Reds Tidbits (2006 Season)

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Dispatch

PIRATES 7 REDS 4
Reds lose chance to gain ground in wild-card chase

Sunday, September 10, 2006

Jim Massie
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

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</IMG> </TD></TR><TR><TD class=credit width=200>AL BEHRMAN ASSOCIATED PRESS </TD></TR><TR><TD class=cutline width=200>The Reds? Dewayne Wise slides into second base with a double as Pirates shortstop Jack Wilson drops the ball in the seventh inning. </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>


CINCINNATI ? The task before the Reds last night in Great American Ball Park loomed as clearly as the batter?s-eye beer sign that for the final six innings refused to morph to black as it is designed to do during play.
The National League wild card-leading San Diego Padres already had lost in San Francisco, and Cincinnati had the chance to gain precious ground by matching its Friday night victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates.
As has been the case for the past two catastrophic weeks, however, the concept of two wins in a row proved too much for the Reds. Ronnie Paulino snapped a 4-4 tie in the eighth inning with a two-out, RBI single and the Pirates scored two unearned runs in the ninth to top the Reds 7-4 in front of 25,038 fans.
The ugly loss stung more because it included two physical errors and one of the mental kind.
In the seventh inning with the score tied at 3, Reds first baseman Rich Aurilia fielded a grounder hit by Xavier Nady but failed to see Jose Castillo break from third base. By the time Aurilia realized Castillo was running he couldn?t throw home in time to prevent the run from scoring.
"When I looked at him, he wasn?t (running)," said Aurilia, a shortstop by trade. "In all honesty, that?s a play I?ve never encountered before in my career because I haven?t played (much at first). I didn?t turn my back. I saw him not going. I just turned my head to find the base. When I took one step back, he took off. It was a great read by him."
The Reds rebounded to tie the score at 4 in the bottom of the inning with a sacrifice fly by Royce Clayton. But the opportunity to cut San Diego?s wildcard lead to 2? games slipped away in the eighth and ninth.
Todd Coffey (6-6) surrendered a single to Freddy Sanchez to start the eighth and added to his trouble by walking Jason Bay. Good defensive plays by Aurilia and left fielder Adam Dunn helped Coffey get two outs before he uncorked a wild pitch that allowed Sanchez to scoot to third. Paulino followed with his single.
"When I come into that situation, I have to keep it 4-4," Coffey said. "It?s not need to. It?s a have to. There?s no excuse for leaving the ball up in the zone like that. I?ve got to get (Paulino) out in that situation. This late in the season, the Padres lose, and we have a chance to gain ground. That?s my loss. I cost us a game in the wild card."
Coffey had company. Cincinnati ace Aaron Harang started the game but didn?t dominate the Pirates. He was trailing 3-1 in the fourth when Brandon Phillips hit a two-run homer to tie it at 3.The Reds also had chances to do more damage to Pittsburgh starter Paul Maholm but failed. Dunn missed a pair of two-out opportunities with runners in scoring position, grounding out in the first and striking out in the fifth. Given a similar opening in the ninth, Bay stroked a two-run double off Ryan Franklin that put the game out of reach.
The loss, coupled with Houston?s 10-4 win over Milwaukee, dropped the Reds into third place in the division, a halfgame behind the Astros.
"Time?s getting precious right now," Aurilia said. "Today was a good opportunity for us to win and get within 2? games, especially with San Diego coming here (Tuesday). We didn?t take advantage tonight. It?s disappointing. At this point, one game makes a huge difference in the standings. It was a tough loss."
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Dispatch

REDS NOTEBOOK
Dunn?s slugging puts him in elite group
Sunday, September 10, 2006
Jim Massie
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH
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CINCINNATI ? The mere mention of Frank Robinson and Joe DiMaggio caused Reds left fielder Adam Dunn to raise a stop sign yesterday before a reporter could complete a question.
"Slow down," Dunn said. "That?s not even fathomable ? is that a word? I can?t even say it, but I know what I?m talking about."
The subject arose because Dunn hit the 198 th home run Friday night to move into a fifth-place tie with DiMaggio for most homers in the first six years of a career. Robinson, the former Cincinnati great and current Washington Nationals manager, is next on the list with 202. Ralph Kiner (257), Albert Pujols (245) and Eddie Mathews (222) are the top three.
Home runs have been Dunn?s calling card since he arrived in Cincinnati in July 2001 as a 21-year-old rookie. He matched a team record held by Ted Kluszewski with the same home run, which gave him at least 40 for three straight seasons. Dunn shrugged off that number, too.
"It wasn?t really too significant to me," he said. "It?s a great honor, but I don?t go out there and play for that kind of stuff. I know a lot of people say they don?t care, but I really don?t care about (statistics)."
He was happier to square up a ball and hit it hard. When the team stumbled into a batting slump two weeks ago, Dunn may have taken the hardest fall.
"It?s been a long time since I?ve hit some balls good," he said. "I had good (batting practice) yesterday. I felt better. That?s about it."
First start

