Pirates’ closer Felipe Vazquez’s bullpen role may be in jeopardy after a heartbreaking blown save last night against NL Central Rival, The St. Louis Cardinals. The game ended with a walk-off homerun from Yairo Munoz who hit it off a Vazquez 95.8 MPH fastball. This has not been the only time Vazquez has struggled this year, as this is his fourth blown save. Last year he was an extremely dominant pitcher, even not giving up an earned run in the entire month of July, to now having his role in jeopardy. His struggles have had Pirate fans wondering, what happened to Felipe Vazquez?

    On Sunday, it was reported Felipe felt soreness in his left forearm (throwing arm). It has been apparent all year that something was wrong with his throwing arm. Vazquez’s signature pitch is his blazing fastball. Last year, his fastball averaged in the 98-100 MPH range. His performance and velocity with the fastball in 2017 rivaled that of Aroldis Chapman. This year, Vazquez’s fastball has averaged in the 95-97 MPH range. Vazquez also claimed the fastest pitch thrown by someone not named Chapman in 2017, at a whopping 102.6 MPH. So far in 2018, Vazquez has barely touched 100 MPH a few times this season. With his lack of velocity, Vazquez can’t blow the fastball by batters like he did last year. It has also caused his strikeout rate to dip from 10.51 last year, to 9.27 this year. The injury may also be affecting his control as well, with his walk rate rising a whole 1.24 points from last year to this year.

With his apparent injury, dip in velocity, and loss of control, it is likely Felipe will require a DL stint. While it’s not official, I predict he will be placed on The DL by the end of today.

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​The Reds defeated the Arizona Diamondbacks 7-4 on Wednesday afternoon, salvaging one game of their three game series as the Diamondbacks won on Monday and Tuesday night.
“We got six RBIs from our corner outfielders,” Reds manager Jim Riggleman said. “You never can ask for that. But you've got to get production from your corner outfielders.”
The Diamondbacks pulled out to an early lead as first baseman Paul Goldschmidt hit a two run homer and left fielder David Peralta had an RBI single in the first inning, followed by a solo home run by catcher John Ryan Murphy in the third. However, the Reds picked things up in the fourth as left fielder Adam Duvall hit a grand slam home run in the fourth to tie the game up. The team then continued the momentum into the sixth as right fielder Scott Schebler had a two run shot to give the Reds their first lead of the game. Third baseman Eugenio Suarez added an insurance run in the ninth on an RBI single, as the Reds went on to win 7-4.
Reds starting pitcher Sal Romano earned the win with five innings pitched while allowing four earned runs on seven hits but no walks. Diamondbacks starter Patrick Corbin allowed six earned runs on eight hits and a walk as he was saddled with the loss. Reds reliever Raisel Iglesias picked up the save.
The Reds will have an off-day on Thursday before taking on the San Diego Padres on the road on Friday night.

    Brewers hard throwing lefty relief pitcher, Josh Hader, has made headlines, for he is having a historically great season for a relief pitcher. The former top prospect is pitching better than anyone expected, with a 1.15 ERA, .67 WHIP, .94 FIP, a 3.27 walk/9 rate (total 12), and an out of this world 18 K/9 rate (total 66!) all in 33 innings. Compared to other fantastic seasons by relief pitchers, how does Hader compare? Let’s find out.

    To start with, Hader already has a 1.5 WAR, in 33 innings of play. In comparison, Trevor Hoffman’s highest WAR season was 4.1 WAR in 1998, in 73 innings of work. He’s also on pace on having more WAR than Francisco Rodriguez had in his 62 save season, a single season record, with 2.5 WAR in 2008 with just 68.1 innings pitched. Legendary closer, Mariano Rivera had a WAR of 5 in his second year in 1996, in 107 innings, as he worked as a long relief pitcher that season. While Hader has a pretty outside shot at reaching 5 WAR this season, it’s not completely out of reality. In a more modern season, Dodgers’ Kenley Jansen had a season for the ages in 2017, where he recorded a 1.32 ERA, .746 WHIP, 1.31 FIP, while only walking 7 in 68.1 innings, and striking out 109, which resulted in 3 WAR. Hader is easily on pace to reach 3 WAR by the end of the season.

