The continued inability to score runs doomed the Reds to their second and third straight defeats Thursday and Friday, losing 5-3 to Houston and 3-1 to San Francisco.
Thursday the Reds got all their runs early but couldn't sustain the early success against Astros starter Jack Cassell. The offensive hibernation from the third on combined with a shakier-than-usual start from Johnny Cueto to earn Houston a two-game series sweep.
Friday the Reds opened a tough nine-game road trip in San Francisco, a club they really need to beat if they're going to contend. Unfortunately the Giants threw a lefthanded starter with a pulse (Jonathan Sanchez in this case), so the Reds were helpless offensively all night. Their only run came on a ninth-inning solo shot from pinch hitter Brandon Phillips, who inexplicably got a day off against a lefty. I know he's struggled at the plate this year but his performance against lefthanders is what takes his numbers from average to special, and sitting him against southpaws isn't really an advisable way to get him out of his slump.
Winning in these big west coast ballparks (SF, LA, SD) has been difficult for this group over the last few years. They've never had the kind of offense that strings together four or five hits in an inning, and that's what you have to do when the longball becomes more difficult to get. The way they're going now, with no one hitting the longball or even really getting much solid contact, the outlook isn't so good for Saturday and Sunday.
The two losses put the Reds record at 9-15 on the year. During April it's usually advisable to say "it's early," but the year is roughly fifteen percent gone and this team has shown very little sign of coming out of its offensive struggles. The Reds are another 2-7 roadtrip away from thinking about 2009. They've been that bad. I'm not normally prone to hyperbole, and it really is such a long season. I know offensively they're missing contributions from three guys (Griffey, Dunn and Phillips) whom they assumed coming into the year were going to carry them. If those three were going things would be better. History shows the problems with lefties probably isn't going away, though. Most teams have a lefthanded starter or two in their rotation. At some point you have to have someone who is capable of hitting them.
The Reds take on the Giants again tonight. Matt Belisle tries to recover from his first disastrous start for the Reds, while San Diegan Kevin Correia gets the ball for Frisco. Game time is 9:05 Eastern, 6:05 here in paradise. Peace.
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