Press Clippings April 9, 2017

THIS DAY IN REDS HISTORY 1962 - The Reds play the first game of a 162-game schedule, brought about by the expansion to 10 teams, with the addition of New York and Houston MLB.Com

Walks an issue in Reds' loss to Cards By Mark Sheldon and Jenifer Langosch / MLB.com | 6:27 PM ET

ST. LOUIS -- Boosted by Aledmys Diaz's first career multi-homer game, the Cardinals' offense awoke Saturday to spoil 's return to the Majors. With a 10-4 rout of the Reds at , the Cardinals surpassed their season total in one afternoon and gave Michael Wacha more than sufficient support in his season debut.

Diaz deposited Arroyo's fourth pitch of the game into the left-field seats to give the Cardinals an early lead, and, three innings later, put the Cardinals ahead by five with a three-run drive to nearly the same spot.

"Somebody had to get it going, and he just decided to do it twice," said Cardinals manager Mike Matheny, whose club had been shut out on two hits a night earlier. "And then you saw it continue."

Arroyo, who became the first Reds to start a game at age 40 since 1945, allowed six runs on six hits over four innings. However, just getting back on the mound was an achievement. Saturday's start marked Arroyo's first Major League appearance since June 2014.

"It was a battle. It was a grind, man," Arroyo said. "I didn't get deep enough in the ballgame to really make a difference. But I felt OK."

After cementing himself as the team's fifth starter with a standout spring, Wacha continued a string of strong starting pitching performances with his six-inning outing. Wacha scattered three hits -- all extra-base knocks -- while striking out six. He limited Cincinnati to one run.

The Cardinals chose to be conservative with Wacha's workload after padding their lead with a three-run sixth off reliever Robert Stephenson. Wacha exited with a pitch count of 83. With Wacha's start complete, Cardinals starters posted a 1.71 ERA the first time through their rotation.

"Our expectations in this clubhouse are high," Wacha said. "We want to go out there and give our team the best chance to win, and go out there and set the tone for the game. So far, we've been doing that. And hopefully we can keep on attacking them the way we have been."

MOMENTS THAT MATTERED Encore performance: After taking Arroyo deep in the first inning, Diaz put the Cardinals comfortably ahead, 6-1, with his three-run shot in the fourth. Both homers came on offspeed pitches on the inside part of the plate, and both traveled 381 feet, per Statcast™. The multi-homer game was the 14th all-time by a Cardinals shortstop. It was set up by Wacha's two-out RBI single and a Dexter Fowler walk.

"I got fooled two times with breaking balls, so I was just trying to put the ball in play," Diaz said. "He threw me a in, and I was able to get the ball fair."

Perfect placement: With an exit velocity of 88.5 mph and a launch angle of 53 degrees, the ball that came off Yadier Molina's bat in the first inning had a probability of 1 percent. But Molina enjoyed being the exception. The ball dropped just inside the right- field foul line, in between first baseman Joey Votto and right fielder Patrick Kivlehan, who made a sliding attempt to catch it. Matt Adams, who had reached ahead of Molina on a two-out walk, hustled all the way home to put the Cardinals ahead, 2-0.

"That was just effort. He feels really good about how he's moving right now," Matheny said. "To score on that particular hit shows that, one, he's being really intentional about what he's doing on the bases, and two, he's moving better."

QUOTABLE "Significant lobbying from Waino. He started early, too, by the way. He just kind of hangs out by me and just waits for me to acknowledge that he's there." -- Matheny, on how he came to the decision to send Adam Wainwright up as a pinch-hitter in the eighth inning

SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS Reds combined to allow 12 walks in the game. It was the first time they've walked that many since issuing 12 free passes to the Padres in a 16-inning game on May 16, 2009. The last time Cincinnati pitchers achieved the dubious feat in a nine-inning game was vs. the Brewers on May 10, 2003, when they walked 13. The Cardinals hadn't drawn 12 walks in a game against the Reds since April 21, 1948, in a win at Sportsman's Park.

"That was just not good," Reds manager Bryan Price said. "You look at the box score at the end of the day and you gave up 10 runs, but you look at 12 walks and a couple of homers. You've got to make them swing the bat at this ballpark. You really do. It wasn't our best game as far as balls and strikes and command goes. So we've got to step up."

STEPHENSON'S COMMAND TAKES LEAVE In his 2017 debut, Stephenson replaced Arroyo in the fifth inning and produced rough and wild results with six walks (one intentional) and three earned runs over 1 2/3 innings. The right-hander, who threw 33 balls and 26 strikes, went to three-ball counts on nine of 12 hitters -- excluding the intentional walk -- and walked Matt Carpenter and Adams with eight consecutive balls.