    Then, there’s Hader’s ridiculous strikeout rate. In 33 innings pitched, Hader has 62 strikeouts, which results in a historic 18 K/9 rate, and a whiff% somewhere between 23-25%. Last year, teammate Corey Knebel had a 14.9 K/9, and Kenley was right behind him with 14.4 K/9. The last player to have a K/9 higher than 15 is Aroldis Chapman, who reached 17.7 K/9 in 54 innings in 2014. He’s also got more strikeouts than a handful of starters, even some that are considered strikeout pitchers. His greatest achievement with the K isn’t his 17.4 K/9 rate, but his outing on April, 30th. On this night, Hader would pitch an outing for the ages, as he struck out 8 in 2 and two-thirds innings, striking out every batter he faced, and earning the save. In comparison, hall-of-fame lefty, Randy Johnson once pitched 7 relief innings, and struck out 16 batters.

    Batters can’t figure out Hader either. Opponents only have a .171 BABIP against him, and Hader doesn’t let the ball out of the park when he gets hit, with just a .6 HR/9 rate, and a 9% HR/FB rate. It’s also not like patient batters can hit off of him right now either, as Hader has a 3.27 walks/9 rate, a 9.2 walk %, and 33% of his pitches have been a ball.

    To sum it all up, Josh Hader has been absolutely historically dominant this season. Not only is the lefty Brewer striking people out at a video game-ish rate, but he also knows where the strike zone is. Just to add on, this 25-year old phenom is rivaling hall of fame players with his impressive single game feats, and he’s making MVP-level batters look foolish.

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​The Reds lost the second game of their series against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Tuesday night 5-2, clinching the series victory for the Diamondbacks.
The Reds got on the board first as second baseman Scooter Gennett drove in a run on a first inning RBI groundout, but the Diamondbacks responded in the bottom of the inning as first baseman Daniel Descalso hit a two run home run. The Diamondbacks then continued the offense into the third inning with an RBI double from second baseman Ketel Marte and an RBI sacrifice fly by third baseman Jake Lamb, who also added another run in the fifth by taking advantage of a Reds throwing error. The Reds would get a run back in the sixth as third baseman Eugenio Suarez hit a solo homer, but it wouldn’t be enough as the Diamondbacks went on to take the 5-2 win.
Diamondbacks starting pitcher Zack Godley allowed two earned runs, six hits and two walks over six innings, earning the win, while Reds starter Luis Castillo went five innings, giving up four earned runs, four hits and three walks in the loss. Diamondbacks reliever Brad Boxberger earned the save.
The teams will finish off their series on Wednesday afternoon.

The Astros have placed starting catcher, Brian McCann on the 10-day DL. Reports are saying he has suffered a sore knee, which he has encountered before. Despite Brian McCann hitting a weak .219/.313/.351, he's been valued as a leader of a really good pitching staff with a lot of breakout stars. Plus McCann has caught 32% of runners trying to steal on him this season. With the injury to McCann, Max Stassi who has batted a decent .300/.371/.525 in 89 PA's this season will likely get most of the playing time until further notice, and The Astros have selected Tim Federowicz contract to add more depth.

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​The Reds fell in the first game of their series against the Arizona Diamondbacks 12-5 on Monday afternoon, as the Reds continue to try to turn around their west coast road trip.
The Reds got on the board first with an RBI single by left fielder Adam Duvall in the second inning, but the Diamondbacks responded in the bottom of the inning with left fielder Socrates Brito taking advantage of a fielding error to get a run home, followed by a three run home run by shortstop Nick Ahmed to give the team an early 4-1 lead. The offense continued for the Diamondbacks in the fourth as catcher John Ryan Murphy hit a solo homer and Ahmed drove in another run on an RBI groundout. In the fifth, however, the Reds got an RBI double from third baseman Eugenio Suarez and a three RBI double by Duvall to close the gap to within one. However, the Diamondbacks would come back in the bottom of the inning with a three run homer by right fielder Chris Owings, then again in the sixth with an RBI double from pinch hitter Ketel Marte and an RBI groundout from first baseman Paul Goldschmidt. The Diamondbacks would tack on another run in the eighth on a bases loaded walk by third baseman Jake Lamb and go on to take the 12-5 victory.
“It was one of those ones where anything that could go wrong, did go wrong,” Reds manager Jim Riggleman said.
Diamondbacks starting pitcher Matt Koch went five innings giving up five earned runs, 11 hits and one walk, but was still able to earn the win. Reds starter Homer Bailey struggled, allowing six earned runs on six hits and one walk in the loss.
The teams will play again on Tuesday night.

