Cincinnati Reds Press Clippings June 29, 2017 THIS DAY IN REDS HISTORY

Transcription

1 Cincinnati Reds Press Clippings June 29, 2017 THIS DAY IN REDS HISTORY 1916-The Reds and Cubs play a nine-inning game with just one baseball. Today, teams can use up to 120 baseballs per game MLB.COM Great Scott! Schebler robs Crew of HR By Mark Sheldon / MLB.com 12:58 AM ET + 8 COMMENTS CINCINNATI -- As soon as the Reds secured a 4-3 victory over the Brewers on Wednesday night, right fielder Scott Schebler went to the clubhouse and grabbed his phone. Schebler wanted to see exactly how he pulled off his club's defensive play of the season. With runners on the corners and one out in the second inning, Stephen Vogt lifted a Luis Castillo pitch and drove it near the rightfield corner. Just as the ball cleared the fence, Schebler made a spectacular catch over the wall to rob Vogt of a three-run homer. It instead went as a sacrifice fly that scored Travis Shaw. "I thought it was gone off the bat," Schebler said. "It just kind of worked out perfectly. I got my cleats in good. You have to hit your stride perfectly. There are so many things that have to go right. The ball has to be in a perfect position. It's a lot of luck. It's cool that it happened for sure. It kind of saved the game." Schebler found himself batting in the bottom of the second inning and had a little chat with Vogt, Milwaukee's catcher. "So I went up to the plate and I'm like, 'Dude, I'm sorry,'" Schebler said. "'I know you're an awesome guy. I have to, obviously, but I feel bad.'" Vogt, who was just acquired by the Brewers from Oakland this week, felt worse. "That's one of the best catches I've seen. A little frustrating, but tip your cap," he said. Reds manager Bryan Price likes to take notes on his lineup card about things that caught his eye in games. On Wednesday, Price's card was loaded with defensive masterpieces in addition to Schebler's. One batter before Schebler's great play, Keon Broxton lifted a fly ball to short right-center field. Schebler lost the ball in the sun, but center fielder Billy Hamilton sprinted over and made a nice sliding catch. In the sixth inning with a runner on first base, left fielder Adam Duvall made a quick retrieval of Hernan Perez's drive off the wall and fired a perfect strike to Scooter Gennett to nail him at second base. "It bounced high enough to go off the padding, and I was able to get rid of it pretty quickly," Duvall said. "I thought I had a chance of at least keeping him at first. He ended up running and ran right into a tag. That was nice." Schebler also made a good play on Vogt's lineout to end the inning. Two more plays came in the seventh. Shortstop Jose Peraza made a slick sliding stop and throw on a Domingo Santana grounder to his right. Two batters later, third baseman Eugenio Suarez knocked down a laser from Eric Sogard, recovered the ball and threw him out at first base. The Reds entered the game ranked fourth-best in the Major Leagues in fielding percentage. "It's been fantastic, it really has," Price said. "Not everyone is afforded a defense like we have. This defense may not be intact for five to 10 years, you know? There could be moving parts. We have no idea what the future may hold. However, while you have it, you want to exploit it as much as you can." Fittingly, the game ended with a wild defensive play. As Raisel Iglesias struck out Perez, the Brewers had a play on. Orlando Arcia broke to steal second base and drew a throw from catcher Tucker Barnhart. Arcia stopped halfway and Gennett applied the tag after a brief rundown before Jonathan Villar could score from third base.

