Tag: Cincinnati Reds

Oakland A’s podcast with Charlie O: A’s coming off 1-8 road trip, aiming to beat Reds at Coliseum starting tonight

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: @Athletics

On the A’s podcast with Charlie O:

#1 After a long road trip and going 1-8, the Oakland A’s looked forward to Monday’s day off to gear up for the Cincinnati Reds series starting Tuesday.

#2 Both the A’s and Reds are in last place in their respective divisions. The Reds are 15-10 and the A’s 15-21. It’s hard to believe at one time both these two teams met in the World Series back in 1972.

#3 The Reds are coming off a split with the Giants in four games played in Cincinnati. The Reds got beat by the Giants in two comeback games after leading San Francisco by scores of 8-0 and 4-0.

#4 It’s been a long time since A’s outfielder Khris Davis has hit a home run. He’s sitting on 10 of them for this season.

#5 The A’s will start Mike Fiers (2-3, 6.81 ERA) goes for tonight going against the Cincinnati Reds Tyler Mahle (0-4, 4.09 ERA).

Charlie O does the A’s podcasts each Tuesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Francisco Giants podcast with Morris Phillips: Comeback Giants rally in seventh to catch Reds

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: @SFGiants

On the Giants podcast with Morris:

#1 The Giants came back from a 8-0 deficit Friday to win. They were down 4-0 and came back and won 6-5 Sunday.

#2 To start the game, Giants pitcher Jeff Samardizja gave up three consecutive home runs to the Cincinnati Reds in the first inning after that Samardizja retired 13 straight hitters in a row.

#3 The last time the Reds hit three consecutive home runs was when they did it against the Florida Marlins on April 9th.

#4 The Giants scored four in the top of the seventh then two in the ninth to take the lead and the eventual win 6-5.

#5 For Monday morning’s starting pitchers as the Giants conclude their visit with the Reds, the Giants are going with Drew Pomeranz (1-3, 4.08 ERA) the Reds will start Anthony Scalafani (1-1, 3.48 ERA).

Morris does the Giants podcasts each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Reds hit 5 home runs in 9-2 rout of Giants

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: @SFGiants

By Jeremy Kahn

After their miraculous comeback in the series opener on Friday night, the Cincinnati Reds were going to allow the San Francisco Giants do it to them two nights in a row.

Backed by five home runs and a strong performance by Tanner Roark, the Reds evened up the four-game series with a 9-2 thrashing of the Giants at Great American Ballpark.

Roark pitched 6.2 innings, giving two runs, while scattering four hits, walking two and striking out seven and picked up his second win of the season.

Once again, Dereck Rodriguez did not fare so well on the mound, as he went five innings, allowing eight runs on eight hits, walking four and striking out just one, as he fell to 3-4.

Yaisel Puig got the Reds on the board in the first inning, as he singled to left field to score Jesse Winker.

Just a 1/2 inning later, the Giants tied the game up, as Steven Duggar singled to right field to easily score Kevin Pillar.

Unfortunately, the Reds would break the tie and take the lead for good in the bottom of the second inning, as Tucker Barnhart grounded into a fielders choice that allowed Jose Peraza to score the eventual game-winning run.

After Joey Votto walked, Eugenio Suarez launched a three-run home run that broke the game wide open for the Reds.

Barnhart drove in his second run of the game, as he a solo home run in the bottom of the fourth inning.

Derek Dietrich followed up his two home run game from Friday night and hit a solo home run, his third of the series in the bottom of the fifth inning.

Nick Senzel, who made his major league debut on Friday night made it back-to-back home runs, as he hit his first major league home run that extended the Reds lead up to 8-1 in the bottom of the fifth inning.

That would have been the second home run of the game for Senzel, but Pillar made a sensational catch that ended the bottom of the third inning. Pillar climbed the center field wall, grabbed hold of it and pulled the ball back into play.

Senzel was robbed of a hit by Pillar in the bottom of the first inning in his major league debut on Friday night, as he made a diving catch that denied Senzel of his first major league hit.

Duggar continued his hot hitting, as he singled in the top of the seventh inning to score the Giants’ second and final run, when Brandon Crawford scored, after he doubled with one out in the inning.

Switch-handed pitcher Pat Venditte made his Giants debut in the bottom of the sixth inning, as he pitched two innings.

The only hit that Venditte allowed was a solo home run to Puig in the bottom of the seventh inning.

NOTES: Evan Longoria was scratched from the lineup after he experienced tightness and inflammation in his left shoulder. Longoria is considered to be day-to-day, and was replaced in the starting lineup by Pablo Sandoval.

