With ace Luis Castillo on the mound, the Cincinnati Reds had their best eight defenders on the active roster on the field with him.
In the series finale against the Nationals on Sunday at Great American Ball Park, the Reds had all of their top defenders playing their natural positions. But in the fourth inning that featured two errors and two more defensive mistakes, the Reds’ defense cost the team the game.
The Nationals beat the Reds, 5-4, and took the series victory in front of a crowd of 16,380. The game got away from the Reds because of their defense.
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“I was focused on getting ground balls in that (fourth) inning,” Castillo said via interpreter Jorge Merlos “Whatever happened with the results, I was battling as hard as I could and kept battling through the game.”
Entering the fourth inning, the Reds had a 3-2 lead. Cincinnati jumped ahead early on back-to-back RBI doubles by Joey Votto and Tyler Stephenson. Castillo allowed two runs himself in the first, but he got back to form after that and relied on his changeup and his sinker to limit any more damage.
Then in the fourth inning, Castillo didn’t allow an earned run. The Reds’ 3-2 lead still turned into a 4-3 deficit.
When the Reds lost Nick Castellanos, Jesse Winker and Eugenio Suárez in the offseason, the coaching staff hoped that an improved defense could help make up for some of the difference. And with injuries to position players, the Reds have been looking for most of their replacement players to make some of their biggest contributions on defense.
Against the Nationals on Sunday, a few of the Reds’ most reliable defenders made the mistakes that turned the game.
It started on a routine ground ball to Reds shortstop Kyle Farmer. He made a high throw to first base and was charged with an error.
Then on a ground ball to third base, Brandon Drury got the force out at second. But Reds second baseman Matt Reynolds dropped the exchange and missed out on a double play.
”That’s a play I should make 100% of the time,” Reynolds said. “It cost us runs. I can’t do that.”
Later in the inning, Nationals shortstop Luis Garcia hit a ground ball to Reds right fielder Aristides Aquino, who couldn’t field it cleanly and allowed a runner to go from first to third. Then it got worse when the Reds couldn’t turn a potential double play, allowing another run to score.
The Reds’ defense entered the game ranking 24th in MLB in outs above average, but most of the Reds miscues hadn’t been by their best defenders. Due to injuries, the Reds have had to play a few players out of position and put bad defenders at more important defensive positions.
The Reds didn’t have one of those defensive lineups on Sunday, but the results were still subpar.
”We’re not going to dwell on that inning,” Reds manager David Bell said. “Guys take a lot of pride in making every play. It’s not going to (always) happen.”
Castillo continued his solid month, allowing just three earned runs and six hits in 6 ⅓ innings. He wasn’t quite at the same level he was at in his most recent start, when he pitched six shutout innings in Boston. While Castillo’s fastball command wasn’t as consistent, he struck out six batters and relied on his changeup to limit any big innings after the first.
Just like Castillo, Nationals starter Patrick Corbin rebounded from a first inning where he gave up the lead. Corbin entered the game with a 1-8 record and a 6.96 ERA. In the first inning, Corbin allowed five hits, three runs and kept locating pitches over the middle of the plate.
After the first inning, Corbin didn’t allow another run, and he got the win as he threw six innings.
The Reds lost their third straight game to the Nationals, and each loss was a result of very different circumstances. On Friday, Reds starting pitcher Mike Minor made a poor debut with the team. On Saturday, the Reds had a quintessential bullpen implosion. And Sunday, the Reds defense set the team back and the offense stranded the tying run on base in both the eighth and the ninth innings.
“We’ve got to beat teams like that if we want to be where we know we can be,” said Reds center fielder Nick Senzel, who was picked off at first base to end the game. “Obviously it’s disappointing.”
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