Clinging to a one-run lead in the top of the eighth on Tuesday against the Rockies, the last thing relief pitcher Sam LeCure wanted to do was allow a game-tying home run to Carlos Gonzalez.
Well, almost the last thing.
“You don’t want to leave a ball over the heart of the plate and tie the game up,” LeCure said. “But the worst thing to do is put a guy on so one swing of the bat puts them in the lead.”
Unfortunately for the 29-year-old right-hander, that’s exactly what he did. After Gonzalez drew a walk, Troy Tulowitzki came to the plate and hit a rope to left field. The ball never came down into the field of play, as it was caught by a fan right on the yellow line at the top of the wall. The umpires conferred and initially called the hit a home run, which was upheld following a 40-second video review. The result was a disappointing 5-4 loss for Cincinnati and a much-needed win for Colorado.
The Reds had just broken a tie in the bottom of the seventh when they put runners on the corners and Rockies reliever Edgmer Escalona committed a balk to plate the go-ahead run. The advantage didn’t last long, though, as Cincinnati lost for the second time in three days when leading heading into the eighth.
“That was unfortunate,” said LeCure, who surrendered a run for the first time since May 5 and allowed a homer for the first time since April 6. “We battled our butts off there to scratch that run across in the bottom of the seventh. As a reliever, you’re always thinking the later in the game that you’re pitching, the better. I’ve wanted the opportunity to go out there to try and lock it down late. Today wasn’t the day.”
For the Reds to have a chance to lose in rather heartbreaking fashion, they first had to overcome an early deficit. Cincinnati starter Homer Bailey spotted the Rockies three runs in the second inning on a pair of singles and back-to-back doubles. Unlike his last start, though, when Bailey gave up seven runs in the fourth inning to the Indians, the 27-year-old right-hander limited the damage and lived to see another frame.
He took complete advantage, retiring the next 13 batters after Dexter Fowler’s RBI single in the top of the second. Bailey struck out five batters in that stretch, and only two balls made it out of the infield. For the night, he allowed six hits while striking out seven.
While Bailey picked apart the Rockies, the Reds offense picked up their starting pitcher. Cincinnati got one back in the bottom of the second, thanks to a leadoff double by Todd Frazier followed by a pair of groundouts. The Reds tacked on two more in the fourth, sparked again by a Frazier double, to tie the game at three.
That would be the end of any significant action until the top of the seventh, when Bailey escaped a one-out situation with runners on the corners by inducing a 5-4-3 double play to end the inning and his outing with the game tied.
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