"Emotional leads to mechanical," Price said. "We've spent a lot of time working to get him in a position to drive the ball down the slope of the mound. And he kind of got back into some old habits, collapsing his back leg. He kind of has a little teeter-totter at the top where that front shoulder hikes, and it's hard for him to get over the ball and get down to create the plane."

WHAT'S NEXT Reds: The three-game series concludes at 2:15 p.m. ET Sunday with Scott Feldman making his second start of the season. Cincinnati will be looking for just its fourth series win out of the last 29 at Busch Stadium since 2006.

Cardinals: The Cardinals will close out their opening homestand with a 1:15 p.m. CT game on Sunday. Carlos Martinez, who threw 7 1/3 scoreless innings in his Opening Night appearance, will make the start.

Reds option Astin; Reed to remain in Transaction clears Arroyo for Saturday start By Mark Sheldon / MLB.com | @m_sheldon | 2:36 PM ET

ST. LOUIS -- To make room for the selection of Bronson Arroyo's contract to pitch vs. the Cardinals on Saturday, the Reds optioned reliever Barrett Astin to -A Louisville.

Astin pitched a scoreless third of an inning on , Monday vs. the Phillies, and left the bases loaded in the fifth inning in relief of Scott Feldman.

"That was a tough one," Reds manager Bryan Price said of the decision.

The Reds needed to go from a nine-man bullpen back to eight to get Arroyo into the five-man rotation.

It was also determined that Cody Reed will stay in the bullpen and not get a start next week. Price had contemplated using Reed for one start vs. the Pirates to get some starters an extra day of rest.

"That will be on hold here for a little bit," Price said. "More important than anything, it's just making sure he's locked in when he gets his opportunity to take the ball as a starter. There's zero lost optimism in Cody Reed as a starting pitcher. Right now, our best team is with this current five-man rotation and the bullpen set up the way it is."

The rotation now sets up to have Feldman pitch Sunday and be followed by Brandon Finnegan, Rookie Davis, Amir Garrett and Arroyo. Strong outings by Finnegan and Garrett and good work from the bullpen in the season's first week made it less necessary for Reed or Robert Stephenson to get work. Reed pitched two scoreless innings Thursday vs. the Phillies but walked the first two batters in each inning before escaping the jams.

"We wanted to have everybody on the roster because our concern was if we needed a pitcher, we couldn't access a pitcher the first 10 days unless there was an injury," Price said. "We knew we were going to add Bronson. It put the ball in the court of how did Amir do? How did Rookie do? How does the bullpen look? After Amir made his start, it certainly was impressive.

"The other part is with Cody. His last couple of outings, he hasn't been sharp with his command. It just didn't seem like it was reasonable to, in turn, take a spot from somebody in the rotation, and insert him until he was really feeling like he was throwing the ball well and I feel like he's throwing the ball well."

Feldman hoping to get his first Reds win By Mark Sheldon / MLB.com | @m_sheldon | April 8th, 2017

Carlos Martinez was throwing gas on Opening Day and was very effective vs. the Cubs, firing 7 1/3 scoreless innings but ending up with a no-decision. He makes start No. 2 Sunday against the Reds and Scott Feldman at Busch Stadium.

"It's not fair when a guy throws 100 miles an hour the first game," Cubs third baseman and MVP Kris Bryant said last Sunday after Martinez struck him out three times. "You should tell him to slow it down a bit. He's definitely one of the most underrated pitchers in the game. He's really good."

Martinez has been effective against Cincinnati's best hitter, Joey Votto. The first baseman is a .167 hitter with a homer against the right-hander but has walked in six of his 18 plate appearances.

Lifetime vs. the Reds, Martinez is 5-1 with a 2.76 ERA in 16 games, including five starts.

Feldman wasn't effective early during a 4-3 loss to the Phillies on Monday. He was down 3-0 after two innings, including two homers, as he threw 99 pitches over four innings. The club was pleased that he settled in, though; he largely limited the damage after the second inning to keep his team in the game. In his one previous meeting vs. St. Louis, while with the Cubs on June 20, 2013, Feldman gave up five earned runs and six hits over 5 1/3 innings for a 6-1 defeat.

Things to know

• Cardinals right fielder Stephen Piscotty could return to the lineup Sunday after sitting with knee soreness on Saturday. Piscotty was beat up during the first week, including a pitch off his right elbow, a throw off his left elbow and another throw off his helmet in the same inning. He then injured his knee on a slide during Friday's game.

• The Reds didn't start regular players Billy Hamilton, Scott Schebler and Jose Peraza on Saturday. Price wanted to get some of his bench players at-bats since none had starts since Spring Training. Schebler entered the game late and hit a two-run homer.