Rookie Norris Hopper didn?t ho-hum about his first bigleague start yesterday, but he refrained from doing cartwheels.
"I?m taking it like any other game," said Hopper, who won the International League batting title with Louisville. "I?ve been doing this since I was 5 years old, and it ain?t changed in 700 years. The game is baseball. There?s no pressure. There?s none of that. I?m just going to go out and play."
Short hop

A batting practice line drive hit utility infielder Ray Olmedo in the jaw before the game last night with the Pittsburgh Pirates. He lay on the ground for a few minutes while trainers attended to him before walking off under his own power. He was not seriously injured.
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REDS 4 PIRATES 2
Afternoon delight for Arroyo
Pitcher, who likes working nights, has strong outing

Monday, September 11, 2006

Jim Massie
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

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</IMG> </TD></TR><TR><TD class=credit width=200>TOM UHLMAN ASSOCIATED PRESS </TD></TR><TR><TD class=cutline width=200>Jose Castillo of the Pirates avoids Norris Hopper of the Reds at second base and sends a throw to first to complete a double play in the first inning. </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>


CINCINNATI ? Even if daylight pitching doesn?t agree with Bronson Arroyo, the Reds were happy to see him and his out-ofsync body clock on the mound yesterday afternoon in Great American Ball Park.
"He?s pitched real well," manager Jerry Narron said. "He?s definitely been through (a pennant race) before. There?s no question about that."
Facing a third must-win situation in the first 10 days of September, Arroyo (13-9) met the challenge head-on by working eight solid innings of a 4-2 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates.
The lanky right-hander is 3-0 during a rugged stretch that has seen the Reds struggle to keep their heads above water in the National League Central and wild-card races. He appears to have returned to the All-Star form he flashed in the first half of the season.
"I think as a ballplayer you enjoy being in a situation where you feel like you have to win," Arroyo said. "That?s what makes you bring your ?A? game every night. Obviously right now, we?ve got to win every single ballgame we can."
Despite the performance, he still hates day games.
"I didn?t feel 100 percent physically," Arroyo said. "It?s just hard for your body to be awake after six months of having a schedule where you?re going to bed pretty late. I never feel 100 percent on day games, but I had really, really good command today, especially with my breaking ball."
The win allowed the Reds to regain second place from Houston in the NL Central and to retake fifth place in a tight wild-card race still led by San Diego. The Padres open a three-game series with Cincinnati on Tuesday night in Great American.
"It was big to take this series," Arroyo said. "We?ve got to take two of three at the minimum from San Diego to have the opportunity to do anything."
Arroyo carried a no-hit shutout into the fifth inning but didn?t have the lead. Pittsburgh starter Shane Youmin (0-1), who was making his major-league debut, also had a shutout going.
The Pirates broke ahead in the sixth on a two-out, two-run single by Freddy Sanchez. The Reds answered in the bottom of the inning with one of their best rallies in recent weeks.
Rich Aurilia drew a walk to open the inning and Edwin Encarnacion singled. Adam Dunn broke up Youmin?s shutout with an RBI single. Encarnacion went to third on the hit and scored on a sacrifice fly by David Ross.
Dunn surprised the Pirates by tagging up and taking second on the play. Brandon Phillips then drove him in with a single to give Arroyo a 3-2 lead. Narron smiled at the mention of Dunn?s aggressive base-running play.
"That is one of those little things you talk about the first day of spring training," Narron said. "It was an outstanding play. That is how you?re supposed to play the game.
"Shoot, we had a sac fly today from Ross, and Dunner, Aurilia and Phillips all had hits with guys in scoring position. It was real nice to see."
Arroyo held Pittsburgh to four hits and finished with seven strikeouts. Scott Schoeneweis pitched the ninth to post his second save.
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REDS NOTEBOOK
Guardado dives into rehab work