To make room for Venditte on the roster, Tyler Beede, who started Friday nights opener was optioned to Triple-A Sacramento.

Matt Kemp was released by the Reds not even four months after he was acquired by the team from the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Kemp, who is currently on the injured list after suffering a broken rib when he collided with the outfield wall at Petco Park in a game against the San Diego Padres on April 23 was hitting just .200 with one home run and five runs batted in. Kemp was acquired from the Dodgers along with Puig, pitcher Alex Wood and Kyle Farmer.

UP NEXT: Jeff Samardzija will take the mound on Sunday afternoon, as he will face the Reds for the first time in nearly two years. The last time Samardzija faced the Reds was on May 14, 2017, an 8-3 win by the Giants. Samardzija is 2-1 with a 3.53 ERA.

Luis Castillo, who was the National League Pitcher of the month for April, will make his first start in the month of May. Castillo is 3-1 on the season with a 1.45 ERA.

Giants come back from 8 down, win 12-11 behind Vogt, Longoria

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: @MLB

By Jeremy Kahn

This will be a game that Stephen Vogt will never forget for the remainder of his major-league career.

Vogt hit a game-tying home run with two outs in the top of the ninth inning, and then Evan Longoria hit the tie breaking home run in the top of the 11th inning, as the San Francisco Giants came back from an 8-0 deficit to defeat the Cincinnati Reds 12-11 at Great American Ballpark.

This was the Giants first win at Great American Ballpark in three years, and were outscored 58-15 during a seven-game losing streak that ended with this thrilling victory.

As for largest comeback in Giants history, this was the fifth time in team history that the team came back from an eight-run deficit.

The four prior times came on Sept. 8, 1947 at Pittsburgh; April 14, 1970 at Atlanta; Sept. 23, 1970 at Los Angeles; and Sept. 4, 1989 at Cincinnati.

Derek Dietrich hit two three-run home runs, as the Reds jumped out to an 8-0 lead at the end of just three innings and it looked like this game was going to get out of control; however, the resiliency of this team did not allow to happen.

The Giants began to chip away at the Reds big lead in the top of the fourth inning, as they scored three runs off of former Oakland As pitcher Sonny Gray.

Brandon Crawford got the Giants on the board, as he grounded out to score Buster Posey, who led off the inning with a single.

After Kevin Pillar flew out for the second out of the inning, Steven Duggar cut the lead down to 8-3, as he singled to center to score Longoria and Brandon Belt.

It was a huge night for Duggar as well, as he backed up his first ever three hit game on Wednesday night against the Los Angeles Dodgers and then went 3-for-5 in the opener of this three-game series.

Yaisel Puig then scored the ninth run of the game for the Reds, as he scored on a play that saw Nick Vincent commit two errors on ball hit by Dietrich.

Kyle Farmer extended the lead up to seven runs once again, as he hit a solo home run to extend the up to 10-3.

Then the Giants began to chip away even more, as they scored four runs in the top of the sixth inning, when Duggar hit a sacrifice fly to score Crawford, then Vogt doubled to right on a play where you saw Puig nearly throw Pillar at the plate after falling in the outfield and then Joe Panik launched a two-run home run to get within three runs.

Jesse Winker gave the Reds a four-run lead, as he hit a ground-rule double to score Tyler Barnhart in the bottom of the seventh inning.

The Giants cut the lead down to one in the top of the eighth inning, as Brandon Belt hit a two-run single that scored Duggar and Vogt and then Longoria came up with the first of his two big hits on the evening, as he singled to score Tyler Austin.

With two outs in the top of the ninth inning, Vogt hit the first pitch he saw from Reds closer Raisel Iglesias to tie up this wild game.

It would be tied until Longoria led off the inning, as he hit a solo home run off of Jared Hughes that barely landed into the left field seats that gave the Giants their first and what turned out to be their only lead of the game at the most opportune time.

Reyes Moronta pitched one inning, allowing a walk and striking out three, as he won for the first time this season.

Will Smith struck out two in the bottom of the inning to pick up his eighth save of the season.

Tyler Beede made his season debut, and it will be one that the rookie would like to forget as soon as possible. Beede lasted just two and one-thirds innings, walking two and striking out three and did not fare in the decision.

Gray, who liked he was on his way to his first win of the season, as he left the game with the lead and went five innings, allowing three runs on four hits, walking three and striking out two, as he did not fare in the decision.

Mike Gerber, who was President of Baseball Operations Farhan Zaidis first acquisition, but was designated for assignment during spring training was recalled from Triple-A Sacramento and he doubled and walked in four plate appearances.