2 Barnhart admitted he was screened by the hitter and didn't even see Villar. "Luckily -- and I say that with a lot of emphasis -- it worked out for us," Barnhart said. "We're always going to play defense. I think the term 'defense travels' really makes sense with this team." Mark Sheldon has covered the Reds for MLB.com since 2006, and previously covered the Twins from Follow him on and Facebook and listen to his podcast. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs. Duvall's HR helps Reds slip past Brewers By Adam McCalvy and Jeremy Vernon / MLB.com 12:32 AM ET COMMENTS CINCINNATI -- Billy Hamilton has often changed a game with his speed and once again, the Reds' center fielder created a scoring chance on his own. In the Reds' 4-3 victory over the Brewers on Wednesday, Hamilton drew a leadoff walk in the bottom of the eighth, stole two bases and scored the go-ahead run on Adam Duvall's infield single. Travis Shaw lined a two-out solo homer off Reds' reliever Tony Cingrani to tie the game at 3 in the top of the eighth before Hamilton helped manufacture the game-winner. He worked a leadoff walk from Brewers closer Corey Knebel, pitching out of his usual role because he needed the work, then swiped second base with no outs and third base with one out to set up the winning run. "Knebel's really good," said Reds manager Bryan Price. "I voted for him for the All-Star team. He's just having a huge year and he's really good. And he threw a breaking ball there and [Duvall] was able to stay on it enough to put it in play." Brewers manager Craig Counsell, meanwhile, lamented the leadoff walk. "That's the at-bat of the inning," Counsell said. "It wasn't so much the stolen base, it was the walk that got us in trouble." The Brewers were in trouble from the start, forced to turn to reliever Paolo Espino after starter Chase Anderson sustained a left oblique injury and exited the game following a second-inning at-bat. Duvall was the first batter Espino faced, and the Reds' left fielder quickly hit a solo home run to make it a 1-1 game. Milwaukee and Cincinnati traded homers in the third inning. First, Ryan Braun hit a solo home run off Reds starter Luis Castillo -- his first since April 28 and his 23rd at Great American Ball Park, tying Lance Berkman for most by a visiting player -- to regain the lead. Then, Reds second baseman Scooter Gennett fired back in the bottom of the frame with a two-run homer that gave Cincinnati a 3-2 advantage. In his second Major League start, Castillo tossed 5 2/3 innings of two-run ball, striking out nine and walking three. His 107th and final pitch clocked in at 99 mph and struck out Keon Broxton, who stepped to the plate with a runner on third and one out in the top of the sixth. "I feel comfortable playing at home now, so it's a different way to pitch," Castillo said via translator Julio Marillo. "Today, I was focused on trying to hit the spots, and I had a really good feel for my breaking-ball pitches, so today was a great way for me." Defense backed up Castillo multiple times. But the play of the night belonged to Reds right fielder Scott Schebler, who climbed the wall in the corner to take a three-run homer away from Brewers catcher Stephen Vogt. Shaw was able to tag up from third, giving Vogt a sacrifice fly and Milwaukee a 1-0 lead. "Day in, day out, we play defense," Schebler said. "We take pride in it. Shoot, in a game like this where it's a one-run game, that's so important. So important. Any time you can pick up your pitchers, it gives them some extra confidence. It comes down to taking pride in it and we do. That's something we really, really work hard on and we do take pride." MOMENTS THAT MATTERED Schebler's world-class catch: Right after Hamilton bailed him out on a fly ball that got away from him, Schebler made perhaps the play of the season in the top of the second. With runners on the corners and one out, Vogt lifted a ball high to the corner, where Schebler sprinted to the fence, climbed up the wall and made the catch to save what would have been a three-run homer. "There was nobody that took it in the shorts worse than Vogt did today with the way he swung the bat," Price said. "He hit the ball over the fence that Schebler robbed and two missiles that Schebler ran down. It was some incredible defense, and I certainly didn't

3 anticipate Schebler going over the wall, scaling the wall and making the play. Not because he can't do it but it's just, you can never anticipate those plays being made." Said Vogt: "That's one of the best catches I've seen. A little frustrating, but tip your cap." Shaw's game-tying blast: Trailing, 3-2, in the top of the eighth, Shaw stepped to the plate with two outs and smashed the first pitch he saw from Cingrani for a solo home run to center field, Shaw's third homer in as many days. It had an exit velocity of 107 mph, a launch angle of 19 degrees and traveled 412 feet. Game-ending double play: The Brewers had a chance to tie the game in the bottom of the ninth, as they put runners on the corners with one out against Reds closer Raisel Iglesias, but the scoring threat soon ended as quickly as it came together. Jesus Aguilar struck out on a 97-mph fastball, and Tucker Barnhart quickly fired to second to stop Orlando Arcia from stealing. Gennett then tagged the Brewers' shortstop before Jonathan Villar crossed the plate to end the game. "The play is that Orlando stops," said Counsell, who confirmed the play was called from the bench. "It was going to work, and Orlando just didn't stop in time, and they got a tag." QUOTABLE "It could be a month, it could be two months. Hopefully nothing longer than that. Obviously, I hate sitting out. I don't want to be on the DL, I want to pitch. I'm throwing the ball well lately." -- Anderson, on leaving with an injury "I went to the mound and took out Castillo. There were a bunch of infielders out there. Everyone was out there. To a man, they were going, 'Wow, this kid is really a talented kid.' It's nice to have your infielders really excited to have a starter that is taking the mound and they really like being behind this guy." -- Price, on his rookie starter. SOUND SMART WITH YOUR FRIENDS Knebel took the loss, but he did tie a 40-year-old Major League record. With at least one strikeout in 39 straight games, he matched Bruce Suter's all-time mark for