    The Pirates have gotten off to a surprising start, going 28-24 to start the season. They’ve even held first place at one point. While The Bucs have been on a downturn, losing 3 straight series, they are still in a good spot. Management has been more reluctant to pull the trigger on guys, like George Kontos after blowing a few holds, but still are stubborn on some other decisions. If The Pirates can do the following, they can easily sustain their success, and stay in contention

1.) Stop starting Gregory Polanco every day.
    I think Gregory Polanco is a good teammate, and has shown the potential to be just as good of a player, but until he can start picking it up, Polanco should not be starting every day. So far on the season, the right fielder has hit .209/.324/.424 in 205 PA’s. He’s also not helping too much with his glove, with -5 DRS, -.8 defensive WAR, and a very uncharacteristic -3.6 UZR. He’s also made 85.3% contact with pitches inside the strike zone, a career low since 2014 (his rookie year). Right now, rookie top prospect Austin Meadows has shown he deserves everyday playing time. In his first 30 PA’s, Meadows has hit .433/.433/.867 with 3 homeruns. Until Meadows cools down, or Polanco starts to show he deserves playing time, Meadows should get the nod until further notice.

2.) Stop giving Michael Feliz so many late inning opportunities, and let one of the better options try a later role a few times.
    Michael Feliz was one of the pitchers The Pirates got in return for Gerrit Cole. On the season, Feliz has an increased 5.31 ERA, along with a 4.09 walks/9 rate, and .327 opponent babip. Feliz also lost the game on Sunday giving up 3 runs, 2 walks, 1 hit, and only getting one out until Felipe Vasquez had to come in, and try (but failed) to clean up his mess. Until Feliz figures things out, he should be regulated to a middle-relief/low leverage role, and Richard Rodriguez should see more action in Feliz’s former role. Rich-Rod has been lights out this season, with a miniscule 1.40 ERA, 1.086 WHIP, 1.4 walk/9 rate, and a robust 14.4 K/9 rate, in 19.1 innings of work. In all the games Rodriguez has played, 6 out of the 19 he’s pitched in, The Pirates were either winning, or losing by 3 or more runs. Kyle Crick, who The Pirates got in return for Andrew McCutchen from The Giants, has also pitched well, and deserves more action in later innings.

3.) Use some of the young players that have performed, and stop relying on Jameson Taillon and Ivan Nova as much.
    Nick Kingham, who showed he has all-star potential, has been recalled from triple-A, and optioned back to the minors twice, while Jameson Taillon, and Ivan Nova continue to underperform. While both have showed ace potential in the past, The Pirates rely too much on them to carry the rotation. While both have shown ace potential a few times this year, both right now have an ERA over 4.50, and FIP’s over 4. I also hope that they leave Joe Musgrove in the rotation, so long as he is performing good.

4.) Do something about the bench.
    Right now, The Pirates’ best bench bat is Elias Diaz, and while he’s performing very well with the bat, he is an outlier to other bench bats. Corner infield/outfielder Jose Osuna has showed potential at the major league level, and is performing very well at Triple-A, batting .359/.409/.628 in 89 PA’s. Sean Rodriguez also should be regulated to just a late inning defensive replacement role. The Pirates also do not have any lefty bench power, with Adam Frazier being the only lefty on the bench. It would not hurt to sign first baseman/left fielder Adam Lind to a one year deal to help the bench.

5.) At the deadline, get a solid starter.
    I’m not saying they should dump every prospect they have into acquiring Clayton Kershaw if The Dodgers’ keep losing, and decide to sell off some pieces, but get someone who can help their rotation. Like I said earlier, they need to stop relying so much on Ivan Nova and Jameson Taillon, and let some of the young guys pitch. But they could also add a guy who can eat some innings, and do it effectively. Rangers will likely be looking to trade Bartolo Colon by the deadline, if they haven’t already. He’d be a cheap pitcher who would not cost a big prospect names. A’s Trevor Cahill is also in a situation like Colon, has performed well, and would cost just about the same as Colon.

