April 6, 2010
By
Zeldink
Posted at 9:17 pm
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|
| Dodgers (0-1) | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 12 | 2 |
| Pirates (1-0) | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 3 | - | 11 | 10 | 0 |
W: Duke (1-0)
L: Padilla (0-1)
Boxscore
The Pittsburgh Pirates hosted the defending National West champions yesterday, and did what they’ve done for the past 3 Opening Days: win.
That’s right. The Pirates have at least one streak that has nothing to do with losing.
The Pirates wrung 5 decent innings out of Zach Duke, and made the wise decision to pinch-hit for him with the bases loaded in the bottom of the 5th. Duke had allowed just 2 runs, but his 7 hits were pause for concern. And with Pittsburgh having a 1-run lead and an opportunity for a big inning, manager John Russell made the call.
Ryan Church hit a bases-clearing double off Vicente Padilla to break the game open.
Right-fielder Garret Jones also homered twice for the Pirates, showing that he may just be more than a one-hit wonder.
And for one day, the Pirates sit atop the division, looking down on everyone else.
April 6, 2010
By
Zeldink
Posted at 9:05 pm
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|
| Cubs (0-1) | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 2 |
| Braves (1-0) | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 2 | - | 16 | 12 | 0 |
W: Lowe (1-0)
L: Zambrano (0-1)
Boxscore
Just like Aaron Harang for the Reds, Carlos Zambrano had a rough opening day. Unlike Harang, Zambrano didn’t make it out of the 2nd inning.
The Chicago Cubs started off the game promisingly, with Marlon Byrd hitting a 3-run home run in the top of the first, but Zambrano killed all that.
Big Moose allowed 8 runs–all earned–in 1 1/3 innings. Not what the Cubs wanted out of their ace, especially with Ted Lilly starting the season on the disabled list. Zambrano allowed 6 hits, walked 2, and allowed 2 home runs, and the Cubs–like always–never had a chance.
It could have been worse. Instead of setting a personal worst for his shortest outing ever, Zambrano only tied it. You’ve definitely got to find the silver lining when talking about the Cubs.
April 6, 2010
By
Amanda
Posted at 6:56 am
Last Game
Well, they won’t go wire-to-wire this year. The Reds dropped the season opener to the Cardinals yesterday, 11-6. You can relive the magic with the RHM game thread. The Reds pitching collapsed, but the offense was solid, although not solid enough to keep Aaron Harang from taking the loss. I recommend you take out any frustration by beaning some redbirds.
Next Game
As always, the Reds have an off-day the day after Opening Day. Their next game will be Wednesday night at 7:10pm EDT. Adam Wainwright will start against Johnny Cueto. Plus, it’s Reds fleecie/snuggie and fireworks night.
Ritual Mop Burning
After the game yesterday, a fire alarm rang through Great American Ball Park. Apparently, some mops had caught fire. Hal McCoy, of course, had the best jokes.
Were those the instruments the St. Louis Cardinals used to mop up the Cincinnati Reds, 11-6, using them so adeptly they were smoking?
Did the Reds actually call the fire department to douse Albert Pujols?
What to Say to Sound Smart at the Water Cooler
The rotation for the Louisville Bats includes Sam LeCure, Travis Wood, Matt Maloney, Aroldis Chapman, and Justin Lehr. That right there is a better rotation than the Reds ran out for most of the last decade.
April 5, 2010
By
Zeldink
Posted at 9:46 pm
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|
| Cardinals (1-0) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 11 | 12 | 2 |
| Reds (0-1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 11 | 1 |
W: Carpenter (1-0)
L: Harang (0-1)
Boxscore
Well, that sucked.
I always find that opening day for the Cincinnati Reds is a disappointment. This year was no exception.
Aaron Harang started and did about as good as he ever has done in his previous opening day starts. Harang went 5 innings and allowed 4 runs, 3 earned. He struck out 2, unfortunately, it was only the first 2 batters of the game. Things went downhill after that, as Harang allowed home runs to Albert Pujols and Colby Rasmus.
The Reds did score a bit during a Harang start. And really, if they can’t win when they score 6 runs most of the time this year, the pitching isn’t as good as it’s been made out to be. Joey Votto homered to get the Reds on the board, and Scott Rolen homered in the same inning to keep things close.
And things were within reach–albeit a long reach–until Nick Masset allowed a grand slam to Yadier Molina in the top of the 9th. That truly ended things.
Pujols again showed that you have to pitch carefully to him. Fastballs down the middle of the plate aren’t the best approach to him. He was 4 for 5 with 2 home runs and 3 RBI. The heart of the Cardinals lineup was clicking in a way that made me wonder how far away the Reds really are from competing.
Oh well, there’s always tomorrow. And one thing that’s definitely true at this point is it’s still early.
April 5, 2010
By
Amanda
Posted at 11:25 am
Hanging out online during games with the Cards to make jabs at Tony LaRussa’s sunglasses and Albert Pujols’ superiority complex is an age-old tradition here at RHM. But never have we had the opportunity to poke Opening Day fun at the Redbirds. The only thing that could make this any better would be if Jim Edmonds were still hanging around in a half-shirt.
Don’t know if anyone else is likely to show up, seeing as all of Cincy is probably downtown right now and Bellyscratcher will be relishing the parental joy of baby’s first Opening Day, but you can check out my one-sided commentary after the fact, in case, for some reason, you can’t remember any parts of it.