relievers. Suter set the record with the Cubs in DON'T CALL ME AGAIN Technicians had restored service to the phones in the visitors' dugout at Great American Ball Park by Wednesday afternoon after the lines to the bullpen and to the Brewers' replay monitors in the clubhouse were down Tuesday night. The Reds provided the Brewers with walkie talkies to restore communication. A discussion of the latter led Counsell to a great story. "We've had strangers call the dugout phone before," Counsell said. He was serious. "Last year, there was a call to the dugout phone at home," Counsell said. "They criticized some decision, of course. Or secondguessed, I should say. It happened once, so we had to change the number." WHAT'S NEXT Brewers: The Brewers will try to get back to.500 in Jimmy Nelson starts when the right-hander takes the mound in Thursday's 6:10 p.m. CT series finale. They are 7-8 in Nelson's starts so far, including 5-5 over his last 10, with Nelson posting a 2.64 ERA. He beat Cincinnati at Great American Ball Park on April 13 with seven quality innings. Reds: Homer Bailey will look to put his last outing behind him as he starts for the Reds in Thursday's 7:10 p.m. ET series finale. Making his season debut Saturday after spending the first part of the season on the disabled list while recovering from elbow surgery, he gave up eight runs over 1 2/3 innings in Cincinnati's 18-3 loss to the Nationals. Watch every out-of-market regular-season game live on MLB.TV. Adam McCalvy has covered the Brewers for MLB.com since Follow him on like him on Facebook and listen to his podcast. Jeremy Vernon is a reporter for MLB.com based in Cincinnati.

4 This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs. CINCINNATI ENQUIRER Cincinnati Reds v. Milwaukee Brewers ends with a stunning defensive play C. Trent Rosecrans, crosecrans@enquirer.com Published 11:51 p.m. ET June 28, 2017 Updated 8 minutes ago Bryan Price writes down game-changing plays on his scorecard during every game. He nearly ran out of space on Wednesday. Nearly every player on the field had a huge defensive play, as the Reds beat the Brewers 4-3 at Great American Ball Park on Wednesday. In a game packed with great plays, it was only fitting that it ended on a stunning defensive play. With runners on the corners and one out, Raisel Iglesias struck out pinch-hitter Jesus Aguilar and catcher Tucker Barnhart threw Orlando Arcia out trying to steal to end the game. The play that was completed when second baseman Scooter Gennett ran Arcia down to tag him before Jonathan Villar crossed home plate was risky. Had Arcia stopped halfway instead of trying to steal, the speedy Villar had a chance to score. That ran through Barnhart s mind right after he let go of the ball. I really just came up throwing, Barnhart said afterwards. I ll be honest with you, it didn t really register to me that they were going to run a play where he was going to stop. I think that s what they were trying to do, and they just kept running. Luckily and I say that with a lot of emphasis it worked out for us. If Barnhart and Gennett combined for the most dramatic play of the night, the most spectacular definitely belonged to right fielder Scott Schebler. With one out in the second, Brewers catcher Stephen Vogt hit a ball toward the Brewers bullpen in right field that everyone who was asked from Price, to Schebler, to Barnhart, to pitcher Luis Castillo and to Vogt himself thought was definitely a home run. Vogt, in his second game with the Brewers, hit the ball far enough to leave the playing field, but not far enough to escape Schebler. Schebler made the catch in part because he didn t make the catch on the ball hit before Vogt s. With two on in the second, Keon Broxton hit a popup that Schebler was sure was going into center field. He gave chase to back up Billy Hamilton, but then he noticed Hamilton was still running hard toward right. The wind had taken the ball back to right field and Hamilton was able to chase it down. A heads-up Travis Shaw tagged up on the play, but Schebler was relieved Hamilton saved him. Vogt was the next batter and Schebler didn t give up on Vogt s ball because he d just see the crazy things the wind could do. So he kept running and as he got to the wall, he leapt. Schebler, who sometimes wears metal spikes and sometimes wears molded cleats, was wearing the molded cleats on Wednesday. Those cleats gave him a better foothold on the chainlink fence in front of the bullpen, while metal spikes are better for the padded wall. His right foot managed to get in the chainlink and with his back to the wall, he reached both hands over the wall and made a basket catch over the wall, robbing Vogt of his first homer with the Brewers. I didn t have enough time to get my arm on the fence. It was one of those things where it was jump and go, he said. It worked out perfect. I just timed it perfect. I actually went and watched it on my phone after. It s one of those things that it happened so fast, you don t realize how exactly it happened. It was pretty cool though. Schebler said he d already watched the play five or six times, something he s never done with any home run he s hit. He also said he sheepishly apologized to Vogt when he came to the plate in the fourth inning. So I went up to the plate and I m like dude, I m sorry? I know you re an awesome guy. It gets around the league that he s a really good guy, Schebler said. I have to, obviously, but I feel bad. I was like, he s going to pitch my so tough today. He s going to pitch me like there s a guy in scoring position every time I go up there. Left fielder Adam Duvall helped shut down a rally in the sixth, throwing out Hernan Perez trying to turn a single into a double. Perez s ball bounced once and hit off the top of the wall in left. Duvall barehanded the catch and threw on the fly from the left-field corner to get Perez out easily for the first out of the inning. With a runner on third, starter Luis Castillo struck out the next batter, before Wandy Peralta came in to get Vogt to line out on a ball that Schebler made a nice play on for the final out of the inning. Shortstop Jose Peraza and third baseman Eugenio Suarez then made two nice plays Peraza a sliding stop and strong throw, while Suarez knocked a liner down and recover to make the throw to finish off the seventh inning.

