Joey Votto’s 3-run home run in the 4th inning coupled with strong pitching from Tyler Mahle and the bullpen led to a Reds 6-3 win on Sunday. The victory gave Cincinnati a series win over the St. Louis Cardinals as they took two of the three games in the set.

With the game scoreless through the top of the 3rd inning, Cincinnati put the pedal to the floor in the bottom of the inning. Singles from Nick Senzel, Tyler Naquin, and Brandon Drury loaded the bases for Tommy Pham who came through with a sacrifice fly to give the Reds the lead. Joey Votto followed up with a 3-run homer to make it 4-0.

After St. Louis got half of those runs back in the top of the 4th, the Reds went back to work at the plate. Mike Moustakas walked to lead off the inning and scored on a Tyler Naquin single. Cincinnati got another run when Tyler Naquin attempted to steal second and the throw beat him by a wide margin, but he got himself into a rundown and that led to Matt Reynolds taking off for the plate and scoring before Naquin was tagged out to end the inning, giving the Reds a 6-2 advantage. That would be the final time they scored in the game, but it was enough to hold on for the series win.

Tyler Mahle had a no-hitter through the first three innings of the game. After the Reds gave him a 4-run lead he returned to the mound and walked the leadoff hitter in the 4th and then gave up a 2-run homer to Paul Goldschmidt to lose the no-hitter and the shutout. Two innings later he’d give up another home run to Goldschmidt, this time a solo shot, to make it a 6-3 game. Mahle exited the game after the 6th inning in a solid return from the injured list.

Reiver Sanmartin, Alexis Diaz, and Hunter Strickland all tossed a shutout inning of relief to wrap up the win on Sunday and seal the series win over the Cardinals.

Miami Marlins vs Cincinnati Reds

Monday July 25th, 6:40pm ET

Trevor Rogers (4-9, 5.46 ERA) vs Nick Lodolo (2-3, 5.81 ERA)

Doug Gray is the owner of RedsMinorLeagues.com, Redleg Nation, and as you guessed it, passionate about the great sport of baseball. He's been writing about baseball since 2006 (contributions formerly at The Athletic and currently at Baseball America). You can keep tabs with him on twitter @dougdirt24.

It was a good day. Now to get off my backside and begin prepping to grill those T-bones.

I’ll be there. Save a thick steak for me. 🙂

Reds pen was good in all 3 games and Bell did have it set up to use the 3 guys he used today to close it out.Sanmartin can get you a double play like he did today to end the 7th and Diaz’s stuff is really good.Strickland gets em in order.Joey with a big 3 run shot.Good day for the good guy.

I like Sanmartin as a bullpen arm. Same with Moreta. I’m all for giving those two more chances to figure it out at the MLB level this year.

Sanmartin has bounced back nicely in the bullpen:

1.23 ERA, 22 IP, 15 H, 7 BB, 14 K

They showed a stat I couldn’t believe, actually, on TV. The Reds led the league in RISP batting average. I look on the stats, and I just don’t see that. Can someone explain?

I was a bit flabbergasted too…> I guess that means we don’t have “risp” very often

RISP = runners in scoring position.

Velocity down for Mahle though.

Hoping he bounces back well against Baltimore and can have as much value as he can carry into a potential trade

He was hitting 95-96 in the sixth. Loosened up I guess and was probably throwing a little harder knowing it was his last inning.

Interesting information. Since May 7th Reds are 33-36 while Cards are 35-36 and Brewers are 33-35.

So that begs the question are the Reds as bad as their record would indicate? I say no as they have battled injuries all season. A bullpen that has blown games, and starting pitching while good at times also struggled. This information is found in the enquirer

Yes, they are. Sort of.

The record DOES tell what a team really is. And yes, since May 7th, they have played better. But you have to count the whole season. Including their awful April. Were they really that bad, or did they come out of Spring Training unready to play? Maybe a little of both. I have noticed since the days of Bryan Price that the Reds looked un-prepared coming out of Spring Training. Maybe the coaches are not pushing the team hard enough in Spring Training. And for some years, they have come out of Spring Training with crappy pitching, and it has taken a month or two to sort it all out. Poor preparation or just not much talent? But truthfully, they are what their record says they are. And Bell should get some credit for the team not falling apart and just quitting. They have had a LOT of guys getting hurt, a lot of guys on the DL.