    The Pirates hot start has caught the attention some attention, as the fans,including me they were predicted to not even be close to where they are right now. They’ve done this by pulling the trigger on players before it was too late, like George Kontos being DFA'd after struggling, and moving Edgar Santana into his former role. But they need to do more in order to sustain this success, and they have the opportunity to further build off of it as well.

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    Earlier today, it was announced that The Mariners have acquired Alex Colome and Denard Span from The Tampa Bay Rays for right handers Andrew Moore and Tommy Romero. The move comes as somewhat of a surprise, because of how early in the season the trade was made, and The Mariners not being one of the teams speculated in rumors with Colome.

    Alex Colome, 29, was originally a starting prospect for The Rays, but took over the closer role in 2016. Since being moved to that role, Colome has thrived, recording a 2.63 ERA, 9.4 K/9 rate, 2.8 walk rate, a .7 HR/9 rate, and a 3.16 FIP, along with 84 saves in 129 innings between 2016-2017. Colome has somewhat struggled in 2018. In 21.2 innings of work, Colome has worked for a 4.15 ERA, and a career high walk rate at 3.3 walks/9. However, the closer may find better fortune if he has a better defense behind him, as he has recorded a 2.69 FIP, a career low.

    Outfielder, Denard Span was also included in this trade. The Rays acquired Span from The Giants during the off-season in the Longoria-Arroyo trade. Span, the former Twin, National and Giant has produced middling results since coming to Tampa. So far, the 34 year old has produced a .238/.364/.385 line in 173 PA’s. His OBP is the highest it has been since 2015, when he played 61 games with The Nats.While his defense has slowly deteriorated over the past few seasons, Span posted positive marks in DRS (1), highest UZR (-2.7) since 2013, and highest defensive WAR (exactly 0) since 2014 (also 0).

    The two prospects The Rays got in return were Andrew Moore, and Tommy Romero. Moore, 23, was drafted by The Mariners in the 2nd round (72nd overall) in 2015 MLB Draft. Moore has seen limited time in The MLB, with 59 innings in 2017 under his belt. In those 59 innings, Moore struggled, with a 5.34 ERA, 2.1 homerun/9 rate, with just 4.7 K/9, and a 5.65 FIP. However, Moore did post a 1.153 WHIP that season, and has performed well in double-A this season (3.04 ERA, 8.4 K/9, 2.5 walks/9, 1.1 HR/9, and a 1.033 WHIP). Romero, 20, was drafted by The Mariners last year in the 15th round. In his time split between rookie-ball (last year), and A-Ball (this year), The right hander has pitched in 87 innings (22 games/11 starts), with a 2.47 ERA, 10.8 K/9, 3.1 BB/9, and a 1.122 WHIP.

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    The Red Sox announced they announced earlier today that they have activated second baseman Dustin Pedroia from the disabled list. More surprisingly however, is that they have DFA’ed first baseman Hanley Ramirez. Ramirez owns a .254/.313/.395 batting line, and is owed $22 million this season.

    It was previously speculated that utility catcher, Blake Swihart, would be DFA’ed, as he requested to be traded a few weeks ago, and he has not been performing well when given time. The Sox though DFA’ed Hanley Ramirez instead. The former shortstop had signed on with The Red Sox during the 2014-2015 off season, and signed a 4 year deal, plus a vesting option for 2019. Hanley started off the season well, hitting .330/.400/.474 with 3 homeruns and 17 RBI’s in 110 PA’s in April, but suffered in May, hitting an abysmal .163/.200/.300 in 85 PA’s.

    While Ramirez has had a struggle through May, the move still comes as a surprise; as Hanley has been a decent producer at the plate as soon as 2016, and even in April this year, and the aforementioned Swihart has been struggling, and pitcher Brian Johnson has been struggling as well.