CINCINNATI ENQUIRER

Bronson Arroyo’s return goes awry in 10-4 loss Zach Buchanan , [email protected] Published 6:28 p.m. ET April 8, 2017

ST. LOUIS – On Saturday, for the first time in nearly four years, Rick Stowe prepped the tunnel under Busch Stadium visiting dugout for Bronson Arroyo.

The Cincinnati Reds clubhouse manager found a chair to set up in the dugout tunnel, where Arroyo likes to sit between innings. Next he set out two towels and Arroyo’s in-game snacks: two bananas, applesauce and some water.

Next to the chair were the cubbies for bats and helmets, including Arroyo’s black Willie Bloomquist model bat and a helmet with ear flaps that required some superglue repairs. For the first time since June of 2014, Arroyo was starting a major-league game. For the first time since September of the year before that, he was doing it as a Red.

The creature comforts were appreciated by the 40-year-old Arroyo, who spent the last two-and-a-half years of his life working to return from elbow and shoulder surgeries. And while his first start back didn’t go like he wanted – four innings, six runs and two screaming homers from St. Louis Cardinals shortstop Aledmys Diaz in a 10-4 Reds loss – Arroyo couldn’t help but feel a sense of accomplishment.

“It doesn’t help the ball club out, it means nothing to maybe the other 24 guys in this locker room,” Arroyo said. “But for me personally, it was a victory to get out there and throw that first pitch.”

The veteran right-hander looked close to his old self, but not quite the same. Because he was added to the roster only that morning, he couldn’t come to the park the day before to play catch like he’s accustomed to doing. His sat about 84-86 mph, although ’s Statcast tracking system mistook every single one of them for change-ups.

He gave up two runs in the first inning, but that didn’t concern him. Diaz jumped on a 1-0 fastball for a solo shot to left to make it 1- 0 two batters in. Another run scored when Yadier Molina blooped a double into no-man’s land near the right-field line. The next two frames proceeded without drama.

It was an at-bat in the fourth that cost the Reds and had Arroyo steamed at himself after the game. With a runner on second and two outs, Arroyo surrendered a single to opposing pitcher Michael Wacha, who entered the game a career .092 hitter. Dexter Fowler followed with a walk, and Diaz yanked another liner out of the stadium to make it 6-1.

“I’d hit my spots four or five times in a row and then miss one by two feet, which isn’t that indicative of the way I usually pitch,” Arroyo said. “I give up a couple hits, a couple hard homers on terrible pitches. It’s the same old story. You miss your spots, you’re going to get hurt, especially as soft as I throw.”

Arroyo’s early exit didn’t give the Reds the kind of rotation stability manager Bryan Price was hoping for, but it did allow Price to use starting pitching prospect Robert Stephenson for the first time this season. With the Reds in closer games the first four contests of the year, Stephenson showed why Price has been reluctant to go to him.

The 24-year-old loaded the bases on three walks (one intentional) in the fifth, but struck out Wacha to escape the jam. The sixth was much more painful. Again, Stephenson loaded the bases, this time on two walks and a single. Another walk scored a run.

Stephenson bounced back for two strike outs, but gave up two more runs on a single from to end the righty’s day. In total, Stephenson walked six and struck out four in 1 ⅔ innings. He threw more balls (33) than strikes (26).

Price said the control issues stemmed from Stephenson returning to bad habits with his delivery, specifically collapsing his back leg.

“He’s certainly a lot better than he pitched today and I anticipate seeing a better, improved Stephenson the next time he pitches,” Price said.

Pitching stumbles as St. Louis Cardinals beat Cincinnati Reds, 10-4 Zach Buchanan , [email protected] Published 5:09 p.m. ET April 8, 2017

ST. LOUIS – We’ll have more in a bit on the Cincinnati Reds’ 10-4 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals on Saturday at Busch Stadium. Until then, here are the main storylines.

Bronson Arroyo’s debut was a dud. Making his first major-league start in nearly three years – and the first start by a 40-year-old for the Reds in more than 70 – Arroyo didn’t give the competitive performance on which he prides himself. The veteran right-hander lasted just four innings, giving up six runs on six hits and three walks. He struck out three and was hurt for two home runs, both line-drive shots to left by Cardinals shortstop Aledmys Diaz.

The trouble started in the first. Arroyo gave up Diaz’s first homer two batters into the game, and then issued a two-out walk to Matt Adams. Yadier Molina scored Adams in a high-arcing double near foul territory right fielder Patrick Kivlehan just missed after a long sprint and slide.

Arroyo rebounded to keep the Cardinals scoreless over the next two innings, but gave up four more in the fourth, three of them on Diaz’s second .