For the past ten years or so, the Reds have always seem to play better when there is absolutely no pressure to win.

Think of all the seasons, when the Reds have got off to a miserable start, only to play better durning the second half of the season. Leaving us to wonder what might hade been if they would have just got off to a better start.

Then when we start to believe they have turned the corner and it give us something to look forward to for the next Spring, when they fall flat again the following April.

Good teams play well under pressure. This team seems to play well when they are buried in the standings.

I am not sure why this happens, but I think it has a lot to do with the poor product the Reds put on the field season after season.

I mean we can bash our brains, trying to figure out why this didn’t work or that hasn’t worked. We can wonder how much better the team would be if they played young players over veterans or veterans over young players, or how much better we would be by moving Stephenson from catcher to first base or moving India to third base. Or how much better we would be with someone other David Bell was filling out the line up card everyday. All the questions that are discussed here every, single day.

But to me, the answer is much simpler. The players the Reds put on the field, day after day, are inferior to the players their opponents put on the field. It is really that simple.

Perhaps a move back to Florida will help since they can’t get it going coming out of Arizona.

Was pleased to see my new team the Blue Jays do spring training in Florida so plan to go for the first time spring ’23 since the Reds left.

“how much better we would be by moving Stephenson from catcher to first base or moving India to third base”

I think you mean how much worse

Yes they are bad, you don’t get to exclude parts of the season because you played better later. Obviously without injuries the record would be better, but you have to play with what you have. I’m sure other teams would also be better if they didn’t have injuries.

Not only that, but Reds have won 3 of the last 4 series. Beating Tampa rays, Yankees, and Cardinals. 3 teams that will undoubtedly be in the playoffs this year.

We are playing much better. Still prone to some silly base running mistakes and bullpen blowups but better. Now if we could just get some young outfield talent, get Jose barrero back to normal, a couple stud bullpen pieces, and some better luck in the health department we might see a glimpse of hope for 2023.

Keep it going with at least series wins against Miami and Baltimore.

Last year from mid-May to the end of June Kyle Farmer slashed 364 / 424 / 525

But the rest of the year he was not so good, and ended with an OPS+ of 88 on the season

Can we just ignore the bulk of his games and call him the greatest hitting SS to ever don a Reds’ uniform, based on that 1 1/2 month stretch? Or should we take the whole season into consideration?

Similarly, when considered how “good” or “bad” the Reds are in 2022, do we just take in to account their best stretch (which still has them as a sub 0.500 team) or do we factor in the entire season?

Yes very well said and couldn’t agree more. This seems to happen alot when no pressure. They play well and left to wonder. Good post

Wish I am in Cincinnati. Miss celebrating win at Skyline. Mahle pitching well at home is no small feast. Way to go, great win.

The “Up Next for the Cincinnati Reds” information has me questioning my own sanity.

If Dominquez a d Sweeney, it will be a huge let down. Dominquez stock dropping. Way too many stikeouts…

Would be a good return for Mahle though

Agree, I don’t think it’s Mahle the Yanks want. If this is how it goes, the Reds will be little brother again. They could take less from any other team. Cashman said no Volpe or Peraza. Got to force him or trade to another team

Dominguez (OF), Wells (C), and Warren (RHP) would be a nice return. Another SS isn’t what the organization needs most. Wells and Warren could be ready in 23, and Dominguez might be ready by 24.

If they needed another piece in return other than Castillo, Solano or Naquin could be added.

Another SS or not, IMO Reds should just get best player available and sort it out on the diamond

Domínguez is rated 39th overall, and Pereza is 38th. Easy to call them a coin flip on who’s better. Wells is also 71st rated prospect in MLB, that’s a very good return, and it fits the needs of the team in a timeframe that also works for the team.

MBS…I hope Wells is part of the return, but I haven’t heard that he is. The big difference between Peraza and Dominquez is that JD is dropping in the rankings. Far too many K’s. We have enough of those guys.

MLB.com rankings are stale. Fangraph’s has:

Dominguez (#70 overall) Sweeney (#13 Yankees farm) Wells (#11 Yankees farm, but as only a 40+ FV player)

Wells is unlikely to be a catcher at the MLB level. He doesn’t have the arm. When you evaluate him, think of him a likely LF/1B prospect–these are the least valuable defensively and really hurt his value.

