Cincinnati Reds: Dodgers Bump Losing Streak To Nine


The Cincinnati Reds lost another game. The Dodgers routed the slumping Reds, by a score of 8-2. The loss brought the current losing streak to nine in a row. That hasn’t been accomplished since 1993. The Reds are starting to look more and more like the rebuilding baseball team that was predicted. They’ve become a truly horrendous impersonation of the Big Red Machine.

The disappointment is not only being showcased by the fans, the players and coaches are starting to have thin skin and a loss of words for the subpar play. Manager Bryan Price is starting to sound like a broken record. The needle is stuck in the groove, and there’s no one to stop the cacophony of irritating sound.

The Reds are playing well below their capabilities, despite this being an obvious rebuild campaign. Price was matter-of-fact about the status of the Redlegs, when speaking via Cincinnati Reds.

Reds Streak
[Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images]

“I’m at a loss for words at the moment. It’s a rough stretch, it’s been rough. Nobody feels sorry for us, so we got to go out there and find a way to put something together and do something productive. Our job everyday is to try to play the game perfectly, which is impossible to do. But that’s what we need to strive to do, and we’re not remotely close at the moment.”

Coming close to winning games has been almost impossible for the Reds during their current slump. The offense has been stagnant, the defense is spotty, and their morale is questionable. Reds fans are slowly beginning to write the season off as one in which the club may lose 100 or more games.

Reds players committed three more errors during Tuesday’s game, en route to the loss. In two games against the Dodgers, the defense has mishandled the ball six times. Catcher Tucker Barnhart committed the first error of the night, when he tried to throw out Joc Pederson stealing third. The throw sailed into the outfield and allowed Pederson to score. That put the Reds in a 3-2 hole.

More Dodgers runs crossed the plate when Jay Bruce and Joey Votto flubbed fielding chances in the fifth frame. Price referred to the errors as an example of a struggling team trying to do too much.

“I think everyone is pressing to do more than is necessary is what I see. These types of environments create completely different sense of what we need to do to win a game, and it’s not elevating ourselves above our ability.”

Mike Bolsinger picked up where Clayton Kershaw left off. He stifled the Reds with another strong performance from the mound. Bolsinger began the season on the Dodgers’ disabled list, but worked his magic against the Redlegs. In 5.2 innings of work, he struck out six batters and walked one. His only snag was a two-run homer to Adam Duvall.

The Dodgers extended their mastery over the Reds with the rout. Los Angeles is now 47-23 against the Redlegs since 2006.

Reds Streak
[Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images]
According to the Cincinnati Enquirer, the Reds haven’t set a record yet. Last year, the longest losing streak was 13 games. The all-time record was set in 1914. That year, the team lost 19 in a row.

The losing streak is quietly taking a toll on all the players in one way or another. In the bottom of the seventh frame, a paper airplane floated from the stands. It finally came to rest near Votto. The first baseman slowly walked over to the paper toy and stomped on it.

The exaggerated crush was either Votto’s way of releasing steam or pissing off the LA faithful. Adrian Gonzalez was on first at the time. He gave a thumbs down sign, behind Votto’s back, urging the crowd into a chorus of boos.

The Reds have one more chance to avoid a series sweep. They’ll then have a day off to regroup.

[Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images]

Share this article: Cincinnati Reds: Dodgers Bump Losing Streak To Nine
More from Inquisitr