As if reading a good detective novel, Robert Stephenson didn’t know where it was going. Stephenson took over when Arroyo left, and extensively explored the uncharted territory beyond the strike zone. He walked his first two batters in the fifth before rebounding for two outs, and was credited with a pitch-less intentional walk to load the bases to bring pitcher Michael Wacha to the plate. Wacha struck out to end the inning.

The sixth didn’t have such a happy resolution. Stephenson again loaded the bases, this time with two walks and a hit with no outs. Another walk to Adams brought in a run. Molina and Randall Grichuk each went down swinging, but a Kolten Wong single plated two more to make it 9-1 Cardinals.

Lefty Wandy Peralta took over for Stephenson at that point and escaped the jam. The right-hander finished was charged for three runs on two hits and six walks in 1 ⅔ innings. He struck out four.

Joey Votto had a brain fart on the bases, but scored anyway. The Reds first baseman found himself on second in the fourth after a one-out, two-strike double to right-center, but could have cost the Reds a scoring chance. Adam Duvall shot a long fly ball to the warning track in the next at-bat, but Votto inexplicably failed to tag up and advance, instead casually jogging back to second when the ball was caught.

In St. Louis, Scooter Gennett gets his Lucky Charms Zach Buchanan , [email protected] 2:50 p.m. ET April 8, 2017

ST. LOUIS – Before the series opener Friday against the St. Louis Cardinals, Cincinnati Reds infielder Scooter Gennett wandered into the visiting clubhouse and found a box of Lucky Charms in his locker. It was expected.

A box of the children’s cereal has greeted Gennett in St. Louis on every trip he’s made over the last year, when he was with the . It is his favorite, so the clubhouse attendants provide as a gift.

“Last year, the first time we came in I was looking for some cereal and they didn’t have any Lucky Charms,” Gennett said. “So I’m like, ‘Man, I really like Lucky Charms.’ Every time since then when I came back, they always have a box or two of Lucky Charms for me. They take care of me pretty good here.”

Gennett said he can go through a normal box of the cereal over the course of a three-game series. Since division foes visit St. Louis three times a year, that means he’ll eat three boxes of Lucky Charms in nine days.

Sometimes he finds the family size boxes, at which point he needs some help from teammates. And, for the record, he saves the marshmallows for last.

“I try to work around them,” Gennett said. “It’s almost like a dessert for the cereal.”

And are they lucky? The Reds did win Friday, Gennett points out. Even if he went without a hit in his first-ever start at third.

“It didn’t have any knocks in it, but it had a ‘W’ in it,” he said. “That’s all that matters.” Reds scrap planned Cody Reed start, option Barrett Astin Zach Buchanan , [email protected] 2:17 p.m. ET April 8, 2017

ST. LOUIS – A day after saying his rotation was undecided past this coming Monday, Cincinnati Reds manager Bryan Price said Saturday that he’ll keep the same starting pitchers in the same order now that veteran Bronson Arroyo has officially joined the team.

Right-hander Scott Feldman will follow Arroyo for Sunday’s series finale against the St. Louis Cardinals, and Brandon Finnegan, Rookie Davis and Amir Garrett will handle the team’s three road games against the . The Reds had tentatively planned for left-hander Cody Reed to take a start in Pittsburgh, but have shelved that while he works on his delivery out of the bullpen, Price said.

“More importantly than anything, making sure that he’s locked in when he gets his opportunity to take the ball as a starter,” Price said. “There’s zero lost optimism in Cody Reed as a starter.”

Young right-hander Robert Stephenson is in the same boat, Price said. Stephenson has yet to appear in a regular-season game and will need to pitch soon to stay fresh. Unlike Reed, there were no imminent plans to get him a start.

The Reds apparently wanted to keep both in the major-league bullpen enough to demote righty Barrett Astin to make room for Arroyo on the active roster. Astin pitched on Opening Day, helping the Reds get out of a jam in the fifth inning. He’s started before in the minors, but will work as a reliever in Triple-A, Price said.

“Right now, our best team is with this current five-man rotation and the bullpen set up the way it is,” Price said.

Injury updates

It’s been nearly four weeks since right-hander Anthony DeSclafani was shut down to rehab a sprained elbow ligament, but he is not on the verge of throwing yet, Price said. DeSclafani also had an injection of platelet-rich plasma into the area to promote healing.

Right-hander Nick Travieso has begun a throwing program, however. Travieso missed all of spring training with biceps inflammation which required a cortisone shot more than a month ago.

Both pitchers are on the 60-day disabled list, meaning they won’t be eligible to return to action until June.