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    White Sox catcher, Wellington Castillo, was hit with an 80-game suspension for PED use. Castillo signed a 2 year deal with The White Sox during the off-season. Castillo has produced a solid .267/.309/.466 line in his first 132 PA’s of the 2018 season. Castillo has been an average defender behind the plate (-5 DRS, 0 defensive WAR). He has also continued to throw runners out at a decent rate, at 32% of runners caught stealing this year.

    Internally, The White Sox will likely use back-stop Omar Narvaez for now. They also have top prospect Zack Collins in double-A, but it’s likely they won’t rush him to the majors right now. The club could also look for options outside the organization. Carlos Ruiz and Geovany Soto still sit on the free agent market. They could also make a trade for a temporary solution. Padres’ back-up catcher A.J. Ellis has gotten off to a decent start, and Red Sox Blake Swihart could be DFA’ed soon, and Swihart had previously stated that he was requesting a trade.

UPDATE: White Sox claimed catcher Dustin Garneau off waivers from The A’s. This waiver claim, and the recent promotion of minor league catcher, Alfredo Gonzalez, gives The White Sox more depth after Castillo’s suspension.

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The Reds defeated the Pittsburgh Pirates 5-4 on Thursday afternoon, as the Reds took the series two games to three and got their first series victory against an NL Central opponent.
The Reds got on the board in the third inning as third baseman Eugenio Suarez got a grand slam home run to immediately give the Reds a 4-0 lead early. In the fifth, it was Reds right fielder Jesse Winker who added a solo homer to make it a 5-0 game. However, the Pirates would make a strong comeback effort in the second half of the game as first baseman David Freese hit a two run home run in the sixth and center fielder Austin Meadows also hit a two run shot in the ninth, but it would not be enough as the Reds won 5-4.
Reds starting pitcher Luis Castillo went six innings, allowing just two earned runs on four hits and a pair of walks on the way to the win. Pirates starter Ivan Nova went five and a third innings allowing four earned runs, seven hits and two walks on the way to the loss.
The Reds will next play on Friday night on the road against the Colorado Rockies.

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The Reds lost their second game of their three game series against the Pittsburgh Pirates 5-4 in 12 innings on Wednesday night.
“That was a great ballgame, a great effort by everybody involved,” Reds manager Jim Riggleman said. “Unfortunately, we have to say that in a losing cause.”
The game started out with the Pirates scoring in the first inning on a two run shot from catcher Francisco Cervelli, where the lead remained until the Pirates added to it in the fifth with an RBI single by left fielder Corey Dickerson. In the sixth, Pirates starting pitcher Chad Kuhl got in on the action as well with an RBI single to make it a 4-0 game.
However, the Reds responded in the bottom of the inning as second baseman and best offensive player for the Reds this season Scooter Gennett hit a solo homer, followed by a big eighth inning in which Reds third baseman Eugenio Suarez hit an RBI sacrifice fly, pinch hitter Alex Blandino cut the lead in half with an RBI single and shortstop Jose Peraza got an RBI single to tie the game up. With nobody scoring in the ninth, the game was sent into extra innings.
With neither team scoring in either the tenth or eleventh innings, the Pirates had the go-ahead run across as second baseman Josh Harrison hit an RBI triple, but the Reds were unable to respond in the bottom of the 12th as the Pirates took it 5-4.
Kuhl went six innings, allowing one earned run over six innings on five hits and one walk, taking the no decision. Reds starter Homer Bailey went five innings allowing four earned runs on 10 hits and three walks, also getting a no decision. Pirates reliever Steven Brault took the win, while Reds reliever Dylan Floro was hit with the loss.
The teams will finish out the series on Thursday afternoon.

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The Reds won the first game of a three game homestand against the Pittsburgh Pirates 7-2 on Tuesday night, as the team looks for their first series sweep against a National League Central opponent.
While the game started out with an hour-long rain delay, it didn’t take long once play got underway for the Reds to score, with a pair of RBI doubles by second baseman Scooter Gennett and third baseman Eugenio Suarez to make it a 2-0 game.
However, in the fourth, the Pirates got on the board as third baseman Colin Moran hit a solo homer, but the Reds came back in the fifth with Gennett swatting a grand slam home run to add to the Reds advantage. In the seventh, Pirates center fielder Austin Meadows hit a solo home run, but the Reds finished it off in the bottom of the inning on an RBI sacrifice fly from Gennett to make it a 7-2 win.
Reds starting pitcher Matt Harvey pitched six innings, with just one earned run allowed on three hits on two walks for his first win as a Red. Pirates starter Jameson Taillon also pitched six innings but gave up six earned runs, eight hits and one walk in the loss.
“He's gotten better as he went along,” Reds manager Jim Riggleman said of Harvey. “Tonight was his third outing; it was the best of the three. The others were good, but to get him deeper in the game tonight and pitch out of trouble and get better as he went along was very encouraging.”
The teams will face off once again on Wednesday night.

