The longest-tenured player on the Reds, pitcher Bronson Arroyo has been around long enough to know it’s getting to the point where his team can’t afford losing games they’re supposed to win.
Not only did a 3-1 Reds loss to the Mariners leave an empty feeling on Sunday, it was compounded by the dropping of two of three in the series. It was the first time all season that 39-49 Seattle won back-to-back road series.
“We’re either going to have to get really hot real here soon, or a couple of teams in our division have to get really cold,” said Arroyo, referring to the National League Central’s top two teams in the Pirates and Cardinals.
Third-place Cincinnati, which entered the day 3 1/2 games behind Pittsburgh, has a 35-12 record vs. sub-.500 clubs and are 30-16 at Great American Ball Park. The Reds came into the series winners of three straight games vs. the Giants.
Those records should have played in their favor, but the young Mariners — who had just beaten the Rangers at Texas in two of three games — clearly had different plans.
“I think they played good. I think we didn’t play to our capabilities,” third baseman Todd Frazier said. “We have to put more runs up, especially against the guy we faced in [Joe] Saunders that’s not overpowering. We have to find a way to win that game. This is one you look back on, just confused and just wondering what we could have done to win.”
Arroyo had a quality start, as he gave up three runs and five hits, including two home runs, over his six innings, with one walk and six strikeouts.
For the third straight game, the Mariners — who had eight lefties or switch-hitters in the lineup against Arroyo — used a first-inning home run to jump out in front quickly. This time, it was No. 2 batter Nick Franklin who hit a solo homer to right field on a 1-2 pitch. Seattle has a Major League-best 22 first-inning home runs this season.
“You can’t just lay it in there against guys you don’t know anything about,” Reds manager Dusty Baker said. “After you learn something about them — they’ve already homered off of you. They’ve got a good, young bunch of guys. They’re going to be something to deal with in the next couple of years.”
In the third inning, following a Kyle Seager one-out walk, Justin Smoak sent a first-pitch offering into the left-field seats for a two-out, two-run homer and a three-run Seattle lead.
The long balls marked homers Nos. 235 and 236 hit against Arroyo with the Reds, which broke the all-time club record held by Tom Browning. Of course, Browning never pitched in homer-happy Great American Ball Park.
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