CINCINNATI BUSINESS COURIER

Stats guru Bill James weighs in on Votto's prospects, Reds' rebuild Apr 6, 2017, 2:54pm EDT Updated Apr 7, 2017 Steve Watkins

Cincinnati Reds star Joey Votto is on track to become a Hall of Famer, said the man who pioneered sabermetrics, the statistical analysis of baseball.

Bill James, who works as an adviser for the Boston Red Sox and who wrote the groundbreaking “Bill James Baseball Abstract” annual books in the 1980s that launched baseball’s statistical revolution, talked to me on Thursday about Votto’s prospects. James was about to give a speech at the Xavier University Williams College of Business Distinguished Speaker Series at the Cintas Center.

“He has a Hall of Fame-level of ability and if he lasts long enough, another four or five years, then he will be,” James said of Votto’s likelihood of entering Cooperstown. “Joey Votto is a great player. He’s absolutely a great hitter.”

He pointed out Votto started his career a bit late. He was 24 in his first full major-league season. But at his skill level – he was second in the National League in on-base-plus- last season – he can clearly make up for that late start.

James rated Votto the number one first baseman in Major League Baseball this year, and he acknowledged there’s tough competition at that position with stars such as Paul Goldschmidt of the Arizona Diamondbacks and Anthony Rizzo of the .

“He’s impressive. He’s a wonderful hitter,” James said of Votto.

That might seem obvious to many Reds fans, but there also seems to be a sizable contingent that doesn’t appreciate Votto’s value to a team. Maybe it’s because he’s not a huge home run hitter. Maybe it’s because one of his top skills is his batting eye and ability to draw walks, not the sexiest skill in baseball. And it likely has plenty to do with the fact the Reds have lost more than 90 games and finished in last place each of the last two years.

James says that’s a natural fan reaction. He compared the way Votto is sometimes viewed with fans’ opinions of Cubs star Ernie Banks in the ‘50s and ‘60s while the Cubs regularly posted losing records.

“When you play for a team that’s going through a difficult moment, the player gets blamed for the failings of his team,” James said. “There’s no way to avoid that.”

National baseball analysts are more impressed with Votto than many local fans are. Jack Dickey pointed out in Sports Illustrated’s baseball preview issue this year that only five players in baseball history have finished their careers with better marks in each category than Votto’s career .313 batting average, .425 on-base percentage and .536 slugging percentage. The other five: Babe Ruth, Ted Williams, Lou Gehrig, and Rogers Hornsby – Hall of Famers all. And Votto did not hit a single infield popup last year (although he hit one on Opening Day this season).

James had some encouraging words for the Reds rebuilding process, which I wrote about here and in this cover story.

“There are a lot of players I like,” he said, singling out young second baseman Jose Peraza.”I certainly think you’re doing the things you need to do. I have a lot of confidence the new management team will start showing results on the field as fast as anyone can expect.”

He pointed out teams used to be down for decades like the Pirates’ nearly two-decade run of losing seasons through much of the 1990s and 2000s. Now, the down cycle is much shorter.

“It’s tough when you’re in a down cycle, but this is modern baseball and everybody goes through it,” he said.

SPORTS ILLUSTRATED

The Reds' Big Machine: Joey Votto is a generational hitter and only getting better JACK DICKEY Thursday April 6th, 2017

This story appears in the March 27 issue of Sports Illustrated.

A rudimentary but effective way to assess the quality of a hitter is through evaluation of his slash line. One of the slashiest: Reds first baseman Joey Votto has a career batting average of .313, a career on-base percentage of .425 and a career slugging percentage of .536. Only five players in baseball history have done as well or better in all three categories. Their names are Ruth, Williams, Gehrig, Foxx and Hornsby.

There are measures even more rudimentary. A hitter’s most basic goal is to not make outs, and only 11 men in baseball history have been better than the 33-year-old Votto at not making outs, i.e. getting on base. One is ; one played in the 1890s; the other nine are in the Hall of Fame.

Votto reaches the plate knowing exactly what he wants to hit, and he waits for it. Since 2014, according to Fangraphs, no hitter has swung at a lower share of pitches out of the strike zone. He hits the ball all over the field, too, and his career batting average on balls he puts in play (.359) is fifth in modern baseball history, one tick behind Mike Trout’s (the others ahead of him are , Shoeless Joe Jackson and Hornsby). Last year he did not hit a single infield fly ball; only two other qualified regulars could say the same.

Following a slow start in 2016—Votto says “confusion, frustration, and determination” filled his head—he hit .408 after the All- Star break, becoming only the fourth player in the last 30 years to hit above .400 in any half of any season. (What exactly went wrong early on? “There was some stuff,” is all Votto will say.) Over the last two seasons, slow start and all, Votto has posted the best OPS in baseball. Though he has not since matched the power of his 2010 MVP season, every other part of his offensive game has gotten better.