Monday, September 11, 2006

Jim Massie
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

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CINCINNATI ? Closer Eddie Guardado already has begun rehab work on his surgically repaired left elbow.
Guardado, who underwent "Tommy John" surgery Friday, is serious about making a comeback next season.
"The worst day is over," he said. "That was waking up Friday after the surgery. Saturday morning at 9 o?clock I was ready to go. I was right in (the training room) stretching it."
He expects to rehab for four months before he picks up a baseball.
"I?m looking forward to that already," said Guardado, whose target date to pitch again is in eight months. "The middle of the season next year, but who knows? The way things are nowadays, I think I work hard. I?ll try to get back as fast as I can."
The Reds acquired Guardado from the Seattle Mariners in July to stabilize the bullpen. He had eight saves before the injury.
"The worst part about it is coming to a new team and trying to contribute, and you can?t do it," Guardado said. "That?s the worst part."
Sore foot

Catcher David Ross has been playing through a bout of plantar fasciitis in the heel of his left foot for the past month. He started yesterday for the first time in three games.
"It?s getting better," Ross said. "I got a (cortisone) shot on Wednesday after the game. It isn?t going to get any worse than it was on Wednesday. I could barely walk with it."
Still sidelined

Head trainer Mark Mann said Ken Griffey Jr. received a cortisone shot Saturday afternoon to relieve pain in his right big toe. Griffey has missed five games since dislocating another toe on his right foot while trying to climb the wall in center field to catch a home run by San Francisco?s Barry Bonds. He jammed the big toe into the wall at the same time. His status remains day to day heading into a threegame series with San Diego on Tuesday.
Short hops

Reliever David Weathers was home in Tennessee yesterday for the birth of daughter Ally Anissa Weathers. Ally is the third child for Weathers and his wife, Kelli. Weathers is expected to rejoin the team Tuesday. ? The Reds? minor-league teams finished play with the elimination of double-A Chattanooga (Southern League) and rookie level Billings (Pioneer League) from their respective playoff series. [email protected]

 

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Reds feel urgency of series against Padres
Wild card possible, but time running out

Tuesday, September 12, 2006

Jim Massie
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

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CINCINNATI ? Nobody has to tell the Reds that their margin for error has disappeared as neatly as a shiny silver dollar in the hands of a street magician.
With the arrival of the National League wild card-leading San Diego Padres in Great American Ball Park tonight, Cincinnati has its last, best chance to state a case for the postseason in the three-game series.
The Reds trail the Padres by 3? games in the wild card, and the first-place St. Louis Cardinals by five games in the Central Division with 19 games left in the regular season.
To complicate matters, San Francisco, Philadelphia and Florida also have edged ahead of Cincinnati in the wild card, while Houston has closed in both races. The result is that each new loss ripples like a boulder dropped in a bathtub.
"We all know what?s at stake," infielder Rich Aurilia said. "You can?t concentrate on sweeping teams. You?ve got to concentrate on that first game. Once you get that, you concentrate on the next one.
"Granted (games) mean a lot more than they did earlier. You think back to a lot of games we played earlier that if we would have held on and won, we wouldn?t be in this position right now."
A 4-11 stretch since Aug. 24 dropped the Reds from the wild-card lead and a virtual tie with the Cardinals in the division. Three September games with a nondivisional rival such as San Diego, therefore, are a godsend.
"Usually you don?t get to face (nondivision teams) and make up some ground," shortstop Royce Clayton said. "The schedule has worked out in our favor where we can get right back, if not tie it up, go right back to the top of the wild card. It?s right there in front of us."
The Padres, of course, have the same goal in view. They also are playing better than the Reds are. San Diego leads the NL in pitching, and has a veteran presence that Cincinnati manager Jerry Narron lost with the season-ending elbow injury to closer Eddie Guardado.
"You can start at the back end of their bullpen," Narron said. "When you?ve got (closer) Trevor Hoffman, that lines everything up extremely well. And they?ve got (Scott) Linebrink, who does a great job setting up. They?ve got good starting pitching. So they pitch well, and they catch the ball. If you do that, you?ve got a chance to win."
Heading into the series, Narron continued to preach the one-game-at-a-time sermon to a team that appeared to be listening to him.
"We don?t get too excited, too down or up for anything," catcher David Ross. "We try to stay even keel. I think it?s a good sign. I haven?t heard one person mention San Diego."
The Reds hope that center fielder Ken Griffey Jr. returns to the lineup after a five-game absence because of an injury to his right big toe. With or without him, the hitting has to improve. Brandon Phillips, Adam Dunn and Aurilia singled with runners in scoring position in Sunday?s 4-2 win over Pittsburgh. That raised the team?s batting average to .140 in those situations over the past 15 games.
"It?s tough sometimes when you get to September when you?re facing people you?ve never even heard of or know," Aurilia said. "It takes you awhile to adjust. You don?t want bad games at this point. You want to win every game you can.
"We got a couple of clutch hits (Sunday). Hopefully, we get a chance to get a few more of those hits and good pitching efforts because it would be nice if we could stay in this race to the end."
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Big one last night boys, lets keep winning...

