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Hall of Fame baseball writer Hal McCoy has retired from the Dayton Daily News after covering the Cincinnati Reds for 37 years. Hal's blog, though, will continue to be a must-read for Reds fans. He'll share his thoughts on the team this season and will file updates from Great American Ball Park. You also can catch Hal in print every Sunday in his popular Ask Hal columnHome > Blogs > The Real McCoy | Cincinnati Reds baseball news > Archives > 2008 > June > 02
Monday, June 2, 2008
Road Wimps - The Big Washing Machine
Once upon a time, back in 1999, they were Road Warriors, or as I dubbed them, The Big Road Machine.
Anciet history.
Right now they are the Road Wimps, the Big Washing Machine.
Even when they pound the baseball on the road, they can’t win. Their road record dipped to 9-20 Monday when they lost, 5-4, to the Phillies.
They only mustered only seven hits, but the hit a batch of line drives that were caught - four straight by Joey Votto, all caught.
“We hit the ball so hard, I thought for sure we’d win that game on a bloop hit,” said manager Dusty Baker. “We deserved it.”
When you get only one hit over the final three innings, you don’t have to read any hand-writing on the wall. It’s as plain as the box score in front of your face.
There doesn’t seem to be a middle-of-the-road Bronson Arroyo. There is The Very Good Bronson and The Very Bad Bronson. On Monday, in the tiny ball park named Citizen Banks Park (It should be named Chase Bank Park after second baseman Chase Utley), The Very Bad, Ugly, Awful Bronson showed up.
He gave up five runs and 10 hits in 4 1/3 innings - three home runs were mixed in, including a two-run rip by Utley in the first, his 21st this season.
Jay Bruce?
As Baker said, “It’s the same thing we talk about every day. Now we need to get some of the others doing the same thing.”
Bruce had two hits, including his third home run and after seven major-league games he is hitting .577 with three homers.
Now how do you go 2 for 4 and have your average fall.
It’s like former Pittsburgh outfielder Al Oliver, a Portsmouth native who still lives there, once said when he was hitting .423 at the end of April.
“Think somebody can hit .400?” he was asked.
“Yeah, I do,” he said. “I think I could do it.”
How about .500? “Now that would be tough,” he said.
It certainly would.
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TweetGriffey speaks about ‘600’
For those interested in reading what Ken Griffey Jr. thinks about ‘600,’ - and that’s not the movie ‘300’ times two - go to daytondailynews.com/sports.
Griffey talked lengthily today in Philadelphia before taking the night off because of general soreness.
His comments are on our web-site. Check it out.
Then come on back later tonight. I’ll have something more for you.
Hal
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TweetJ-Roll, meet J-Bruce (Babe Bruce)
You probably read it here first yesterday, but the Cincinnati Reds made it official today — Homer Bailey starts Thursday for the Reds in Citizens Bank Park.
‘Our father, who art in heaven …’ And I’m not just picking on Bailey. I’d say that about any pitcher asked to face the Phlailing Phillies in that CBP bandbox right now. It’s worse than Great American Ball Park, and that’s saying a lot.
And I’m safely ensconced in Philly. Having given U.S. Airways the what-for after my Trip-From-Hell to New York, today I pass out my wondrous thanks. We left Dayton this morning — early. We arrived in Philly — early. And my suitcase accompanied me to the hotel.
The Reds are thankful the Phillies took away first place from the Marlins on Sunday, right? The Reds are 5-0 in their last five games against first-place teams. And they would be 6-0, but they knocked the Indians out of first place on a Saturday and when they beat them again on Sunday when the Tribe was in second place.
I’m sitting outside the hotel, smoking an Ashton on a bench. Across the street is The Melting Pot: A Fondue Restaurant. Ever eat in one? I challenge you to get out of one for less than $100 per person. Good stuff, though. And fun.
The headline on this morning’s Philly Inquirer says: “J-Roll Talks the Talk.”
Does everybody in the world now use their first initial and half their last name as a nickname? Did it start with J-Lo? Or was it A-Rod? Glad they didn’t do it back when Frank Baumholtz played or he would have been F-Baum.
And the Reds’ newest sensation, Jay Bruce, doesn’t have to shorten his to J-Bruce.
Anyway, in Sunday’s Phillies-Marlins game the Phils led 7-5 in the eighth when relief pitcher Tom Gordon walked the first guy in the eighth and threw two straight balls to the next guy.
Shortstop Rollins (J-Roll or Jelly Roll) ran to the mound and said to Gordon, “What the heck you doing? Throw strikes. Babe Ruth is dead.”
Oh, yeah. Wait until they get a look at Babe Bruce. The Phillies know about him, though. Phillies advance scout Hank Webb watched Bruce destroy the Atlanta Braves in all three weekend games and said, “They’ll never believe my report.”
And the Phillies know that Ken Griffey Jr. is one home run away from 600 because J-Roll said, “It would be great to see history made, after we’re up 10-1, of course.”
… Speaking of scouts, one of the nicest guys in the business, San Diego scout Ken Bracey, suffered a heart attack recently and is recovering at home. You never see Bracey without seeing Atlanta scout Jim Fregos — two wonderful throwbacks in the game of baseball.
… My good friend Murray Greenberg runs M.L. Dunn carpeting in Dayton. I tell him he should hire Adam Dunn to do commercials for him, as long as they don’t put a guitar in Dunn’s hands and have him sing, “Together Again.”
… Want to read a highly entertaining baseball book? Get a copy of Pouring Six Beers at a Time by Bill Giles, who once owned the Philadelphia Phillies and whose father, Warren Giles, once ran the Reds and was president of the National League.
A page-turner.
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