There are few hitters whose at bats are so captivating—and few teams whose games are less competitive. The Reds have had the game’s worst record over those two years, finishing a combined 71 1⁄2 games out of first place in the NL Central.

Says Reds manager Bryan Price, “He’s someone, for me, that any baseball fan would pay to see hit, would pay to see play. I hate to think he’s a well-kept secret. I just don’t think that we’ve earned the right to get the attention that would shine a brighter light on Joey.”

Baseball’s most evolved hitter toils in relative anonymity, underappreciated by his own fans and the broader baseball world. And he doesn’t mind it. “I think if I let the team’s performance dictate how I behave,” says Votto, “or how I perceive my performance, or whether or not there’s value, or whether or not anyone even cares, it’s a dangerous and slippery slope.”

But surely some part of Votto must find it harder to do what he does on a team like this, a team whose radio broadcaster said in January that the owner should trade Votto and tell him, “Hell, I can lose 94 games without you just as easily as I could lose 94 games with you”?

“No, not at all,” Votto says. “No matter what, I’m being paid to perform. I, personally, have standards that I have set for myself. I’d like to achieve those and look back without regret.” (He measures himself, he says, against the best players in the game—he mentions Miguel Cabrera, Andrew McCutchen, Bryce Harper, and Mike Trout. But he doesn’t compare his stats to theirs directly, he says—“it’s far too stressful.”)

Though the Reds made three playoff appearances from 2010 through ’13, the team has entered each of the last two off-seasons as definite sellers. It would have made some sense to deal Votto, who is signed to a long but, by today’s standards, not obscene contract. He is owed $22 million this year, and $25 million for each of the six years after that. Since last July the team has traded veterans Jay Bruce and Brandon Phillips, committing belatedly but in earnest to a full-scale rebuild.

But Votto, who has a no-trade clause, doesn’t want to go anywhere. “As I get older I’m connected more to the city, and to people in the city,” he says. “I own a home there. I’m out and about in the community all the time.” So that’s that.

Votto will be the Reds’ oldest starting position player, and its longest-tenured. And a young lineup like this one (average age excluding Votto: 26) could learn from him. Centerfielder Billy Hamilton already has.

Hamilton says, “I like him way more now than I used to—not in a bad way.” He says he was once afraid to talk to the notoriously intense Votto or even look his way; since then Votto has helped him get out of his own head when he hits. In the process the first baseman has become Hamilton’s best friend on the team.

“It’s hard, though,” says Hamilton, “for him to tell somebody how to hit, when he’s that good. He knows what he wants to hit and exactly where he wants to hit the ball. . . . He’s so good at knowing what he wants and sticking to it.”

In an era when superstars routinely abandon their first teams for contenders or bigger markets, Votto could indeed be said to be sticking to what he knows he wants. The Reds’ big machine keeps quietly humming away.

DAYTON DAILY NEWS

Ask Hal: Reds GM needs time to prove himself By Hal McCoy - Contributing Writer Posted: 12:13 p.m. Saturday, April 08, 2017

Hall of Fame baseball writer Hal McCoy knows a thing or two about our nation’s pastime. Tap into that knowledge by sending an email to [email protected].

Q: Any suggestions for an aging man with failing health and one item left on his bucket list — seeing a Cincinnati Reds championship? — DAVE, Miamisburg/Centerville/Beavercreek.

A: Yeah, rewrite the bucket list. Change it to the . My bucket list has the Cleveland Browns in the Super Bowl. I’ve told my great grandson to put it on his bucket list.

Q: Is new Dick Williams qualified or is he in his position by virtue of nepotism? — JACK, Vandalia.

A: That’s a high, hard one, Jack. By nepotism you mean that Dick is the son and nephew of the Williams brothers, who once owned the team. So why not wonder if he has the baseball genes and the baseball DNA. The Williams brothers were pretty much silent owners. They stayed in the background but Dick was always around the ballpark. For several years Dick has shadowed former GM Walt Jocketty, absorbing all he can. Since Williams is less than a year into his job, let’s permit this to play out and see how he works out.

Q: What personnel move do you see next from the Reds front office? — JAY, Englewood.

A: Unending movement. I-71 between Cincinnati and Louisville will be congested with players shuffling back and forth. If you mean a trade, I see shortstop Zack Cozart traded. Jose Peraza will be moved from second base to shortstop and Scooter Gennett will play second base until they are ready to plant Dilson Herrera at second base. And third baseman Eugenio Suarez is on borrowed time until Nick Senzel gets the call.

Q: Why did the Reds trade and ? — THOMAS, Oriental Mindoro, The Philippines.

