face Oliver Perez. Easy bouncer to short off the bat of Lohman. One down. Soto sends the Seattle Mariners' right fielder banging into the wall, but Thames hangs on for out number two. He gave it a serious ride to the opposite field. And Perez makes Lutz look foolish on three straight breaking balls.

Game over. 8-7 bad guys.