Boxscore

It’s a tie!

The Cincinnati Reds started the 2012 baseball season in an inauspicious way, tying the Cleveland Indians 6-6 in a regulation 9-inning game Saturday.

Mike Leake started for the Reds, and allowed 2 runs–1 earned–in his two innings of work. Ron Mahay took over for the 3rd inning and allowed 2 more, putting the Reds down 4-0 early. But after that, what is most certainly a very improved bullpen from 2011, held the Indians scoreless and gave the offense time to come back.

The Reds tied it in the 4th, scoring 4 runs. Joey Votto lead things off with a double. Jay Bruce drove him in with a double. A few hits later, Drew Stubbs tied the game with another double. Upcoming first-baseman Neftali Soto (Yonder Alonso who?) gave the team the lead with a solo shot in the 5th.

Cincinnati was leading until the excellent bullpen work failed in the 9th. Someone who won’t be on the major league roster with the name of Kanekoa Texeira blew it. But thanks to Todd Frazier’s solo shot in the bottom of the 9th, the game ended in a very Spring Training like tie.

The Reds play the Indians again Sunday at 3:05pm.

I think David Byrne first introduced this dance in the Once in a Lifetime video (0:53).

One of the emerging storylines coming from the Cincinnati Reds’ Spring Training this year involves the distribution of playing time for their two catchers.

The Reds have two catchers expected to break with the camp, veteran Ryan Hanigan and rookie Devin Mesoraco. Mesoraco played a bit in September last year, and is the team’s only excellent prospect left after their off-season trades.

“Hanigan was more than a one-out-of-five guy (last year),” Dusty Baker said. “Don’t assume he’s one out of five now. He would have been more, but he got hurt with his neck and back. . .

“I don’t know how it’s going play out. A lot depends on what kind of progress Mesoraco makes. If he continues on the path, he’s catcher-of-the-future. When that future is is undecided.”

What? You mean the team isn’t going to hand the starting job and 3/4s of the starts to a kid with 18 games of Major League experience? Shocking.

I know lots of fluff comes out of Spring Training, but this feels like the biggest non-story story so far. Of course, both catchers are going to play a lot. And of course, Mesoraco, the rookie, is going to have to prove he belongs.

Thankfully, Hanigan is wise enough not to worry about it.

“I’m looking forward to working with (Mesoraco) and being a team. You can’t worry about that stuff. When you’re out there, you do your job. When you’re not, you help the other guy when you can.

“If there’s any of that selfishness going on, it’s not going to work. That’s kind how I see it.”

Good. A team attitude from a member of a team in a team sport seems like the best way to be a team.