NOTES: To make room for Gerber on the roster, the team designated outfielder Gerardo Parra for assignment. Parra, who signed a minor-league contract with the team in February, hit just .198 with one home run.

Erik Kratz was placed on the 10-day injured list with a strained left hamstring.

UP NEXT: Dereck Rodriguez, who allowed six runs in his last start against the New York Yankees on Saturday afternoon will take the mound on Saturday, while the Reds will send Tanner Roark to the hill.

San Francisco Giants podcast with Michael Duca: Giants end homestand on a good note, win two from Dodgers

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: @SFGiants

On the Giants podcast with Michael:

#1 On Wednesday night, San Francisco Giants catch Buster Posey got a ninth inning single to get the Giants a 2-1 win and avoid getting swept by the visiting Los Angeles Dodgers.

#2 Giants pitcher Madison Bumgarner faced the Dodgers’ Cody Bellinger, who has the franchise record for the fastest player to achieve 14 home runs in just 32 games, was able to hit a hot grounder to first base that he beat out and allowed Kike Hernandez to score from second base to tie the game.

#3 It was Posey that saved the day after Bumgarner pitched well enough to win as Bumgarner said after the game he has been trying different stuff and things fell together on Wednesday night.

#4 The Giants snap a losing streak Thursday after getting swept by the New York Yankees and winning two out of three from the Dodgers.

#5 Friday’s starting pitchers: For the Giants, Tyler Beede (0-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. the Cincinnati Reds’Sonny Gray (0-4, 3.64 ERA).

Michael Duca does the Giants podcasts each Friday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Francisco Giants day off report: Bottom-feeders face off S.F. opens series in Cincinnati tonight

Published on by jeremy2878Leave a comment

mlb.com file photo: Newly promoted San Francisco Giants pitcher Tyler Beede will start for the Giants tonight against the Cincinnati Reds to open a three game series in Cincinnati’s Great American Ball Park.

By Jeremy Harness

After getting swept by the New York Yankees, the Giants bounced back extremely well this week. They rallied to take two of the three-game series from the hated Los Angeles Dodgers, a series that was capped by Buster Posey’s walk-off hit in the bottom of the ninth to clinch the series.

Now it’s time to take that momentum to the road, as the Giants will head to Cincinnati for a four-game series with the Reds, a series that starts Friday night at the Great American Ball Park.

The Reds have had an up-and-down year, to say the least. Cincinnati started the year losing the first seven games by getting swept by Milwaukee and Pittsburgh, but followed that by winning the next four games in a row.

That was followed by a four-game losing skid and then a three-winning streak.

Just like the Giants, Cincinnati currently sits in last place in its division, the National League Central, with a 13-18 record, the same mark that the Giants own.

The series opener will see a familiar face in the Bay Area. One-time A’s star Sonny Gray (0-4, 3.64 ERA), who was traded to the Yankees a few years ago and could not regain his form, is now with the Reds and will go on Friday against Giants righty Tyler Beede, who will be making his season debut.

Right-hander Dereck Rodriguez (3-3, 4.35 ERA) will take the ball on Saturday opposite Cincinnati’s Tanner Roark (1-1, 4.08 ERA). Jeff Samardzija (2-1, 2.53 ERA) has experienced a resurgence this season, and he hopes to continue that on Sunday when he faces Cincinnati’s Luis Castillo (3-1, 1.45 ERA), which should be a very tough matchup.

Drew Pomeranz (1-3, 4.08 ERA) will try to get things back on track in the series finale Monday afternoon when he faces Cincinnati starter Anthony DeSclafani (1-1, 3.48 ERA).

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary podcast with Barbara Mason: Do the Giants have a shot at being viable this season?; Puig tries to take on the whole Pirates team in brawl; plus more

Published on by Sports Radio ServiceLeave a comment

Photo credit: @BruceBochy

Barbara Mason is filling in for Amaury Pi Gonzalez:

#1 It’s early in the season, but do the San Francisco Giants (4-8) have the players it takes to get out of the cellar and make this a viable season?

#2 The Cincinnati Reds’ Yasiel Puig wasted no time making things happen between himself and the Pittsburgh Pirates on Sunday. After Chris Archer Pirates pitcher hit the Reds’ Derek Dietrich in the backside, Dietrich took exception to getting hit and started jawing at Archer at that point both benches emptied and Reds star Yasiel Puig tried to take on the entire Pirates team.

#3 Talk about the Kyrie Irving-Kevin Durant paring at the New York Knicks for next season. How will this important would a tandem like this be for the Knicks and how will it impact Golden State?