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Reds do their part to stay in race, even if it?s futile

Wednesday, September 13, 2006


BOB HUNTER

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CINCINNATI ? If this series with San Diego turns out to be the Reds? last stand, it apparently isn?t going to be as melodramatic as Custer?s.
Team officials hoped to use half-price tickets and dollar hot dogs to jack up the crowd for a series that Cincinnati probably had to sweep to stay alive in the National League playoff hunt. As it was, an all-day rain kept most fans at home and the players in the clubhouse until just before the game.
This was not the kind of noisy, exhilarating scene you imagine when you think about a pennant race ? there were maybe 3,000 fans in the stadium at the finish ? but the Reds did their part to keep things interesting, at least for another day.
By beating the Padres 5-4 on Jason LaRue?s home run in the 11 th inning last night, the Reds remained five games behind St. Louis, a 6-5 winner over Houston, in the NL Central. They also pulled to 2 1 /2 games behind San Diego in the wild-card standings, even if they were still behind Marlins, Phillies and Giants teams whose games still weren?t completed at press time.
"I really haven?t even looked at the wild card, to be honest with you," Reds manager Jerry Narron said.
It makes me smile to think of how hard it would be for a TV network to use that, in the midst of exploding graphics, hyperventilating announcers and aerial shots of the stadium, as an intro to a wild-card matchup that is about as good as it gets in the middle of September.
But when Narron says he hasn?t been paying much attention to the scores of the other games involving wild-card contenders, you can understand his reasoning.
"You really can?t," Narron said. "It?s such a mess. ... I don?t know what to say other than everybody?s got a shot at it, and we?ve just got to win our own games and worry."
The NL wild-card race is a mess ? there were still six teams 4 1 /2 games behind or better entering last night ? but the Reds? situation has been remarkably simplified because of their recent troubles.
In fifth place in the wild-card standings with 19 to play, the Reds pretty much needed to win all three games against the Padres to have a chance. Even if they won two of three, they would still gain only one game on San Diego, and almost certainly still would find themselves trailing three or four teams entering the final 2 1 /2 weeks of the season.
Narron has an easy way of handling this.
"The only thing I really look at is the Cardinals," the Cincinnati manager said. "If they lose, we?ve got a shot. We?ve got to win five more than they do the rest of the way. I guess we?d have a one-game playoff if we did that."
If you think about it, the Reds probably do have a better chance of catching the Cardinals than finishing in front of five other teams who could all share the same blanket. And then again, maybe that?s why Great American Ball Park doesn?t exactly seem like a boiling cauldron of energy.
The odds of the Reds making up five games in the last 19 don?t inspire you to leap out of your chair and run to the phone to see whether you can still buy playoff tickets.
No matter what happens, a Reds team that was picked my many to finish last in the division has at least done its part to make the summer interesting. But that?s small consolation for players and coaches whose team led the wild-card race by a game and a half on Aug. 24, then lost 10 of the next 12 games.
"I do know one thing, going into the start of the year, I really hoped our guys would be in the position in September where every pitch meant something," Narron said. "(Knowing) how important every pitch is, and you can?t take pitches off, you?ve got to be locked in ... because a lot of these young guys have never experienced that before, and I really hoped our guys would have a chance to go through that, so ... "
He didn?t finish the sentence, which was probably as it should be.
The Reds still aren?t out of it, even if it feels that way.

Bob Hunter is a sports colum nist for The Dispatch
.
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Dispatch

REDS 5 PADRES 4, 11 INNINGS
LaRue?s HR sets off celebration
Come-from-behind victory narrows gap in wild-card race

Wednesday, September 13, 2006

Jim Massie
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

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</IMG> </TD></TR><TR><TD class=credit width=200>AL BEHRMAN ASSOCIATED PRESS </TD></TR><TR><TD class=cutline width=200>Scott Hatteberg is safe as Padres first baseman Adrian Gonzalez is pulled off the bag by a throw from shortstop Manny Alexander. </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>