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The Reds fell in the final game of their four game series against the Chicago Cubs 6-1 on Sunday afternoon, making it a three out of four series in favor of the Cubs.
“Maybe we'll look back and say we were fortunate to win a game in that series," Reds manager Jim Riggleman said. "But when you're playing at home, you'd certainly like to win more than that for your home fans.”
The game began with the Reds getting on the board with an RBI single in the first inning by right fielder Scott Schebler, however there would not be much offense from the Reds from that point on as the Cubs came back in the second as left fielder Kyle Schwarber hit a two run homer to give the Cubs the lead, followed by shortstop Javier Baez hitting a solo homer. In the fifth, Cubs second baseman Ben Zobrist drove in another solo shot to make it a 4-1 lead, which they added to in the seventh on an RBI sacrifice fly from center fielder Albert Almora Jr. as well as an RBI single by first baseman Anthony Rizzo to give the Cubs the 6-1 win and the series victory.
Cubs starting pitcher Yu Darvish pitched six innings, giving up just one earned run on two hits and three walks to earn the win. Reds starter Tyler Mahle gave up four earned runs, seven hits and a pair of walks in the loss.
The Reds will next play on Tuesday night at home to start their series against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

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The Reds and the Chicago Cubs split the second and third games of their series in a doubleheader on Saturday, as the Reds took the afternoon game 5-4 in 11 innings, while the Cubs came back to take the night game 10-0.
The afternoon game, which was rescheduled from a rainout on April 3rd, saw Reds second baseman Scooter Gennett drive in an RBI single in the first inning to put the team ahead early, however, the Cubs came back in the third as third baseman Kris Bryant got an RBI double to tie the game up. In the fourth, Reds third baseman Eugenio Suarez grabbed an RBI sacrifice fly to put the Reds back in front, but the lead would not last long as Cubs starting pitcher Kyle Hendricks had an RBI double to tie the game back up. In the bottom of the inning, the Reds got the lead back once more as Gennett hit an RBI single and Suarez got an RBI double to make it a 4-2 game, but the Cubs got two runs of their own in the eighth, with right fielder Ian Happ getting a solo home run and first baseman Anthony Rizzo hit an RBI double, eventually sending the game to extra innings.
The teams would go scoreless until the Reds had a chance to take the win with the bases loaded and one out, which center fielder Billy Hamilton took advantage of by drawing a walk to drive in the winning run and make it a 5-4 victory in 11 innings.
Reds starting pitcher Luis Castillo went five innings, allowing one earned run, six hits and five walks in the no decision, while Hendricks also had a no decision with three earned runs, six hits and two walks in five innings. Reds reliever Dylan Floro earned the win, while two Reds relievers, David Hernandez and Raisel Iglesias, each had blown saves. Cubs reliever Justin Wilson was faced with the loss.
The night game would be much less competitive, as the Cubs got on the board first in the third as Bryant hit an RBI groundout. They came right back in the fourth as Happ hit a solo homer, followed in the fifth by a two RBI double by Rizzo and three RBI triple by center fielder Jason Heyward to bust the game open. In the seventh, Heyward drove in another run with an RBI sacrifice fly, then getting an RBI sacrifice fly from Rizzo in the eighth, then tacking on an RBI double from center fielder Albert Almora Jr., who came into the game late as a defensive replacement, in the ninth inning as the Cubs went on to win 10-0.
Cubs starter Jose Quintana earned the win with seven innings pitched, allowing just one hit and four walks, while Reds starter Sal Romano took the loss with five innings pitched allowing seven earned runs on six hits and six walks.
The teams will finish off the series on Sunday afternoon.

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