#4 The Oakland A’s, who won three of four from the Boston Red Sox, went out on the road and got swept in three games from the Houston Astros. The A’s still made the third game competitive with a one run loss. The Astros played catch up ball in order to win. The A’s lost the first game 12-4 of the four game series in Baltimore. In game two the A’s got a 13-2 win on Tuesday night.

#5 Oracle Arena is the home of many memories for fans, reporters, players and coaches Sunday. Was the last regular season game for Golden State what did you take away from 47 years of sports events at the arena in Oakland?

Barbara Mason is filling in for Amaury Pi Gonzalez, who does News and Commentary podcasts each Tuesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

The A’s meet the Cincinnati Reds as Inter-League play continues

Published on by rxsluggerLeave a comment

by Jerry Feitelberg

The Oakland A’s will meet the Cincinnati Reds in a three-game series starting Friday night in Cincinnati. This will be the final stop on an eight-game, ten-day road trip that saw the A’s lose three in Houston and two more in Milwaukee. The A’s hope to get back on the winning track and they will send Sonny Gray to the mound. Gray’s season has not been going well for him as he did not pitch well. Gray went on the DL when the medical staff discovered that he was suffering from a strained right trapezius muscle. Gray returned to action last weekend in Houston and pitched very well. Gray went five innings and allowed just one run and five hits.

The Cincinnati Reds are another team that is trying to rebuild. The Reds own a record of 22-37 and are in last place in the NL Central trailing the division-leading Chicago Cubs by 19 1/2 games. The Reds are managed by Bryan Price. Price is a Bay Area product. He graduated from Tamalpais High School and went to UC Berkeley. Price was the pitching coach for the Reds when they were managed by Dusty Baker. The Reds, like the A’s, seem to be either very good or very bad. The Reds, in their long history, have won nine NL Pennants and five World Series. The last time the Reds were in the World Series was 1990 and they swept the favored Oakland Athletics four games to none. Since 199o, the Reds have made the playoffs four times, and three of those were under the tutelage of the aforementioned Dusty Baker. The A’s, on the other hand, have also not been to the World Series since 1990. They made the playoffs nine times, the last being the Wild Card game against the Royals in 2014.

The A’s best starter this year, Rich Hill, has been placed on the Disabled List due to a groin strain. Hill seemed to be making progress, but he aggravated the injury during a bullpen session. Third baseman Danny Valencia missed the Milwaukee series due to illness and hopes to play Friday night. Leftfielder Khris Davis has numbness in a finger due to an elbow injury.Davis did not play in Milwaukee either but did pinch-hit in one of the games. The A’s need both those players in the lineup.

The Reds infield shapes up this way. Former NL MVP, Joey Votto will be at first. Votto is hitting just .230 but has eleven homers and 39 RBIs to his credit. The veteran, Brandon Phillips will be at second, and Zach Cozart will be at short. Cozart is having a terrific season so far. He is hitting .303 with nine dingers and twenty-five RBIs. Rounding out the infield is Eugenio Suarez. Suarez, while not hitting for average (.234) has a lot of power. He has hit thirteen home runs and driven in thirty-nine.

Adam Duvall, the former San Francisco Giant, patrols left field for the Reds. Duvall was sent to Cincinnati last year when the Giants acquired Mike Leake. Duvall is having a big year for the Reds. He is hitting .268 and has hit seventeen home runs and knocked in thirty-nine. The speedy Billy Hamilton is in center. Hamilton is hitting .268 and has sixteen stolen bases. The steady Jay Bruce plays in right, and he also has put up good numbers. He owns a batting average of .284 and has put thirteen balls out of the park. Bruce has driven in forty-one so far.

The Reds starting rotation, as the A’s, leaves a lot to be desired. The pitchers are Anthony De Sclafani, Dan Straily, Alfredo Simon, lefty John Lamb and another lefty Brandon Finegan. De Sclafani will pitch Friday night against Oakland and has no record this year. Dan Straily, the former Oakland Athletic, and Houston Astro gets the ball on Saturday, and John Lamb will pitch Sunday. Sonny Gray pitches Friday night for Oakland. Kendall Graveman will follow on Saturday. Graveman has a record of 2-6 and an ERA of 5.49. Graveman’s last outing against Houston was  a no-decision. He allowed five runs on seven hits in just 4.1 innings of work. Graveman has not been able to complete the sixth inning in seven of his eleven starts. Sunday will feature two left-handed pitchers. Sean Manaea (2-4,6.20ERA) has pitched better in his last two outings. He beat the Twins but took the loss in his last start against the Brewers. John Lamb(1-3, 4.74 ERA) goes for the Reds.

