WASHINGTON, D.C. – Things were already bad enough for the Cincinnati Reds on Wednesday.
Jeff Hoffman, their starting pitcher, had a 33-pitch first inning before he left in the following inning because of a sore shoulder. There was a rain delay that lasted more than two-and-a-half hours as thunderstorms passed through Nationals Park.
Now, they’ll have to navigate a difficult schedule because Wednesday’s game was suspended in the middle of the fourth inning. The Reds were trailing 3-0 to the Washington Nationals.
• The Reds will resume their suspended game at 2:05 p.m. Thursday. They will complete the nine-inning game.
• The series finale between the Reds and Nationals will become a seven-inning game because it's a split doubleheader, beginning at 7:05 p.m. The two teams will be granted a 27th player, according to Nationals manager Dave Martinez.
• After the split doubleheader Thursday, the Reds will travel to Chicago to play the Cubs at 2:20 p.m. Friday.
So, there’s the new challenge: Two-and-a-half games in 24 hours.
Hoffman never looked comfortable Wednesday. He walked five of the 11 batters he faced and allowed two singles while recording only four outs.
With two runners on base and two outs in the bottom of the first inning, Hoffman allowed three straight batters to reach base. Starlin Castro hit an RBI single to left field. Josh Harrison drew a walk to load the bases and then Hoffman issued a bases-loaded walk to Alex Avila.
During the second inning, Hoffman issued a four-pitch walk to Trea Turner and a five-pitch walk to Juan Soto when he motioned toward the dugout for a trainer. Reds manager David Bell and head trainer Steve Baumann met Hoffman on the mound, but it was a brief chat.
Hoffman headed toward the clubhouse and the Reds announced he left the game with right shoulder soreness. He threw 46 pitches, 20 strikes.
The Reds are already down a pitcher in their starting rotation with Wade Miley on the 10-day injured list (left foot). Vladimir Gutierrez will be called up for his Major League debut when he starts Friday’s game in Chicago, and he could fill in for Hoffman if his sore shoulder forces him to miss a start.
Reds reliever Brad Brach stranded the two runners he inherited in the second inning, but he gave up an RBI single to opposing pitcher Joe Ross in the third inning.
The Reds couldn’t capitalize on their opportunities against Ross, who entered Wednesday with a 5.72 ERA. Two runners were stranded in the first inning. Kyle Farmer and Jonathan India hit back-to-back singles with one out in the second inning, but Hoffman couldn’t advance the runners on an attempted sacrifice bunt and the threat ended with a groundout.
Ross retired the final eight batters he faced before the game was suspended as a thunderstorm quickly moved through the area.
There was heavy rain and lightning for about the next hour. One streaker decided to take advantage of the delay by sliding onto the tarp, then crawling into the tarp tube. Security stood at both ends of the tube and ushered him off the field.
About two hours into the delay, as the rain came to a stop, a few players still in uniform stood on the dugout steps to check on the field’s condition. The ballpark’s video board read: "We continue to see isolated scattered lightning behind the departing line of storms. We remain in a delay until storms pass."
The newest storm for the Reds will be their next 24 hours.
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