5 I think the term defense travels really makes sense with this team, Barnhart said. We ve got a lot of really, really good defenders all over the field, and a lot of defenders that come off the bench and play different roles. When Devin s in there, he s a really good defender. When I m in there, we both are really good defenders. All over the field we have a lot of guys that play very, very good quality defense, and something our pitchers can really rely on. Cincinnati Reds recap: Team rebounds after blowing lead to beat Milwaukee Brewers Zach Buchanan, zbuchanan@enquirer.com Published 10:13 p.m. ET June 28, 2017 Updated 11 hours ago The Cincinnati Reds continued to hit home runs, but earned the winning run of their 4-3 win over the Milwaukee Brewers on Wednesday at Great American Ball Park with speed instead of power. Here are the main storylines. Box score: Reds 4, Brewers 3 Billy Hamilton s speed helped the Reds take a late lead. The game was tied 3-3 entering the bottom of the eighth after left-hander Tony Cingrani surrendered a solo homer in the top of the inning. But then Hamilton drew a leadoff walk and wreaked havoc on Brewers reliever Corey Knebel. Knebel threw over to first several times during the next at-bat, but Hamilton still swiped second with ease. After a Scooter Gennett strikeout and an intentional walk to Joey Votto, Hamilton took third without a throw. They were his 32nd and 33rd steals of the year, but just his fourth and fifth of the month. Hamilton then scored on an infield hit to third by Adam Duvall, and likely would have scored even if third baseman Travis Shaw had been able to cleanly field the ball. Raisel Iglesias, Tucker Barnhart end the game. Iglesias gave up two hits in the ninth while trying to protect a one-run lead, giving him runners on the corners with one out. Then he ended the game in a matter of a second. Iglesias struck out pinch-hitter Jesus Aguilar, and Barnhart fired down to second to nab a stealing Orlando Arcia, who unsuccessfully tried to evade the tag. The final out was recorded just before the runner at third crossed the plate. Luis Castillo racked up strikeouts. Castillo earned positive reviews from his first start last Friday, but was even more locked in Wednesday against the Brewers. He racked up nine strikeouts, holding Milwaukee to just two runs in 5 ⅔ innings. The Brewers tagged him for a run in the second and the third, the latter coming on a solo homer by Ryan Braun. He had runners in scoring position twice after that, but stranded them both. His final pitch was a 99 mph fastball that Keon Broxton swung past, and Reds manager Bryan Price brought in a reliever for the final out of the inning. Castillo threw 107 pitches, and had three walks mixed in with his strikeouts. He allowed five hits. The Reds outfield defense came up huge. Castillo s day would have been a lot harder if not for the Reds outfield. Each of outfielder had a highlight-worthy defensive contribution. The first was a mistake that wasn t. With two on, Broxton flied to right field for what should have been a routine catch for Scott Schebler. But Schebler could find the ball in the air, and center fielder Hamilton had to rush over from center to make a diving catch. Because Hamilton went to the ground, a runner advanced to third. Schebler made up for it on the next play, at least as much as he could. Stephen Vogt rocketed a ball into far right field, but Schebler made a leaping grab at the wall to rob a home run and record the second out of the inning. Still, the runner on third scored on the sacrifice fly to give the Brewers a 1-0 lead. The next time the defense picked up Castillo was in the sixth, when the Reds held a 3-2 advantage. With one on and no outs, Hernan Perez smashed a ball into the left field corner and tried to reach second. But Adam Duvall delivered a bullet to second, and Perez was out by several feet, keeping the go-ahead run out of scoring position. Scooter Gennett s home run breakout continued. Last season with the Brewers, infielder Scooter Gennett had a career-best 14 home runs in 542 plate appearance. After clubbing a go-ahead two-run homer in the third, the Reds waiver claim now has 12 in 194 trips to the plate. Entering the season, his home run rate was 2.1 percent. This year, it s 6.1 percent, which would be the 19th-best mark in the majors if he had enough plate appearances to qualify for the batting title.

