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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 > 2011 > July > 02
Saturday, July 2, 2011
Wright State’s Smith is right-on vs. Reds
Real McCoy
CINCINNATI — A game that lasted 3 hours and 14 minutes can be boiled down to this, two things that happened in less than 15 minutes:
—Cincinnati Reds starter Homer Bailey gave up a three-run home run in the the third inning to Cleveland Indians lead-off hitter Michael Brantley.
—Cleveland Indians relief pitcher Joe Smith, a Wright State University product, retired the Reds with one out and the bases loaded in the seventh, the Indians leading, 3-0, getting Drew Stubbs to force a runner at home on a ground ball and striking out Brandon Phillips on a called strike.
That was it. Cleveland 3, Cincinnati 1. The Tribe has won five straight from the Reds this year and the Reds are 5-12 in interleague play.
WHAT AILS the Reds? Too many dreaming bats, too many at-bats wasted with runners in scoring position.
The Reds scored their one lonely run in the eighth inning when Joey Votto led with his 12th homer, a 410-foot shot over the center field fence against Cleveland left-hander Tony Sipp — and when are teams going to learn that Votto hits left-handers better than right-handers?
THEN CAME another example of the Reds’ inability these days to produce a hit when a hit is desperately needed.
After Votto’s home run, Scott Rolen doubled. But Jay Bruce struck out. Jonny Gomes walked to put two on with one out, then Ryan Hanigan flied to shallow center and pinch-hitter Chris Heisey struck out.
And it happened again in the ninth. Edgar Renteria struck out, but Drew Stubbs walked on four pitches. Brandon Phillips struck out, but Votto singled to put runners on first and third. Scott Rolen struck out.
The Reds scored one run and left 14 roasting and boiling and sweating on the basepaths.
Down not in a blaze of glory, but in a muted whisper.
THAT SMITH ESCAPED in the seventh was no shocker. With his father, mother, relatives and friends among the 41,580 in Great American Ball Park, the native Cincinnatian with the submarine style, he continued what he has been doing.
Perfection.
He now has 20 straight innings without giving up an earned run and his ERA for a year is 0.99.
“Shhhhh, don’t jinx it for me, c’mon,” Smith said with a smile after the game. “I got Stubbs with a sinker, but I knew unless he hit the ball really hard we wouldn’t get a double play because he can fly. Fortunately, we got one out out of it.”
Then he struck out Phillips with a slider.
Said Indians manager Manny Acta, “That was a very good escape act. They were lined up with right-handers and he is very tough on right-handers. And he got out of it by striking out a very good hitting in Brandon Phillips.”
About his extended inning, loading the bases before he got out of the problem, Smith said with a smile, “Well, you know, you’re pitching in your hometown, you want to be out there as long as you can. It’s fun for me to pitch here because I’m coming back to pitch in front of family and friends. My parents, sister, brother-in-law — it’s fun.”
AND HERE IS the latest on Aroldis Chapman?
Manager Dusty Baker calls it, “Getting his feet wet,” but it is more like Aroldis Chapman is tugging on his work boots and easing back into the job.
After his recall from class AAA Louisville, where he demoted because he couldn’t locate home plate with a rubber detector, Chapman has been used in non-pressure situations — when the Cincinnati Reds are way ahead or way behind.
Chapman appeared Friday night against the Cleveland Indians — when the Reds trailed 8-1 in the seventh inning. Chapman was perfect with a 1-2-3 inning and a strikeout. He threw 13 pitches, eight for strikes.
Not once did the speed gun hit above 100, mostly 96, 97 and 98, and Baker loved that. Strikes are more important than spinning the radar numbers into triple digits.
“Chapman is looking good and we’re tring to get his feet wet again and eventually gete him back to more meaningful, higher pressure situations,” said Baker. “His throwing th ball well, real well.”
And there is no concern that his velocity is down?
“Ninety-six to ninety-nine? Tbat’s enough,” said Baker. “Nobody is going to throw 100 all the time. And there is not much difference between 99 and 100. Plus there are a whole bunch of real good pitchers throwing a whole lot less than 96.
“If he can have the command, 96 to 99 is plenty, that’s plenty over the speed limit,” said Baker. “He kind of spoiled us and we expect to see the 100.” And maybe he spoiled himself, too, by ordering Ohio license plate 105 MPH on his Lamborghini and havding 105 tattooed on his biceps.
“It is a show for the fans because how often do you see that,” added Baker. “We just don’t want him to be so conscious of it because when he was having command problems he guiding the ball instead of being natural and throwing it. You have to remind pitchers sometimes, ‘Don’t guide it, just throw it.” We don’t want him thinking that he is Aroldis Chapman and has to throw 105. We want him thinking that he is Aroldis Chapman and I’m going to get you out, whatever it takes.”
BRANDON PHILLIPS that it was a nifty thing to make his 1,000th hit a home run, the one he hit off Cleveland’s Chad Durbin Friday night.
“Honestly, it was cool, but that’s only time I wished a hit wasn’t a home run,” he said.
Why?
“Because they couldn’t authenticate that the ball was actually the one I hit,” he said. “I got the ball and I gave two little kids a bat. One kid caught the ball and I gave him and his little brother a bat. They were two cute little boys and they were big Reds fans, so I’m glad they gave me the ball back.”
HOW DO BASEBALL people look at holidays like a Fourth of July weekend?
“This is a holiday weekend for most people, but it never is for us baseball people,” said Baker. “I remember driving through Elysian Park on my way to Dodger Stadium on the Fourth of July and everybody was in the park barbecuing, playing soccer, badminton, volley ball, but I was going to work. But that was a good thing.”
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