After the Reds series, the A’s return home to start a nine-game homestand against the Texas Rangers, Los Angeles Angeles and the Milwaukee Brewers.

 

Reds Steal One From San Francisco; Giants’ Woes Continue

Published on by joelamiLeave a comment

By: Joe Lami

SAN FRANCISCO, Calif.–The Cincinnati Reds stole a game from the San Francisco Giants on Saturday Night at AT&T, as they beat the Giants 7-2 in 11innings.  Cincinnati was trailing 1-0 going into the ninth inning, when Brandon Phillips hit a two-run homerun to put the Reds ahead.  A Giants rally capped off by a RBI double from Buster Posey in the ninth would force extra innings, but the Reds were too strong in the 11th for the Giants to come back.

The Giants continue to slump, as they are now 4-14 in the last 18 games.  The Giants have had one bright spot in that span, with Tim Lincecum’s No Hitter this past Wednesday against the Padres, but before then the Giants haven’t won a game at home since June 12, where they hammered the Nationals 7-1.

San Francisco was led by a strong pitching performance from Matt Cain, who hasn’t been himself this season going into Saturday.  Cain entered Saturday with a 1-6 record and a 4.82 ERA in 12 games.  Cain looked like the pitcher we have known though on Saturday, as he pitched seven scoreless innings, while giving up six hits, two walks and striking out four.  Saturday also marks the first time since September 26, 2012 in which Cain pitched at least seven scoreless innings.  However, the great performance goes for not, as Cain is given the no decision.

“It was a tough one, Cain pitched his heart out,” said Giants’ Skipper, Bruce Bochy after game.

Alfredo Simon was great on the other side as he surrendered one run on three hits.  Simon has been stellar for the Reds on the season boasting a 10-3 record with a 2.92 ERA, heading into Saturday night, and it continued to show, as he getsa no decision.

The Giants started the night with a bang, as Gregor Blanco led off with a base hit.  However, the Giants would have to wait until the fifth inning, until they got their next one.  The only Giant to get on base between the first and fifth inning was Pablo Sandoval in the fourth inning, when he hit a grounder and it was misplayed by Zack Cozart for an error.  Brandon Crawford recorded the second hit of the evening on his bobblehead night with a single.  Adam Duvall followed up by doubling into the left field corner sending Crawford to third.  With one out in the inning, it sent Joe Panik up to the plate.  Panik would knock in the only run for the Giants of the night, as he hammered one right up the middle but, it was knocked down by Simon and Brandon Phillips made the throw to first.  Matt Cain ended the fifth on a bunt for hit attempt to get the second run in, by he was thrown out at first.

San Francisco led the game into the top of the ninth, when Sergio Romo came into the game.  Romo started the shaky inning with a walk to Joey Votto, bringing Phillips up to the plate.  Phillips entered the at bat 0 for 3 on the evening, but made the difference in the ninth when he shot a hanging a slider deep into left field to give the Reds the 2-1 lead.  Romo was forced to finish the inning, but had trouble doing it as both Devin Mesoraco and Ryan Ludwick would hit it to the warning track before being gloved down by Juan Perez.

The Reds entered the ninth inning with the lead and one of the most dangerous closers in the game coming in, Aroldis Chapman.  Chapman entered the game 16 for 16 in saves situations, and pitching his fourth day straight.  The Giants would be the first team to break Chapman on the season as they started the ninth inning with a Hunter Pence single to right.  The turning point was an amazing ten-pitch walk forced by Sandoval putting runners on first and second.  Buster Posey was the pinch hitter and drove a 101 MPH fastball to left to bring home the tying run on the no-out double.  Runners were at second and third with no outs, and the Giants looked like they had the win in the bag, however Chapman buckled down and forced two ground outs and then struck out Duvall to end the ninth.

The Reds would strike again in the 11th inning scoring two runs off of Cozart single, that brought in Votto; who doubled to start the inning, and Phillips who was intentionally walked to set up the double play ball.  Cincinnati would put the nail in the coffin when Chris Heisey knocked two more in with a triple to right to put the Reds up 6-2.  The bleeding would continue for the Giants when Billy Hamiliton doubled to right to bring in Heisey to make it 7-2.  The Giants would get one back in the bottom half to make it 7-3.

Jonathan Broxton earns the win for Cincinnati to up his record to 3-0.  Javy Lopez gets the loss, dropping his record to 1-1. The Reds take a 3-0 series advantage this weekend, as they will go for the sweep tomorrow with a pitching matchup of Homer Bailey vs. Tim Hudson.