6 Cincinnati Reds' Kevin Shackelford goes from college catcher to MLB reliever Zach Buchanan, Published 8:20 p.m. ET June 28, 2017 Updated 11 hours ago Kevin Shackelford doesn t look much like a catcher. At 6-foot-5 and 210 pounds, he s built more like a wide receiver than a fullback. But for most of the 28-year-old s life, he thought his future was behind the plate. On Tuesday, Shackelford took the most important step in a journey he d never anticipated beginning. The Cincinnati Reds called him up to the big leagues as a right-handed pitcher. He's not here as a charity case, Reds manager Bryan Price said. He's here as a guy we think can pitch up at this level. Shackelford attended Marshall University, and was recruited as a catcher. Despite his height, he could get low in his crouch and was adept at blocking balls and receiving. He earned positive reviews from his pitchers, one of whom was former Reds right-hander Dan Straily. But he couldn t hit much. His freshman year, he hit just.095. He played much more regularly as a sophomore, but hit only.226. The fall of his junior year, he suffered a knee injury that required surgery. The team also had other catchers to compete with, so Shackelford was asked to give it a go on the mound. Dude, I had no idea what I was doing, Shackelford said. He d pitched in high school, but never with any regularity. His services behind the plate were too valuable to his prep team. But his first time on the mound, he pumped fastballs in the mid-90s. He was raw. He pitched only 18 innings as a junior and posted a 7.50 ERA. But he could sure light up a radar gun. His velocity registered with scouts, and the Milwaukee Brewers drafted him in the 21st round in As he made his way in the lower minors for the next several years, he worked to learn the intricacies of pitching. Each year, he lowered his ERA. Then in 2013, he posted a 3.08 mark out of the bullpen between High- and Double-A. His numbers weren t as sharp in 2014, and for the first time he was forced to learn how to pitch through nagging injuries. That September, he was shipped to the Reds to complete the Jonathan Broxton trade. A nerve issue with his elbow limited him in his first full season in the Cincinnati organization, but he s been a bullpen force since. Last year, he had a 2.03 ERA between Double- and Triple-A. This year, he s posted a 1.53 ERA while striking out 11.7 per nine innings, by far a career best. It s one of those kind of running jokes where every position player thinks they can pitch, said Straily, who was reached by phone. As it turns out, Kevin actually could. Shackelford joins a long list of young relievers who have buoyed the Reds bullpen this season. Left-hander Wandy Peralta has been a revelation and worked himself into leverage roles, and right-hander Austin Brice was performing at a high level before having rough outings his last few times on the mound. Ariel Hernandez has adapted well in his few big-league opportunities. Beyond them are Triple-A hopefuls like Jimmy Herget and Alejandro Chacin, giving the Reds much more bullpen depth than they could have imagined a year ago. He does add to that long list of guys, or longer list of guys, that are true prospect pitchers that are coming up to help us out, Price said, as opposed to trying to make due with what we have in the system that may not of yet quite been ready. Reds notes: Short trip to minors for Austin Brice C. Trent Rosecrans, crosecrans@enquirer.com 6:23 p.m. ET June 28, 2017 Right-hander Austin Brice was optioned to Triple-A Louisville but never left Cincinnati. Brice was optioned to the minors on Tuesday to make room for right-hander Kevin Shackelford, who was called up from Louisville. The Reds put left-hander Brandon Finnegan on the disabled list on Wednesday and recalled Brice. Brice threw 51 pitches in two innings against the Cardinals on Monday, so he wasn t available on Tuesday. The move allowed the Reds to have an extra reliever for Tuesday s game. With the Bats in Norfolk, Va., he didn t even bother reporting for what was mostly a paper move. Brice wasn t allowed to be in the Reds clubhouse on Tuesday, but he was back on Wednesday.

