The Arizona Diamondbacks scored two runs in the first inning of last night's 6-2 loss to the Cincinnati Reds in Phoenix last night, and that's about all they did for the rest of the game.
Chris Young led off in the first with a single for the D-Backs. The next batter, Kelly Johnson, put one into the seats off Reds' pitcher Bronson Arroyo to give the Snakes an early 2-0 lead.
Arroyo recovered from the blast that put the Reds in the hole early,
giving up only four hits in the next 6 innings. The Reds' bats got hot,
too.
After tying the game in the sixth, the Reds were off to the races -- much thanks to the D-Backs' atrocious bullpen.
Reds shortstop Paul Janish went yard on D-Backs starter Dan Hudson in
the seventh to give Cincinnati a 3-2 lead, and that was all she wrote
for Hudson.
Hudson didn't pitch a horrible game -- he had a career-high 10 strikeouts but gave up nine hits and three earned runs.
Three runs isn't a massive deficit and had the Snakes' bats produced
anything after the first inning, the game was the D-Backs to win.
That is, if they didn't have the worst bullpen in the entire National League.
The D-Backs trailed by one in the seventh but the bullpen extended that
deficit by three after a series of walks, hits, and just flat-out
sucking.
The team used three relievers in two innings in last night's game, none
of whom turned any heads -- more, inspire cringes from the nearly 20,000
fans on hand at Chase Field.
Jordan Norberto, the first of the Snake's three relievers, was good for a
walk and a hit in .2 innings played. Then it was Blaine Boyer's shot at
shitiness and he didn't disappoint.
Boyer gave up two runs, one of which was earned, in .1 innings pitched.
Boyer didn't give up a hit, though. But a walk, an error, and the Reds
bats made certain he would not be taking the mound in the ninth. That
honor went to D.J. Carrasco.
Now trailing 5-2, Carrasco gave up a hit, a walk, and a run to put the nail in the D-Backs coffin.
On Sunday, Nick Piecoro penned an article for the Arizona Republic discussing how much the D-Backs bullpen had improved over the past month.
Too, soon, Nick.
The D-Backs have a shot at redemption when they play the Reds again
tonight. First pitch: 6:40 p.m. TV: Fox Sports Arizona. Radio: KTAR 620
AM.
