In four games this weekend, the Reds were outscored by their opponents 11-12, but surprisingly, the total number of runs scored over four games doesn’t matter. Who knew? In fact, the team won 2, lost 1, and tied 1, making the weekend a pretty successful campaign.

They started off Friday with a 2-6 win over Seattle. Drew “look at me” Stubbs went 3-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored. Scott “keeping 3B warm” Rolen and Chris “I’m 25” Heisey knocked in a couple apiece with Laynce “superfluous Y” making it a nice round six runs. Aaron “what is this run support of which you speak” Harang was the guy starting on the mound. He struck out six in five innings.

Saturday was hang-over day, though, with the Reds falling 0-6 to the Giants. Probably the team was thrown off by the fact that the game was televised on a one-hour delay, making any attempts to live-blog the game from the broadcast utterly irrelevant. There was no offense to speak of, unless you count Joey Votto going 1-for-1 with a walk, and there really wasn’t any pitching to speak of either. Travis Wood started and gave up three runs (two earned) on three hits and two walks. He struck out four.

Today was the split squad day. Half the team took on Oakland and beat them 4-3. The other half hosted the Cubs and took them to a 1-1 tie in 10 innings.

Chris Dickerson, Jay Bruce, and Jonny Gomes contributed one RBI apiece in the away game, and the A’s only earned three runs, so that fourth one must have been earned by hitting the “Hit the ball here and get an extra run!” billboard down the right field line. Johnny Cueto took the mound for the Reds and lasted four innings, allowing one run (earned) on two hits and three walks. He struck out four.

The home team’s one run was knocked in by Nix. Justin Lehr started for the team and gave up the one run.

Tomorrow, the Reds host the Rockies at 4:05 p.m. It’s supposed to be on Fox Sports Ohio and MLB Network, though I’m not remotely prepared to guess what time it’ll appear on the MLBN.

Boxscore

I remember in the off-season that Ben Sheets being available as a free agent coming off a year missed due to injury and there was some rumbling about the Cincinnati Reds being interested. I don’t think the money situation could have ever worked out, and boy is that looking like a good thing right now.

Sure, it’s only Spring Training, but it’s very difficult to put any kind of positive spin on allowing 10 runs and leaving the game without recording any outs, as Sheets did yesterday. Clearly, Sheets wasn’t putting anything, much less positive spin, on his pitches, and he hasn’t all spring. This outing pushed his ERA to 31.15.

Chris Dickerson was the hero, being a triple shy of the cycle by the end of the 3rd. He was 4 for 4 with 2 RBI and 3 runs scored. The whole lineup piled on the hits, accumulating 16 of them.

Mike Lincoln, whom I’m afraid is washed up, was pretty crappy with a 10 run lead. Actually, he was good for his first 2 innings of work, but clearly tired out in his 3rd, allowing 4 runs.

And I’m not sure how I missed this, but John Fay’s article about the game has a gem in there that does nothing but prove Dusty Baker’s mad man-love for all things veteran.

Mike Lincoln, who is competing for the fifth spot in Cincinnati’s rotation…

I read that and did a double-take. Lincoln is competing for a fifth spot? I had assumed he was just starting a couple times because of his massive lack of work the last few years. I mean, why on earth would a team think that a guy who broke down after 23 innings in 2009 could possibly be a starter?

Sheesh. Going with the not-quite-ready Aroldis Chapman would be a better move. Thankfully, two of the Reds young guns, Travis Wood and Mike Leake, pitched better than Lincoln. Between those two and Matt Maloney, I’m hoping the Reds will make the right decision. (Youth, in case you were wondering. Youth is the answer.)

Boxscore

It was a sunny day in Goodyear. Unfortunately, it was our last one there for this Spring. We did finally get to see a game at the Cincinnati Reds’ Goodyear Stadium.

The park had no upper level and appeared to be built in a hole dug into the ground instead of constructing it atop the desert floor. I don’t know if that had anything to do with the freezing cold of being in the shade, but it was one of the rare baseball games when I’ve actively sought out the sun.

Overall, the place was lovely, but it had a not-quite completed feel to it. I expect that to change as both the Indians and Reds become more established.

The game was all Reds until the 9th, when we were standing in the Kids Run the Bases line. Jordan Smith blew the game in grand style, making extra innings seem a sure thing. Mercifully, as if the Reds knew we had a flight to catch, the game was called after the bottom of the inning.

In lieu of the slideshow I’ve used for the other game wraps, here’s a gallery in rhyme.

Edit: The Joey Votto image was so well-received at the RHM household that I needed to travel back to the halcyon days of Windows 95 and turn it into a desktop wallpaper (1920×1440).

Boxscore

The Cincinnati Reds made their first trip ever to HoHoKam Stadium to face the Chicago Cubs Saturday. Although they brought plenty of duffel bags, the Reds encountered a shortage of strikes in the 2nd half of the game.

Things started well for the Reds, with Homer Bailey throwing 3 innings of 1 run ball. Bailey struck out 2 and walked none.

After Juan Francisco hit his 2nd home run of the game, a 2-run shot thanks to Brandon Phillips clogging the bases, Bailey was in line to get the win.

That lasted for one inning. Then Micah Owings fell apart in his 2nd inning of work, allowing the Cubs to tie the game with a 3 run 5th.

Cincinnati next sent out Jon Adkins, who did nothing to out his name in the mix for a relief spot. Adkins threw gasoline on the fire and allowed 5 earned runs in 1 inning. It was ugly.

The good news is that Bailey looked fairly sharp. Hopefully, he’ll pick up right where he left off last year. Owings wasn’t, but I’m still not convinced he’s best used as a pitcher. Also, Juan Francisco is a powerful, powerful man. Is he Wily Mo Peña redux, or will he be able to become a more complete player? I don’t know, but I look forward to finding out.

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Boxscore

Bronson Arroyo started for the Cincinnati Reds, but Aroldis Chapman again drew the attention.

People crowded underneath the stands behind home plate–yours truly included–to get an up-close look at one of those rarest of wonders: a left-hander with a 100 mile per hour fastball. Unfortunately, the bare-bones Dodgers spring training facility had no pitch-speed on the scoreboard, and I had left my radar gun unpurchased at the store. So I could only guess as to the speed of Chapman’s pitches. He threw hard and fast, though.

Chapman’s off-speed stuff was fast, too. And he had all of the hitters swinging late. He ended up striking out 2 and allowing no runs over 2 innings.

Jonny Gomes provided the offense for the Reds, hitting a two-run shot in the 4th. That would have been all Cincy needed, if not for a late rally by the Dodgers in the 9th. Thankfully, Chris Heisey had hit a solo shot in the 6th, insuring the Reds lead and keeping pace with Gomes in the race for left field.

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