Although Dominguez star has dimmed slightly this year, I still think he’s a solid prospect with a chance of being a really good CF (maybe) or RF. For Castillo, LHP Waldichuk and OF Dominguez would be good headliners in a return.

That said, I hope the small market Guardian who have a loaded farm make the best offer. RHP Gavin Williams, OF George Valera and C Bo Naylor would be a superior return from my perspective.

I think your “Up next for the Cincinnati Reds” is a touch out of date, for opponent, date, starting pitchers, time. Other than that it is spot on!

But other than that, Mrs. Lincoln, how was the play?

I’m starting to think the reds should pump the breaks with the fire sale. i mean we swept Tampa. We should have swept the Yankees. If Castillo pitched Saturday instead on Minor we would have swept the cards. I think the rest of this year and next year could be pretty fun if we add a couple of pieces. Our bullpen is looking a lot better plus we should get some pieces back healthy for next year.

The Phillies are unravelling. DO We try to make a deal for Schwarber and Castellanos? 2023 Could be a pretty fun year potentially

Schwarber, a native of Middletown, should spend the final years of his career as a DH with the Reds, but Moustakas must first go elsewhere, if possible.

What pieces are they going to need to add…RF, LF, 1B, SS, BP…take you pick still not going to be good?

The OF, SS, the pen, and the back end of the starting staff need a lot of work. Votto isnt winning a sliver slugger award over there, but there are much worse 1B out there, plus thats an easy position to fill so I dont see it as much of a problem when they have 10 others they should be addressing.

Yes, this Reds group of misfitting pieces has incredibly played as well as anyone else in the division since the wretched start despite being saddled with a terrible bullpen.

However, due to the start, there is no way they will get back into the divisional or wild card races. Also, unfortunately, the current group of position guys is not quite strong enough or sustainable to support the rising young starting pitching next season and beyond.

Solutions? That’s above my pay grade as we used to say at the place I retired from.

You hit the nail on the head, Jim.

Thanks, the one thing I certainly would do is find out from Phillie how much of a prospect it would take along with the Moose to get them to swap Castellanos for Moose.

In the MLB money world, that deal would be virtually salary neutral for the rest of 2022 and in 2023. Then the Phils would be off the hook; and, the Reds would have Nick at a very good price for 3 seasons with Votto off the books. But it probably makes too much sense to happen,

The Reds are fools if they take Dominquez from the Yankees rather than insisting on Volpe or Peraza. There are red flags all over his bio. When he signed, they called him the Martian because his tools were out of this world. Now they say he’s gotten ticker than they thought he would. He has more swing and miss than they thought. He could still be “solid” across the board. It’s all there and more. Diet, conditioning. I have held my tongue on Krall because he was handcuffed. If he accepts this, he should be fired immediately.

Don’t you just love automatic editors!?! The one on my PC has recently gone from flagging spelling and constructions it doesn’t like to just changing them without even telling me. On a phone where compositions are short and I am working with a small software keyboard that’s fine. It’s easy to review and check the checker but on a PC, eh………

What trade has Kroll made that you think is awful?

Mike Minor for Amir Garrett. He could have just dropped AG. No loss and no regrets.

If they needed an inning eater, with the injured pitchers they had, Johnny Cueto was available.

Cueto was a free agent, so who is to say he would have signed up to pitch in GABP again? Miley has been solid this year…..in the 19 innings he’s pitched. Sonny Gray is doing well, but higher than average injury risk so Krall flipped that high priced uncertainty for a lottery ticket. Minor has been bad, but if they do unload Castillo and/or Mahle they do need innings…..especially given 3/5 of their rotation will likely be under some innings restrictions going down the stretch. So, I disagree this was a bad move. It wasn’t great, but wasn’t horrible either all things considered. It stinks we have an ownership group that forces the GM to do creative dumpster diving, while they give the fans the finger.

Dominguez is only 19. .272/.379/.450 10 HRs in 78 games. at A Ball. .828 OPS….21 Stolen Bases

Not great, but not awful either. Like you said, too many K’s Still plenty of time to mature to his potential.

va red: this is on your comment that the Garrett/Minor trade was awful. I couldn’t agree more. If Garrett was pitching poorly, and acting uncontrollably, and he was, we could have traded him for a bag of baseballs. The Minor signing for ten plus million was a real head scratcher. A mid thirty-year-old pitcher, who had never been outstanding…we could have resigned Gray for that money-and had a much better pitcher. Makes no sense at all.