A: Wow, that goes back even before my 44 years of covering baseball. But in the case of Robinson, owner Bill DeWitt famously said Robinson was “an old 30.” And he traded him to Baltimore for two trinkets and a bauble. Old Man Robinson won the Triple Crown. Pinson was a great player for the Reds, but after he was traded he never reached the heights he achieved in Cincinnati his last season years with St. Louis, Cleveland, California and Kansas City. The Reds acquired pitcher and from St. Louis for Pinson. That was a timely trade. And why isn’t Pinson in the Hall of Fame?

Q: What is the most bizarre thing you’ve seen players do during a rain delay? — JOHN, Xenia.

A: I saw second baseman Bret Boone put on pitcher ’s cowboy boots and walk around the clubhouse wearing nothing but the boots. I saw outfielder Dave Collins put a roll of toilet paper on a coat hanger and hang it on a back belt loop of a writer’s pants and saw the writer walk around the clubhouse with toilet paper streaming behind him. I saw pitcher use scissors to snip off a writer’s tie at the knot (Seaver later presented the guy with six new ties). Bizarre enough?

Q: What is the best possible result for the Reds this year? — ALAN, Sugarcreek Twp.

A: Can’t see them doing any better than fourth. If all goes well, they might finish ahead of Milwaukee. Nobody is more positive about things and nobody is more gung-ho Cincinnati Reds than . But early this week on MLB’s Baseball Tonight he said about the Reds, “It’s gonna be a long year with what they’ve got going on.” I never argue with Sean Casey.

Q: Isn’t Bryan Price going to overwork the pitching staff by using five and six pitchers a game? — RICK, Vandalia.

A: Don’t fault him. Fault the starting pitchers who can’t get out of the fifth inning. Right now there are eight pitchers in the bullpen, plenty of arms. And those same eight guys won’t be with the team all year. There will be a steady stream of fresh arms coming up from the minors when needed. They will be needed.

Q: What is the logic of not using as a starter when he did well in that role when he first came up? — JIMMY, Cincinnati.

A: Stay tuned. Iglesias eventually will be in the rotation. Maybe not this year, but probably next year. He has had a lot of shoulder issues the last two years so they are being cautious now by using him for only an inning or a two at a time. But the Reds say a rotation role is in his future.

Q: Why has the Dayton Daily News eliminated “Player Periscope” in Sunday’s paper that kept track of how local players were doing in the minor leagues? — BO, Centerville.

A: That was a nice feature but it disappeared about 30 years ago. I was never a decision-maker at the DDN so I don’t know why it was discontinued. The news holes, including the sports sections, are shrinking all over the newspaper business so it could be a matter of space. And it could be that the person who contributed that feature is no longer with us.

QUESTION OF THE WEEK Q: Do you agree with that Joey Votto could have played for the ? — RYAN, Dayton.

A: Joey Votto could play for any team at any time in any era. He is that good, the best all-around hitter I’ve seen in my 44 years. If Votto played for The BRM he would have played first base and Tony Perez would have stayed at third base and Pete Rose would have stayed in left field. With that scenario the Reds probably wouldn’t have traded to get and what a mistake that would have been.

A forgettable day for Arroyo, Stephenson Hal McCoy April 8, 2017

Neither Bronson Arroyo nor Robert Stephenson will scribble any positive notations in their personal journals about April 8, 2017.

It was a Bad Day at Busch for both. And it was a nasty afternoon for the Cincinnati Reds, a 10-4 whipping from the St. Louis Cardinals.

Arroyo, making his first major league appearance in nearly 2 ½ years, was greeted with scorn by the Cardinals, particularly by 26- year-old shortstop Aledmys Diaz.

Diaz faced Arroyo twice and homered twice as part of a Cardinals victory Saturday afternoon in Busch Stadium that ended Cincinnati’s three-game winning streak.

ARROYO PITCHED FIVE INNINGS and gave up six runs, six hits and, most noteworthy, three walks. Walking people is not something Arroyo did during his first stint with the Reds and the rust on his arm was obvious.

Meanwhile, Stephenson replaced Arroyo for his first appearance this season in the sixth and it was plug ugly. In just 1 1/3 innings Stephenson walked six and gave up three runs and three hits.

Up to that time, the Reds bullpen had given up just one run in 15 1/3 innings and was working on 12 straight scoreless innings.

ARROYO, 40, WAS THE FIRST Reds pitcher 40 or older to make a start since 1945. The last time somebody over 40 started for the Reds was a back-to-back event when 46-year-old Hod Lisanbee and 40-year-old Boom Boom Beck pitched on June 8 and June 9 of 1945 against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field.

Of course, that was during World War II and most able-bodied major leaguers were doing duty in the military.