7 Brice, 25, has appeared in 17 games for the Reds this season and has a 5.47 ERA. He s walked six batters in 26 ⅔ innings and struck out 19. Austin's given us some really good innings. He hasn't been as sharp lately, but he's a guy that I see as a guy that can come in and get immediate ground balls, Reds manager Bryan Price said. Guys with runners on base, he throws the ball over the plate. He's got a nice breaking pitch. And he's going to gain experience through the process. Saturday s starter to be announced Price said the team has made a decision on Saturday s starter, but wasn t ready to announce it yet, waiting until that pitcher was told. It won t be recently demoted Amir Garrett, who pitched for Louisville on Tuesday because he wouldn t have enough rest and he wouldn t have spent the requisite 10 days in the minors after being optioned. Robert Stephenson pitched Wednesday in Triple-A. Cody Reed started Monday, but pitched just two innings before being ejected and walked four batters in those two innings. Jackson Stephens and Sal Romano are both on the 40-man roster and could make that start. The team would have to make a 40-man move to get right-hander Tyler Mahle on the roster and start him. Cincinnati Reds' Joey Votto: 'The donkey has already been spoken for' C. Trent Rosecrans, crosecrans@enquirer.com Published 5:24 p.m. ET June 28, 2017 Updated 13 hours ago Joey Votto bought his donkey costume on Amazon, but he had to procure the actual donkey he promised Zack Cozart elsewhere. The Reds four-time All-Star first baseman has promised his teammate a donkey if Cozart makes the All-Star team. In the latest All- Star voting, released Monday, Cozart had a commanding lead among National League shortstops. Voting on MLB.com ends Thursday night at 11:59 p.m. and the teams are announced on Sunday. I've got a donkey in the works, Votto said before Wednesday s game against the Brewers. I m anticipating a piece of news on Sunday that we'll get Zack in the All-Star Game. But the donkey has already been spoken for. Votto bought a donkey costume and brought it to the clubhouse before Wednesday s game in preparation for Cozart s appearance on MLB Network s Intentional Talk. Votto suggested Cozart wear it for the interview, but the Reds shortstop declined. Votto, who once wore a mountie costume on the same show, instead wore the donkey costume for the interview, showing up beside Cozart, who wore a T-shirt with the phrase Life is better with a donkey. Cozart has an affinity for donkeys and has expressed this in the past. This season Votto promised him one if he made the All-Star team, even over Cozart s objections and more importantly, over the objections of Cozart s wife Chelsea. However, now that it s looking more and more likely that Cozart will make the team and Votto is dead-set on living up to his word, Chelsea Cozart has been more open to what seems like an inevitability. Chels, I think, is OK with it now, Cozart said on Wednesday. She said hey, I want you to be an All-Star. I ve had a lot of offers to take care of it in Cincinnati. I don t have a spot. That s going to happen. It s a great excuse for me to wiggle my way into getting some land. I ve been trying to talk the wife into that for a while. The name, he noted, is still up in the air. He said he won't name it after Votto, who has suggested a contest by the fans to name the donkey. Cozart is currently on the disabled list with a hamstring and was eligible to be activated on Wednesday, but was not. He could be activated as soon as Thursday, he said. Cozart ran the bases before Wednesday s game and felt good. (The difference is) night and day, Cozart said. I could move around on defense, feel great. Hitting was never an issue. The gear I was in today, I haven t been in that gear in a long time."

8 WCPO - Channel 9 Scooter Gennett's 2-run homer sends Reds over Brewers 4-3 Joe Kay Associated Press 10:28 PM, Jun 28, :29 PM, Jun 28, 2017 CINCINNATI (AP) Scooter Gennett hit a two-run homer on Wednesday night against the club that decided he no longer fit its rebuilding plans, and Billy Hamilton scored the tiebreaking run in the eighth inning, rallying the Cincinnati Reds to a 4-3 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers. The Brewers lost starter Chase Anderson to a strained oblique. Anderson hurt his left side while striking out in the top of the second inning, a notable setback to the NL Central leaders. He s second on the club with six wins. After Travis Shaw tied it 3-3 in the top of the eighth with a solo homer off Drew Storen (2-2), Hamilton led off the bottom of the inning with a walk and two steals off Corey Knebel (0-1). Hamilton scored on Adam Duvall s infield single. The game ended on an unusual play. With runners at first and third, Raisel Iglesias fanned Jesus Aguilar for the second out, and Stephen Vogt was caught trying to take second before Jonathan Villar could make it home from third on the back end of the attempted double steal. Iglesias got his 14th save in 15 chances. Gennett connected off Paolo Espino. Gennett, who was waived by the Brewers late in spring training, has 12 homers this season, two shy of his career high set last year. Duvall also connected for the Reds, who have taken the first two games in the series. Luis Castillo fanned nine and gave up two runs in 5 2/3 innings of his second major league start, including Ryan Braun s homer. Braun was activated for the start of the series after missing 31 games with a strained left calf. His solo shot gave him 23 homers at Great American Ball Park, tying Lance Berkman for most by a visiting player. Brice back The Reds recalled reliever Austin Brice and put left-handed