CINCINNATI ? How much the win meant to the Reds showed in the eruption of players from the dugout last night in Great American Ball Park after Jason LaRue curled a home run around the left-field foul pole in the bottom of the 11 th inning to beat the San Diego Padres 5-4.
The come-from-behind victory over the National League wild-card leading Padres in the opener of a crucial threegame series cut the Cincinnati deficit to 2? games in the standings.
The moment had to be sweet for LaRue, who lost his job as starting catcher to David Ross earlier this season. He entered the game against the Padres in the ninth inning as the third catcher manager Jerry Narron had used.
"Any time you can contribute, especially in a situation like this with the team being in a playoff hunt, it?s always fun to contribute in any which way that you can," LaRue said. "Right now, we?ve got to worry about winning baseball for the rest of the year. That?s all I?m focused on right now."
The Reds rebounded from a 4-3 deficit in the bottom of the eighth inning to send the game into extra innings. Relievers David Weathers and Scott Schoeneweis (1-0) combined to allow one hit in the final three innings for Cincinnati.
The San Diego bullpen was equally stingy until LaRue hopped on the 0-and-1 pitch from Doug Brocail (2-2) and sent a low liner toward the foul pole in left. He thought the ball would stay fair.
"I had a good idea," LaRue said. "I?m not going to say I knew for 100 percent because there at the end it started actually curving a little bit more."
The late success of the bullpen helped ease the pain of an earlier disappointment delivered by relievers Ryan Franklin and Rheal Cormier in the sixth inning.
Reds starter Eric Milton had checked the Padres on one run ? a Mike Piazza homer ? in five innings but left the game in the sixth because of stiffness in his left elbow. He will be re-evaluated today.
Rich Aurilia presented a 3-1 lead to Milton with a three-run homer in the third. Milton turned that over to the bullpen in the sixth and barely had time to reach the trainer?s room before Franklin began giving it up. Adrian Gonzalez and Paul McAnulty stroked RBI doubles off Franklin to tie the score at 3. Cormier surrendered an RBI hit to Terrmel Sledge that gave the Padres a 4-3 advantage.
Cincinnati tied the score at 4 in the eighth on an RBI groundout by Brandon Phillips that scored Edwin Encarnacion from third base. The offense went dormant until LaRue woke it up with his eighth home run.
"It?s great to see (LaRue) do that," Narron said. "It?s been a tough year for him, from getting injured there at the end of spring training. He?s definitely wanted to play more than he has. I?m definitely happy for him to get the walk-off."
LaRue didn?t celebrate. He noted the next 18 games are as important as last night.
"This series doesn?t mean anything if (we) go out and win this series and the rest of the year we (bleep) all over ourselves," he said.
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REDS NOTEBOOK
Aurilia mulling options for 2007

Wednesday, September 13, 2006

Jim Massie
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

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CINCINNATI ? Reds infielder Rich Aurilia said yesterday that he isn?t making any baseball plans beyond the final weeks of the regular season.
Aurilia, 35, signed a one-year contract with Cincinnati on Jan. 8 with a $2 million mutual option for 2007. He has been the team?s best hitter since the All-Star break, and has played all four infield positions.
"It?s a mutual option, so it?s in both our courts," he said. "It?s something I?ll have to think about when the season is over. I would assume to say I?d be in the same boat I?ve been in the past two years."
After nine seasons as a shortstop with San Francisco, Aurilia has been asked to play other positions since leaving the Giants in 2004. He was the opening-day shortstop for the Reds in 2005, but the emergence of Felipe Lopez forced him to play second and third.
This year, Aurilia hoped to win the second base job in spring training. But after Brandon Phillips was acquired in April to play second, Aurilia found himself in a platoon at first and third until recent weeks when he began playing shortstop again.
"I just want to play and win," Aurilia said. "I don?t really care where I play position-wise. I feel comfortable at short. Last year when I played second a lot, I felt real comfortable there. Playing more first and third, I feel more comfortable in those places. It would be nice to settle into one, but that opportunity might not be here."
General manager Wayne Krivsky already has signed first baseman Scott Hatteberg to a contract extension for 2007. Phillips and third baseman Edwin Encarnacion should return. Aurilia wouldn?t mind being along for the ride.
"It?s something that I?m hoping to talk about," he said. "But that?s out of my hands. All I can control is what I do when I?m in there playing."
Tiebreaker possibilities

Major League Baseball conducted a series of coin tosses yesterday to determine the sites for the potential twoteam tiebreakers that could impact the postseason. All games would be played Oct. 2.
If the Reds and St. Louis tie atop the National League Central, the game would be played in Busch Stadium.
The Reds would play host to wild-card games against Florida , Philadelphia and San Francisco, and be visitors versus San Diego and Houston.
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Reds miss chance to make up ground
Cincinnati falls 2 1 /2 games behind Padres