It really was the coup de grace of a puzzling offseason. One thing the Reds have not done under the current ownership group is enter a season with a minimal payroll. I have two theories, both of which could be in play:

1. They spend to “annual” budget. Ownership wants to look like they are trying so the Front Office is told to enter the season with the best players they can get for the budget.

2. They want no part of the MLBPA grievances against revenue sharing recipients for not using revenue sharing dollars to improve their on-field product as required under the CBA. Last I read, these grievances are still pending and I believe the alleged offenders will have a hard time justifying their rock-bottom budgets.

As for the Minor/Garrett swap … Garrett needed a change of scenery. I’m sure they hoped for better from Minor, but he’s simply been another $10M of dead weight on a roster that didn’t need another bad contract.

I wonder whether Gray would have taken a one-year contract? If not, that might account for it. There’s also this: The off-season moves com in in the context of a team that was not definitely not trying to win this year and, with two or more young pitchers with innings limits in the rotation.

I agree that he’s still young with a lot of baseball ahead but this is the biggest problem with yankee prospects—they are all so overhyped by their fans and other writers that they seldom live up to expectations.

I don’t know enough to rate him or other yankee kids but the numbers aren’t mindblowing. Same thing with volleyball and peraza and for that matter, the Braves’ prospects also!

Really can’t understand everyone’s excitement about the reds trading Castillo and Mahle. I hope they keep them at least through next year. If they walk after that so be it but with them and a some bull pen pieces and one corner outfielders I think we can compete.

I DFA moose, keep Votto. I keep Farmer and Resign Drury. Farmer plays 3rd and Drury plays a corner outfield spot.TS plays catcher and India 2b. Barrero plays SS.

My rotation is Ashcraft, Greene, Mahle, Castillo and Lodolo. With Overton as a backup.

The youngsters in Minors continue moving up the ladder. If we replace Moose with a bonafide bat we can win our division.

With Votto and Moose off the books in 2024 we can invest in the club without breaking the bank. If Mahle and Castillo walk we end up with comp picks.

You need to keep in mind you’re talking about the worst ownership in mlb. if they dfa moose they owe a lot of money not gonna happen both Mahle and Castillo are due for raises (more money) not gonna happen Barrero doesn’t deserve a starting spot (yet) Re-signing Drury means more money not gonna happen

Moose is a sunk cost regardless. Castillo and Mahle are due raises in Arb. There cost will be covered by not resigning Minor or Pham. Barrera is a risk I’m willing to take on. He looks to be turning a corner now. His slow stat is probably injury related

2 games is a corner turned?

I see no reason to give up on him, but he doesn’t and hasn’t looked ready for a starting spot on a ML team. Y’all can dream if you want that he’ll magically solve the SS problem just by inserting him there, but I’ve not seen enough to believe that’ll happen. He likely needs to find a bench role before he proves himself a starter.

@Jim, I’m certainly not excited about trading Mahle and Castillo. When a team is so bad they are unlikely to compete either this year or next it should be considered an organizational failure.

I think you lay out the options well: trade valuable players now because realistically the competitive window opens no earlier than 2024 or compete in 2023 knowing you can (provided they stay healthy) get competitive balance picks for Mahle and Castillo after the season.

Trading these two at the deadline and with an extra year of control will provide maximal returns. Waiting to next year will reduce that return (assuming similar performance). Waiting to make QO while they walk (another assumption of performance required) represent the smallest return in post-1st round compensatory picks.

So the question is whether this team can compete in the next two years such that the diminishing return is worth it. The answer must be a resounding No.

Berrero SS or ELDC plays 3rd or switch them.

Mcgrarry plays 1st as Votto leaves

Drury and Senzel man 2 outfield spots

India at 2b and TS at Cather.

If we make a deal or two maybe TS moves to 1B. We have a lot of fleibility to compete moving forward without trading 2 very good pitchers and we still can trade them at deadline next year if we aren’t competitive. I know the return may not be as good but with prospects there is always a risk.

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