starter Brandon Finnegan on the 10-day DL with a strained left triceps. Finnegan missed the first two months of the season with a strained shoulder and hurt his triceps on Monday in St. Louis during his first start of the season. Trainer's room SS Zack Cozart is a day or two away from returning from a strained right thigh, which has sidelined him since June 19. Up next Homer Bailey (0-1) looks for major improvement in his second start of the season. He had bone spurs removed from his elbow before the start of spring training. Bailey lasted only 1 2/3 innings on Saturday at Washington, giving up eight runs and six hits in an 18-3 loss. DAYTON DAILY NEWS Of cheap baseballs, juiced baseballs and donkeys Hal McCoy June 28, 2017 CINCINNATI Questions of the day: (1) Why do the major leagues and the minor leagues use different baseballs? Yes, they are different. (2) Is the reason that everybody carrying a bat can hit a ball out of the park because of juiced baseballs? (3) What is Zack Cozart going to name his donkey? The subject of baseballs came up in Cincinnati Reds manager Bryan Price s office before Wednesday s game. He mentioned that some of the problems pitchers encounter when they come from the minors to the majors is that the baseballs are different. Why? Does that make sense? THE BASEBALLS ARE SO different that when major league pitchers go to the minors on a rehab assignment, as Homer Bailey did last week at Class A Dayton, the Reds send Major League baseballs with him to use in the game while he is pitching. Why are they different?

9 I ve asked that question for I can t tell you how long, said Cincinnati Reds manager Bryan Price. I can t tell you. I think the answer is cost. It has to be the baseball in the minor leagues is less expensive, isn t it? IF THAT S THE CASE, and major league balls are more expensive, why do they throw new balls out of games if the ball hits the dirt one time and why do they permit players to throw balls into the stands at the end of innings? Expense has to be the answer, doesn t it? Price added. Unless there is a shortage of some material they use in major league baseballs. But as many balls as we throw in the stands and hit in the stands there doesn t seem to be any shortage. And what is the difference? It s feel because the seams aren t as defined on a major league ball, said Price. The seams are higher on the minor league ball and that makes it feel different. It feels like the ball is bigger, but you also have better leverage on the grip, making it easier to sink the ball and throw the breaking ball. You come up here and you wonder, Where do I find my grip, where do I find my leverage and pressure point to make the ball spin the way I want? It is so significantly different that it doesn t make any sense unless they are saying each team is saving $10 million on the baseball budget by making minor league affiliate use cheaper balls and we know that isn t true, Price added. NOW, ABOUT ALL the home runs and the possibility of juiced up balls. The majors are on pace to set an all-time record for home runs in a season, on pace for 500 more than the 2000 record of 5,693 and we all know that was the steroids/ped era. I don t know if you can notice a difference in a ball by feel, said Price. As far as the conspiracy theories, for me, I ve thought about it many times shouldn t you be able to slice open a baseball and compare it to older baseballs and define if they are different? Wouldn t that be the simplest thing? We ll weigh it, measure it, saw it in half and define if it is wound tighter or if there is magic pill in the middle that is making it shoot 40 extra yards? said Price. There can t be a secret component to the blind eye that can t be discovered. PRICE, THOUGH, BELIEVES something is going on. Maybe I should cut one in half, he said. I am amazed by the amount of home runs and I don t think we can just say it is because of the drop-off in pitching quality? I mean, we call guys up and they hit home runs, they hit 25 home runs in 60 games (LA s Clay Bellinger). We say, Oh, well, they re just better now. I think there is a weirdness to this season. I am fascinated by the number of baseballs being hit out of the park. Guys who were one-time journeymen or bench players all of a sudden have 11 or 12 home runs in a limited role (Scooter Gennett?). Guys are totally re-creating themselves into home run hitters. The game is not that easy, but at the same token they go out and do it. Everybody throws 100 (miles an hour) and everybody hits 25 homers in 60 games. It is just not uncommon any more. NOW FOR THE JACKASS portion of this report: Joey Votto buying Zack Cozart a donkey if he makes the All-Star team, which it appears he will. Votto and Cozart appeared on MLB network with Kevin Millar and Chris Rose Wednesday afternoon and Votto was wearing a donkey costume, complete with a donkey head. Cozart loves donkeys and said Wednesday when asked if he should have asked Votto for a Lamborghini (which Votto drives), I shot too low. Next time I ll shoot higher. But maybe a donkey is my Lamborghini. COZART SHOOK HIS head and said, Who would have thought this donkey thing would take off the way it has. It has gone crazy, said Cozart, who wore a t-shirt on the TV show given to him by Votto on which was printed, Life is Better With a Donkey. His wife, Chelsea, was dead set against Cozart carting home a donkey, but Zack said, She is OK with it now because she wants me to make the All-Star team. And I ve had a lot of offers in Cincinnati to take care of it. I don t have a spot for it, but I just got to have if and it is an excuse to wiggle my way into having a little piece of land in Cincinnati.

