KSReds: Cincinnati Reds Dominated in Rubber Match Versus Brewers

If you are looking for a silver lining, it would be that the Cincinnati Reds no longer have to play the Milwaukee Brewers. It’s frustrating to get beaten by the team you are chasing time and time again. Especially in the fashion the Reds have grown accustomed to with losses to Milwaukee. However, despite being just 3-10 against them on the season, Cincinnati has managed to remain just 1.5 games back in the National League Central standings.

Milwaukee has dominated the season series in the win-loss column, but every game certainly has been competitive. That was no different in this final regular season series between the two. The Brewers needed a walk-off on Monday to secure a win. Then, Andrew Abbott outdueled Corbin Burnes on Tuesday evening to set up Wednesday’s rubber match, which was a complete domination by the Brewers’ pitching staff recording 18 strikeouts. While that ended in a 3-0 loss for Cincinnati, it was still close thanks to a solid outing from Ben Lively.

The Brewers have the Reds’ number, but admittedly not by much.

Now, the Reds can forget about the Brew Crew for a couple of months and try to make up ground elsewhere. The schedule doesn’t get any easier though as they head west for a three-game weekend series against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Brandon Williams will begin the series at 10:10 p.m. EST on Friday night. Luke Weaver and Graham Ashcraft are also scheduled to start out in Los Angeles.

Brewers Open Series With Walk-Off Win

When one team has two at-bats with runners in scoring position and the other has 16 it is obvious who should win the game. However, in baseball, things don’t always work out how they should. The Cincinnati Reds nearly stole one on Monday night despite having their backs against the wall all night long. It was a 2-2 game going into the bottom of the ninth before the Milwaukee Brewers finally came through as Christian Yelich delivered a walk-off single. They were just 1-15 with runners in scoring position prior to Yelich’s walk-off hit.

There is no doubt that the Brewers deserved to win the series opener. The Reds’ pitching allowed more walks (8) than hits (7). Furthermore, aside from Elly De La Cruz’s absolute bomb in the third inning, Cincinnati never really even threatened to score. Colin Rea pitched six innings allowing just the two runs off the home run while scattering five total hits. Milwaukee’s bullpen was dominant behind him as well with closer Devin Williams ultimately earning the win in the ninth.

As for Graham Ashcraft, he wasn’t nearly as sharp as his last four starts. However, he did still fight his way out of enough jams to get through five and one-third innings. He allowed two runs on five hits while striking out eight batters and walking four. Alexis Diaz would suffer the loss in the ninth after issuing a walk and allowing two hits. The Reds dropped the opener 3-2 in Milwaukee.

Reds Even Series as Andrew Abbott Outduels Corbin Burnes

As a Cincinnati Reds fan you feel pretty good about the team’s chances when Andrew Abbott takes the mound. However, going against former Cy Young winner Corbin Burnes wasn’t going to be an easy task. Abbott could turn in a fantastic performance and still potentially get outdueled by one of the best pitchers in baseball. On Tuesday night in Milwaukee, the rookie went toe-to-toe with the veteran and won.

The Reds’ rookie left-hander pitched six shutout innings allowing seven hits and striking out nine batters against only one walk. Meanwhile, Burnes allowed two runs on three hits in his six innings of work. It was a good, old-fashioned pitcher’s duel, but Abbott came out on top this time around. That being said, Cincinnati’s bullpen just about threw a fantastic start straight into the garbage. What went from looking like an easy win turned into narrowly avoiding complete and total disaster.

After a massive Will Benson two-run home run provided some breathing room in the top of the ninth, Daniel Duarte was called upon to pitch the bottom half of the inning. With a 4-0 lead Duarte recorded the first two outs before the wheels fell off. Inexplicably, Duarte walked the next batter he faced despite having a four-run lead with nobody on base and two outs. Then, Blake Perkins reached an infield single. That brought Christian Yelich to the plate and the former MVP lifted a three-run, opposite-field home run to bring the Brewers within one run.

With the game at 4-3, the Cincinnati Reds turned to their closer Alexis Diaz. In the short term, that didn’t make things any easier. Diaz allowed an infield single and then hit a batter in the head after running the count full. Finally, he induced a lazy fly ball to centerfield that secured what turned into a heart-pounding 4-3 victory to even the series.

Cincinnati Strikes Out 18 Times in Shutout Loss

The Milwaukee Brewers officially have the Cincinnati Reds’ number. There isn’t much else you can say after ending the season series just 3-10. Additionally, four of the Reds’ eight shutouts this season have now come at the hands of the Brewers. At this point, there is a sense of relief in not having to play the divisional rival anymore during the regular season. Cincinnati has somehow managed to stay within 1.5 games of Milwaukee in the division standings despite being dominated head-to-head. Time will tell if they can make up that ground over the course of the next two months.

In Wednesday afternoon’s rubber match, the Reds were dominated as thoroughly as they have been all season. Unfortunately, the most recent, and similar, domination also came at the hands of the Brew Crew on July 14th in a 1-0 shutout loss. Just as they did nearly two weeks ago, the Reds struck out 18 times on Wednesday. 13 of those strikeouts came against Milwaukee starter Freddy Peralta. Matt McLain completed the golden sombrero while Elly De La Cruz, Jonathan India, and Will Benson all struck out three times. It was quite simply an ugly, embarrassing day at the plate for the Redlegs.

On the bright side, Ben Lively pitched well once again. He dueled against Peralta for six and two-third innings allowing two runs on eight hits. It was Tyrone Taylor who finally got Milwaukee on the board in the seventh with a two-run home run off of Lively. That would prove to be all the offense necessary as the Reds would eventually fall mercifully 3-0.