Thursday, September 14, 2006

Jim Massie
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

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CINCINNATI ? Given the high stakes, what happened to the Reds last night in Great American Ball Park should be remembered as one of the lowest points of a season admittedly pockmarked by peaks and valleys.
Cincinnati missed a rare opportunity to gain ground simultaneously in the National League Central and in the wild-card standings, and did so by a country mile.
All the Reds needed was a win over the wild-card leading San Diego Padres for a second consecutive night to pull to 1? games of them. The victory also would have sliced the NL Central lead of the St. Louis Cardinals to four games with 17 to play.
Instead, the Padres pounded the Reds into submission during a 10-0 victory that featured a standout pitching performance from Jake Peavy (9-14). Now Cincinnati has to win the series finale at 12:35 p.m. today to at least cut a game off the San Diego lead.
"Facing somebody like Jake Peavy, who?s got great stuff, you can?t afford to get down early in the ballgame," Reds manager Jerry Narron said. "That?s basically what we did."
From the outset, the game resembled one of those lopsided fights involving the young Mike Tyson. The bell rang and the Reds, who definitely did not land the role of Tyson, found themselves lying on their backs and staring up at the night sky. Any stars visible were circling their baseball caps.
"It?s frustrating today," catcher Javier Valentin said. "We were so close and in one game everything blows away."
The storm started because the Padres treated Reds starter Kyle Lohse like a six-piece puzzle. They solved him before the crowd of 21,602 had a chance to find its seats and took him apart by scoring seven runs in 2 1 /3 ugly innings.
The results startled Lohse (2-3), who had pitched at least five innings in each of his previous seven starts and had allowed two or fewer runs five of those times.
"It wasn?t a good night for me," Lohse said. "It happens. It?s unfortunate that it happens against a team that we?re trying to gain on. I can?t sit here and dwell on it. Yeah, I?m disappointed. I came out flat and they capitalized on it."
Adrian Gonzalez nicked Lohse for an RBI double in the first inning. Even though that would be the only run Peavy needed, the Padres gave him more.
In the second, Geoff Blum doubled and went to third on a fly Josh Barfield hit to the warning track in center. Peavy stroked a two-out double over the head of DeWayne Wise in center field to score Blum with the second San Diego run.
The trouble continued with a single by Dave Roberts and a two-run double by Brian Giles. Gonzalez capped the four-run inning with an RBI single.
"Everything was kind of up and back (over) the plate, whichever side I was trying to go to," Lohse said. "Sometimes you can get away with it. Tonight wasn?t one of those nights."
The Reds loaded the bases with one out against Peavy in the second, but hopes of a quick comeback disappeared with a double-play bouncer off the bat of Wise.
Blum chased Lohse with a two-run homer in the third, and Mike Piazza unloaded a threerun bomb off Brian Shackelford in the sixth to cap the scoring.
While Peavy didn?t have the electric stuff he showed in a 14-strikeout performance against the Reds on Sept. 2 in San Diego, he still dominated through six shutout innings. The closest Cincinnati came to a run was in the fourth when Mike Cameron, a former Red, reached over the wall in center field to take a home run away from Adam Dunn.
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REDS NOTEBOOK
Milton will pitch despite elbow pain

Thursday, September 14, 2006

Jim Massie
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

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CINCINNATI ? A year ago, the pain that left-hander Eric Milton felt in his elbow while pitching Tuesday night against the San Diego Padres probably would have meant the end of the season.
But with the Reds still alive in the National League Central and wild-card races, Milton chose another route yesterday after X-rays and a saline-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging showed no significant structural damage. He asked Timothy Kremchek, the team?s medical director, to give him a cortisone shot in hopes of relieving the pain.
"He said he?s been throwing the ball well, his velocity has been decent," Kremchek said. "He just got a little concerned with the stiffness. So I gave him a cortisone shot in his elbow joint.
"The reason we gave him that is because we still have a chance to go to the playoffs, and he wants to do everything he can to make his starts and help the team. He certainly did not want to shut it down."
Milton, who is 8-7 with a 4.84 ERA, is tentatively scheduled to start Sunday against the Chicago Cubs in Wrigley Field.
"We should know in the next couple of days for sure," manager Jerry Narron said. "But it looks like he?ll be able to make his start."
Kremchek said he thought the cortisone shot was worth the risk.
"His elbow didn?t really show any gross findings," he said. "He had changes you would typically see in a guy who has thrown a lot of innings in the major leagues. His ligament looked OK. It does not appear to be anything significant."
Reliever Kent Mercker, whose season was ended by Tommy John surgery to his left elbow in August, was happy to elaborate for Milton.
"The surgery went well," Mercker said. "And I think they got the guy that did it."
Griffey improving