And it was the first time somebody over 38 started for the Reds since the iconic , at age 38, pitched his last game for the Reds in September of 1966 against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

DIAZ WAS THE SECOND batter Arroyo faced in the first inning and he blasted a hanging over the left field wall. Arroyo then walked Matt Adams and Yadier Molina blooped a run-scoring double that plopped on the right field line for a 2-0 St. Louis lead.

Arroyo gave up a walk and an infield hit in the second, but no runs, and pitched a 1-2-3 third.

But all four tires went flat in the fourth. He gave up a double to Jedd Gyrko but had two outs and pitcher Micheal Wacha at the plate, owner of a .192 career batting average.

No matter, Wacha rolled a run-scoring single up the middle. Arroyo walked Dexter Fowler and Diaz repeated his first-inning swing, drilling a three-run homer to left off another hanging curveball to make it 6-1.

STEPHENSON WALKED THE first two Cardinals he faced in the fifth and balked the runners to third and second. But he escaped damage with a , a ground ball, an intentional walk to fill the bases and a strikeout of Wacha on a 3-and-2 pitch.

But he didn’t get out of the sixth, due to more wildness.

Fowler walked, Diaz singled for his third straight hit. Matt Carpenter walked on four pitches to fill the bases.

Pitching Mack Jenkins visited the mound for a stern lecture. Whatever he said fell on deaf ears. Stephenson walked Jose Martinez on four pitches to force in a run.

Stephenson righted himself briefly by striking out Yadier Molina and Randal Grichuk. But Gyrko ripped a two-run single to right to make it 9-1 and Stephenson’s forgettable day was done.

MANAGER BRYAN PRICE DECIDED to give some of his bench players a start Saturday, benching Billy Hamilton, Jose Peraza and Scott Schebler. In their places were Arismendy Alcantara, Scooter Gennett and Patrick Kivlehan.

It didn’t work.

Alcantara was 0 for 4 with three . Gennett was 0 for 4 with a strikeout. Kivlehan was 0 for 4 with two strikeouts.

The Reds scored a run in the top of the fourth on doubles by Joey Votto and Eugenio Suarez.

They scored two in the eighth when Tucker Barnhart singled and Schebler, who entered the game as part of a double switch, homered for the second time this season.

Eugenio Suarez homered with two outs in the ninth for the final run and a 10-4 scored. And 10-4 it was — as in, over-and-out.

In the first four games, Reds pitchers gave up 10 walks. On Saturday, they gave up 12, nine by the bullpen, six by Stephenson.

Cincinnati Reds first try at hybrid bullpen approach a success Marcus Hartman April 7, 2017

Cincinnati Reds manager Bryan Price talked about using his bullpen in a unique (or perhaps throwback) fashion in 2017, but he didn’t really try it until game four of the season.

So far, so good.

In relief of rookie Amir Garrett, Michael Lorenzen pitched a perfect seventh inning in St. Louis on Friday night before giving way to Raisel Iglesias.

The live-armed Cuban pitched a perfect eighth inning, though he was extended by Matt Adams before getting the Cards slugger to swing and miss at a third strike.

Price stuck with Iglesias in the ninth, and he made his manager look smart.

After issuing a two-out walk to Matt Carpenter, Iglesias struck out Stephen Piscotty to end it and nail down his second of the season.

Iglesias threw 32 pitches, so he may not be available Saturday, but Price still has Drew Storen and Tony Cingrani loaded up and ready to go while Lorenzen threw only 10 pitches.

Garrett picked up the win in his major-league debut while the Reds won their third in a row.

TRANSACTIONS

04/09/17 placed C Gary Sanchez on the 10-day disabled list. Strained right biceps.

04/08/17 transferred RHP Bo Schultz from the 10-day disabled list to the 60-day disabled list. Torn right ulnar collateral ligament. Washington Nationals selected the contract of RHP Jeremy Guthrie from Auburn Doubledays. signed free agent LF Ryan Raburn to a minor league contract. Chicago White Sox signed free agent RHP Mike Pelfrey to a minor league contract. New York Mets designated 3B Ty Kelly for assignment. Washington Nationals optioned CF Michael Taylor to Syracuse Chiefs. activated LHP Kyle Ryan. Cincinnati Reds optioned RHP Barrett Astin to Louisville Bats. Cincinnati Reds selected the contract of RHP Bronson Arroyo from Louisville Bats. Toronto Blue Jays selected the contract of RHP Casey Lawrence from Buffalo Bisons. Toronto Blue Jays optioned RHP Dominic Leone to Buffalo Bisons. New York Mets selected the contract of RHP Paul Sewald from Las Vegas 51s.