10 And what will the donkey be named? I don t know, I don t have a name for it, he said. Joey said he wants the fans to name it. I like just basic human names, Tom or something. It kind of took off way more than I imagined. Any interview I have it is about how I ve played, the injury and then on to donkeys. Oh, yeah, the injury. Cozart was eligible to come off the disabled list Wednesday and he did all the on-field work the last two days and is pronounced ready. But manager Bryan Price kept him out of the lineup Wednesday and said, He ll be ready in the next 24 t0 48 hours. TRANSACTIONS 06/28/17 Chicago White Sox optioned Juan Minaya to Charlotte Knights. Atlanta Braves optioned Jason Hursh to Gwinnett Braves. Cleveland Indians signed SS Tyler Freeman. Arizona Diamondbacks signed CF Kevin Watson. Tampa Bay Rays signed 1B Brendan McKay. Atlanta Braves signed free agent 3B Andrew Daniel to a minor league contract. Chicago Cubs recalled Victor Caratini from Iowa Cubs. Chicago Cubs designated C Miguel Montero for assignment. St. Louis Cardinals transferred RHP Alex Reyes from the 10-day disabled list to the 60-day disabled list. St. Louis Cardinals optioned SS Aledmys Diaz to Memphis Redbirds. St. Louis Cardinals selected the contract of SS Alex Mejia from Memphis Redbirds. Minnesota Twins sent LHP Mason Melotakis outright to Rochester Red Wings. Cincinnati Reds placed LHP Brandon Finnegan on the 10-day disabled list. Left shoulder Chicago White Sox transferred RHP Zach Putnam from the 10-day disabled list to the 60-day disabled list. Right elbow inflammation. Texas Rangers signed RHP Chris Morris. Cincinnati Reds recalled Austin Brice from Louisville Bats. Kansas City Royals signed C Chris Hudgins. Arizona Diamondbacks placed SS Nick Ahmed on the 10-day disabled list. Fractured right hand. Arizona Diamondbacks recalled Ketel Marte from Reno Aces. New York Mets placed RHP Robert Gsellman on the 10-day disabled list. Strained left hamstring. New York Mets recalled Matt Reynolds from Las Vegas 51s. Detroit Tigers activated DH Victor Martinez from the 10-day disabled list. Detroit Tigers optioned John Hicks to Toledo Mud Hens. Pittsburgh Pirates signed 3B Dylan Busby. San Francisco Giants signed free agent RHP Cody Hall to a minor league contract. Toronto Blue Jays signed free agent RF Michael Saunders to a minor league contract. Houston Astros signed RHP Corbin Martin. Seattle Mariners sent RHP Pat Light outright to Tacoma Rainiers. New York Yankees recalled 3B Miguel Andujar from Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders. New York Yankees placed DH Matt Holliday on the 10-day disabled list retroactive to June 25, Viral infection. New York Yankees sent 1B Chris Carter outright to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders. San Francisco Giants placed RHP Mark Melancon on the 10-day disabled list. Right pronator strain San Francisco Giants recalled Dan Slania from Richmond Flying Squirrels. Kansas City Royals signed free agent RHP Daniel Garmendia to a minor league contract. San Francisco Giants placed 3B Conor Gillaspie on the 10-day disabled list. Back San Francisco Giants purchased contract of 3B Jae-Gyun Hwang. Kansas City Royals recalled LF Jorge Soler from Omaha Storm Chasers. Tampa Bay Rays transferred CF Kevin Kiermaier from the 10-day disabled list to the 60-day disabled list. Right hip fracture. Tampa Bay Rays optioned LHP Jose Alvarado to Durham Bulls. Tampa Bay Rays optioned RHP Austin Pruitt to Durham Bulls. Tampa Bay Rays selected the contract of LHP Adam Kolarek from Durham Bulls. Tampa Bay Rays recalled LHP Blake Snell from Durham Bulls. St. Louis Cardinals signed OF Scott Hurst. Atlanta Braves activated RHP Bartolo Colon from the 10-day disabled list. Pittsburgh Pirates signed RHP Cody Bolton. Pittsburgh Pirates signed OF Chris Sharpe. Pittsburgh Pirates signed 3B Jesse Medrano. Toronto Blue Jays signed 3B Davis Schneider.