Ken Griffey Jr. took batting practice on the field before the game last night for the first time since he suffered an injury to two toes on his right foot Sept. 4.
Narron said he tentatively planned to use Griffey as a pinch hitter Tuesday in the win over San Diego before Jason LaRue ended matters in the 11 th inning with a home run. Griffey, however, still is experiencing pain in his big toe and isn?t ready to play in the field.
"Junior is still a little sore from his running (Tuesday)," head trainer Mark Mann said. "He?s limited more on defense than anything. But he wouldn?t be able to run the bases at 100 percent, either."
Freel sits

Narron decided to start De-Wayne Wise over Ryan Freel in center field instead of giving Freel a second crack at San Diego right-hander Jake Peavy.
In their meeting Sept. 2 in Petco Park, Freel struck out four times.
"I?m just trying to get as many left-handed hitters out there against Jake Peavy as we can," Narron said. "We didn?t have a whole lot of success in San Diego, so we?re trying to mix it up a little bit."
Second mystery tour

Narron apparently intends to go down to the wire before he announces a starting pitcher for the game Saturday against the Cubs. Chris Michalak, Sun-Woo Kim and Jason Johnson are the contenders.
"We?re talking about it," Narron said.
Asked if the three are preparing as if they will start, Narron shook his head.
"All three of them are getting ready to get guys out in the bullpen," he said.
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[coastalbuck]

Not a good thing, I really hate it because we were so close. Keep trying boys. Next year is next year, ask a Cubs fan...

todays game

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

Reds see playoff hopes dimmed by bad inning

Friday, September 15, 2006

Jim Massie
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

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CINCINNATI ? The game came crashing down on the Reds yesterday afternoon in Great American Ball Park as suddenly as a cardboard roof in a torrential downpour.
In all likelihood, a seventhinning collapse by Cincinnati ace Aaron Harang also buried any postseason hopes the Reds had harbored Tuesday night at the beginning of the crucial three-game series with the National League wild cardleading San Diego Padres.
Locked in a 0-0 tie with San Diego starter Clay Hensley, Harang lost the strike zone in the seventh inning and because of it Cincinnati ultimately lost 4-2 in front of a small announced crowd of 16,957.
"It?s tough," a somber Harang said. "I think we have a better team than what we?re showing right now. I can?t go out there and do what I did today in the seventh. I have to hold the run-scoring down."
In losing the series 2-1, the Reds toppled 4? games behind the Padres with 16 games to play. They also trail Philadelphia, San Francisco and Florida in the wild-card standings, and the St. Louis Cardinals lead the National League Central by 5 1 /2 games entering their game last night.
Even if the situation isn?t hopeless, the team?s postgame trip to Chicago, where it begins a three-game series with the Cubs at 2:20 p.m. today, figured to be less than festive.
"Today was a backbreaker, man," shortstop Rich Aurilia said. "I think we all thought we needed to take two out of three from these guys. Are we totally done yet? No, we?re not mathematically done.
"It will take a lot for us, with help from a bunch of other teams, to do something here late in the season. It?s hard to jump over four or five teams."
Both clubs had one chance for a big inning. The Reds loaded the bases with one out against Hensley (9-11) in the first, but the rally died when Edwin Encarnacion bounced into a double play.
Those kinds of blown opportunities have dogged Cincinnati since the hitters settled into a team slump Aug. 25 in San Francisco.
"It seems like a lot of times we have opportunities to score and we don?t take advantage," Aurilia said. "And it?s probably a combination of good pitching, bad luck and people having different plans up there. We?ve been getting these questions for three weeks now, and the answer really hasn?t changed. I don?t know what the answer is. It?s part of baseball."
What happened to Harang (13-11) is as hard to explain. He entered the game with a streak of 76 consecutive starts in which he hadn?t walked more than three batters. In the seventh inning alone, he walked three Padres and each cost him dearly.
The first to Adrian Gonzalez helped load the bases with no outs and set up a two-run single by former Red Mike Cameron. Harang issued an intentional walk to Josh Barfield that loaded the bases again but brought Hensley to the plate. The third walk ensued, forcing home the third run. Harang was done and so were the Reds.
"I was pressing too much, trying to do too much," Harang said. "Mentally, you get out of whack and you try to overthrow. I was thinking too much instead of letting the ball go like I was doing the first six innings. You have to beat teams that are ahead of you. We should have beaten these guys all three games."
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[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

REDS NOTEBOOK
Clutch hits difficult to find

Friday, September 15, 2006

Jim Massie
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

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</IMG> </TD></TR><TR><TD class=credit width=200>AL BEHRMAN ASSOCIATED PRESS </TD></TR><TR><TD class=cutline width=200>Reds manager Jerry Narron, left, yells at umpire Rob Drake after Drake ejected coach Chris Chambliss. </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>


