Leake vs Dempster

2-0 Reds in the 5th...Phillips with another HR and Renteria is 3/3 with an RBI.

Hopefully Janish gets the next 3 or 4 starts.

Jay Bruce has 2 strikeouts....in pursuit of 100 RBI he is really climbing the K ladder.

With bases loaded he GIDP and is now 3/20 on the season with bases loaded....so basically if he fails to get to 100 RBI, it is here he missed out.

Pena hits a ball right past Votto....and why I like Brantley "Votto should've had that one"....all the others just suck on Phillips, Votto and Bruce....Brantley calls it as is.

2-1

Jay Bruce strikes out looking on Ryan Dempster's 128th pitch of the night.

They have twice pitched around Votto to get to Bruce and he has an 0/4 with 3 K and 6 runners left on base.

He's all or nothing right now....if he continues he's going to end up with 165 K and hit .250.....not a Jay Bruce stat line IMO. Dusty does him no favors.

Drew Stubbs is also 0-4 with 2 K

Batting .247 and 190 K (10th most all-time)....only 4 guys have ever had more.

Last week Leake had 74 pitches after 8 and got the three outs in the 9th, but gave up the game tying HR. Tonight with 91 pitches and one run allowed after 8 he doesn't get the chance.

Bruce and Stubbs were really weak links in the offense tonight. Ponder back to the bottom of the 7th when BP was on 2nd with one out and it was 3-0 to Renteria. The 4th pitch is low, but the ump calls it a strike and Renteria flies out to RF on the next pitch, leaving the base open Dempster could use to pitch around Votto to get to Bruce to end the inning.

If the walk would have been called putting runners on 1st and 2nd with one out and Votto up, do you think the Cubs would have left Dempster in to still pitch around Votto to get to Bruce? And if Bruce doesn't hit into a DP, but strikes out like he did anyway, do they leave Dempster in to pitch to Alonso? Or do they bring the lefty in to face Votto?

I92 gave it a good run but still falls well short of Darby's gold standard for consecutive baseball posts. Reps are coming your way when I get to computer.

Bruce has been all or nothing way too much and Stubbs playing 160 games this year is ridiculous.....they may have 360 strikeouts and hit .245 between them.

Ironman92;895278 wrote:Bruce has been all or nothing way too much and Stubbs playing 160 games this year is ridiculous.....they may have 360 strikeouts and hit .245 between them.

Didn't the D'Backs get a good manager and hitting coach, get rid of their strike out leader, and change the culture from dumb playing to smart, and now they stand to win the NLW. Maybe the Reds owner should make moves along the same lines, and Bruce and some others will smarten up!

mhs95_06;895296 wrote:Didn't the D'Backs get a good manager and hitting coach, get rid of their strike out leader, and change the culture from dumb playing to smart, and now they stand to win the NLW. Maybe the Reds owner should make moves along the same lines, and Bruce and some others will smarten up!

Good point and example....but we also have to have starting pitchers go over 200 innings.