The Reds Report: August 27th
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It's time for the weekly update on the Redlegs. Cincinnati dropped a pair of series this week to division rivals and saw their offense falter in the final two games of the week. Even with four losses in six games, the two series gave fans an opportunity to look at the future pitching staff in Cincinnati.
Reds Starting To Dip Off
As the distant hope for a playoff bid becomes virtually impossible, Cincinnati has started a fall to cellar dweller in late August. The Reds went 2-4 over the past week with a pair of series losses to the Cubs and Pirates. With the pitching staff struggling the way it is, scoring more than five runs only twice in six games won't cut it. The Cubs lit up Cincy's bullpen on Tuesday with 13 runs in the final five innings to down the Reds 13-9. Sal Romano turned in a nice start to help the Reds pick up a 4-2 win in the finale of the series against Chicago. Robert Stephenson came back on Friday and shut down the Pirates to open the following series. Pittsburgh would need only six combined runs over the next two games to win the series.
Tyler Mahle Makes MLB Debut On Sunday
The #4 prospect in the Reds' system took the mound against Pittsburgh on Sunday. Known for his command, Mahle struggled to locate against the Pirates. Mahle walked four and struck out five while allowing three runs in five innings. The first two innings were very solid for Mahle. Pittsburgh didn't get their first hit until the third inning. Mahle really labored in the next two frames and was pulled after throwing 92 pitches over five innings. Mahle is 10-7 with an ERA of 2.o8 in the minors this season.
Luis Castillo Unlucky Once Again
A 3.26 ERA is usually good enough to earn you a few wins over the course of a season. Unfortunately for Castillo, it hasn't been enough. Castillo fell to 2-7 on the season (once again, showing wins and losses for a pitcher are almost pointless) after losing a 1-0 game to Pittsburgh on Friday. "La Piedra" struck out nine in seven one-run innings on Friday. If Cody Bellinger wasn't raking in LA it is possible Castillo would be a favorite for the NL Rookie of the Year. His .251 BABIP is tied with Clayton Kershaw in the top ten of all pitchers. It has been fun watching Castillo develop into a potential frontline starter. (Check out the spin rate on this 97-mph fastball)
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It's time for the weekly update on the Redlegs. Cincinnati dropped a pair of series this week to division rivals and saw their offense falter in the final two games of the week. Even with four losses in six games, the two series gave fans an opportunity to look at the future pitching staff in Cincinnati.
Reds Starting To Dip Off
As the distant hope for a playoff bid becomes virtually impossible, Cincinnati has started a fall to cellar dweller in late August. The Reds went 2-4 over the past week with a pair of series losses to the Cubs and Pirates. With the pitching staff struggling the way it is, scoring more than five runs only twice in six games won't cut it. The Cubs lit up Cincy's bullpen on Tuesday with 13 runs in the final five innings to down the Reds 13-9. Sal Romano turned in a nice start to help the Reds pick up a 4-2 win in the finale of the series against Chicago. Robert Stephenson came back on Friday and shut down the Pirates to open the following series. Pittsburgh would need only six combined runs over the next two games to win the series.
Tyler Mahle Makes MLB Debut On Sunday
The #4 prospect in the Reds' system took the mound against Pittsburgh on Sunday. Known for his command, Mahle struggled to locate against the Pirates. Mahle walked four and struck out five while allowing three runs in five innings. The first two innings were very solid for Mahle. Pittsburgh didn't get their first hit until the third inning. Mahle really labored in the next two frames and was pulled after throwing 92 pitches over five innings. Mahle is 10-7 with an ERA of 2.o8 in the minors this season.
Luis Castillo Unlucky Once Again
A 3.26 ERA is usually good enough to earn you a few wins over the course of a season. Unfortunately for Castillo, it hasn't been enough. Castillo fell to 2-7 on the season (once again, showing wins and losses for a pitcher are almost pointless) after losing a 1-0 game to Pittsburgh on Friday. "La Piedra" struck out nine in seven one-run innings on Friday. If Cody Bellinger wasn't raking in LA it is possible Castillo would be a favorite for the NL Rookie of the Year. His .251 BABIP is tied with Clayton Kershaw in the top ten of all pitchers. It has been fun watching Castillo develop into a potential frontline starter. (Check out the spin rate on this 97-mph fastball)
The Young Rotation Is Coming Together Romano, Stephenson, and Castillo turned in brilliant starts this week. Throw in what Tyler Mahle may produce following his debut and this rotation may be set for 2018. Tim Adelman, Homer Bailey, and Scott Feldman are not long-term pieces to the Reds' puzzle. It has been fascinating to watch the rotation come together. The Reds will most likely give these four youngins plenty of starts in September. Bryan Price noted that Castillo will be in the 2018 rotation. Romano and Stephenson have a lot to prove and will have four or five starts to show their stuff. Players Weekend Wraps Up Over the last three days, all players across the league wore special jerseys with nicknames on the back and a tribute patch on the right sleeve. The Reds' all had pretty cool nicknames, check them out below.It's hard not to love Luis Castillo when he's painting Two-Seamers at 97mph pic.twitter.com/CnrC8NIe7o
– Pitcher List (@ThePitcherList) August 27, 2017
Who will get called up this week? MLB Rosters will expand to 40 this week as teams prep for the postseason. The Reds will bring up a handful of players from Triple-A. Cody Reed, Alejandro Chacin, and perhaps Kevin Shackelford could come up to help out of the bullpen. On offense, Tyler Goeddel, Sebastian Elizade, and Dilson Herrera are also options as bench players. It is doubtful that Nick Senzel and Alex Blandino will make an appearance in the final month of the season, but both will be in big league camp to start 2018. Jose Peraza Showing Improvement August has been good to Peraza. His OBP has risen by 16 points this month as he has eight of his 18 walks on the season in August. Peraza had a huge two-run double against the Cubs in the only win of the series for the Reds. The Week Ahead The Reds have Monday off before hosting the Mets for a three-game set. Both teams are limping to the finish line, so it could be a chance for the Reds to win a series. Cincinnati will hit the road to start September with another three-game series against the Pirates. September will be a fun month for fans as the Cardinals, Red Sox, and Brewers all come to town.Play ball on #PlayersWeekend!
🟠GABP 📺 @FOXSportsOH 📻 Reds Radio Network 💻 @MLBTV âš¾ï¸ https://t.co/WHOcEi0ahe pic.twitter.com/SdooVfPX2S – Cincinnati Reds (@Reds) August 25, 2017
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