CINCINNATI ? The Reds managed five hits in a 4-2 loss to the San Diego Padres yesterday, and such a puny number doesn?t compute well with the current National League pennant race mathematics.
Cincinnati has 16 games remaining and its chances of catching the wild-card leading Padres or the St. Louis Cardinals in the NL Central are fading fast. Losing two of three to the Padres this week didn?t help.
"We?ve got to win," first baseman Scott Hatteberg said. "And we?ve got to hope that other teams lose. Before, it was in our hands. Coming into this series, it would have been nice to take two out of three or even sweep. That?s what we needed to do, and we didn?t do it. It makes it difficult to play in October now."
Three weeks ago, the Reds pulled to .0004 percentage points of the Cardinals in the Central and had a 1?-game lead in the wild-card standings. That?s when the hitting stopped. In the aftermath, the Padres, San Francisco Giants, Philadelphia Phillies and Florida Marlins all moved ahead in the wild card.
"We haven?t had many breaks," Hatteberg said. "Breaks help. But there are other times when you?ve got to manufacture runs. It doesn?t take anything but a ground ball or a fly ball. We haven?t been able to do it."
Griffey update

Reds manager Jerry Narron didn?t talk as if he expected to have center fielder Ken Griffey Jr. in the three-game series with the Chicago Cubs. Griffey has missed eight games since he suffered a dislocated toe on his right foot and jammed another into the outfield wall while trying to catch a Barry Bonds home run Sept. 4.
"He?ll be able to pinch hit," Narron said. "I know running around he?s had some discomfort. He?s just not physically able to play nine innings. The surface in Wrigley is not exactly the smoothest."
Rotating rotation

Narron hopes to know by today whether Eric Milton will be able to make his next scheduled start Sunday against the Cubs. Milton received a cortisone shot in his sore left elbow Wednesday.
Narron was worried when Milton had to leave the game Tuesday against San Diego.
"A pitcher will tell you usually when he?s gassed or he?s close to it, or when he just doesn?t have it," Narron said. "But when he tells you he feels something, that?s when you really become concerned."
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[coastalbuck]

All you can do is win. Keep it up boys. You never know. Great outing by Arroyo.

Link

 

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

REDS 4 CUBS 0
Ross homer backs Arroyo in shutout win
Right-hander back in another groove as season winds down

Saturday, September 16, 2006

Andrew Seligman
ASSOCIATED PRESS




CHICAGO ? Bronson Arroyo wasn?t thinking about any of it. It didn?t matter that the Cincinnati Reds? playoff hopes are just about gone, that the flow of runs had been reduced to a trickle.
His curve was at its best, David Ross hit a three-run homer and the slumping Reds beat the Chicago Cubs 4-0 yesterday despite managing just four hits.
"I just know that some teams have to lose some ballgames and all we can worry about is trying to win every game," Arroyo said.
Rich Aurilia?s RBI single and Ross? shot off Carlos Marmol (5-7) during a four-run fourth were enough to give the Reds their sixth victory in 19 games.
Arroyo (14-9) won his fourth straight start, allowing four hits while striking out seven and walking three. It was the second scoreless outing in three starts for Arroyo, who threw the first shutout of his career against San Francisco on Sept. 5.
Scott Schoeneweis pitched the ninth to finish the combined five-hitter.
It was small consolation for a Cincinnati team that saw its playoff hopes all but evaporate this week by losing two of three to wild-card leader San Diego. The Reds began the day 4 1 /2 games behind the Padres.
It has been a long fall from where Cincinnati was after beating San Francisco on Aug. 24: in a virtual tie with St. Louis for the NL Central lead and 1 1 /2 games ahead in the wild card.
"It?s definitely an uphill battle," Aurilia said. "It?s not like we?re 4 1 /2 back behind one team; we?re 4 1 /2 behind four (for the wild card). It?s hard enough to catch one."
The Cubs? misery continued.
Wrecked by injuries, they were scrambling again when starter Juan Mateo left with tightness in the middle of his back after three hitless innings. He struck out three and walked two before being lifted for a pinch-hitter leading off the third.
It was the second time in four starts Mateo left with an injury. He took a line drive to the forearm by Pittsburgh?s Jose Bautista on Aug. 30.
The Chicago offense did little against Arroyo.
Acquired in a trade with Boston in late March, Arroyo went 9-3 in his first 15 starts before going 1-6 in his next 13. But in his last four outings, he has allowed four runs in 32 innings and lowered his ERA to 3.17. "This game?s funny," Arroyo said. "You saw the streak I went through in the middle of the year. Good, bad or ugly, I wasn?t getting any wins. ... I started off really hot. I?m hot right now. I?m not doing anything special."