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Hall of Fame baseball writer Hal McCoy is in his 36th year of covering the Cincinnati Reds, the longest tenure for any active writer covering one team. Counting spring training and postseason games, McCoy has covered more than 7,000 major-league baseball games, written close to 18,000 baseball stories and eaten enough hot dogs to give Babe Ruth indigestion.Home > Blogs > The Real McCoy | Cincinnati Reds baseball news > Archives > 2008 > June > 21 > Entry
Bad situations and a good one
OK, so the Reds have won two straight at Yankee Stadium and that’s great, that’s wonderful, that’s superb.
But - and there is always a but - doesn’t anybody know how to count or keep their heads in the game these days?
What do I mean? Well, three times in the last two days a Reds player has started to run off the field, thinking there were three outs when there were only two.
In the second inning Friday, Jason Giambi flied to right and catcher Paul Bako started running off the field. There were only two outs. Sheepishly, Bako crept back to home plate and held up two fingers to tell EVERBYBODY else, “There are two outs.”
At breakfast Saturday morning, David Weathers teased Bako unmercifully for not knowing how many outs there were.
Flash forward to Saturday afternoon. Weathers enters the game in the seventh with one out and two on. He strikes out Derek Jeter and heads for the dugout before looking up to see nobody else leaving the field. Oops? Only two outs? Well, maybe he thought he should get credit for two outs for whiffing Jeter with two men on base.
Now move to the eighth inning and the Yankees have two on with one out. Jorge Posada grounds out to Joey Votto at first and he run to the bag to tag it for the out. And he keeps running toward the dugout. Uh, Joey? Two outs, buddy.
Does that say something about the concentration and game awareness of this team, or what? Humorous? Yes. But telling
Said Weathers, “That’s a first for me. I’ve forgotten to cover first base a few times, but never ran off the field before three outs. Of course, I didn’t do it in front of a big audience or anything (54,509). Why couldn’t I do it in Pittsburgh?”
Daryl Thompson did it up big in Manhattan in his major-league debut - no runs, four hits, four walks, two strikeouts over five innings.
Getting out of a base-loaded and no outs situation in the second and two-on and no outs situation in the third drove up his pitch count. And, of course, he didn’t get any run support and left with a 0-0 tie.
After he was gone, the Reds scored four unearned runs in the seventh and won, 6-0, their second straight in Yankee Stadium.
“I haven’t slept in three days, since I knew I was going to pitch in Yankee Stadium,” he said. “I woke up Saturday morning at 4:30 and didn’t get back to sleep. I haven’t eaten anything for 24 hours and except one little piece of sausage.”
But he certainly didn’t look intimidated, getting out of both messes without damage. He went mostly with 94-95 miles an hour fastballs and a change-up. Nothing else.
Like Edinson Volquez and Johnny Cueto, this kid is a keeper, another who has zoomed past Homer Bailey. If only they could find the right buttons on Bailey, they have the makings of a full-throttle pitching rotation for the next few years.
When Thompson had the bases loaded with no outs in the second, manager Dusty Baker visited the mound. Usually, when Dusty comes, the pitcher goes. Not this time. Dusty was merely delivering a message:
“Hey, man. Same game, different place (No, this wasn’t Toledo, Columbus or Pastucket). Take a couple of deep breaths, slow down. Take your time,” said Baker.
Thompson knew he was letting the game speed up into fast-motion. “Even before Dlusty got out there, I was taking deep breaths,” said Thompson. “And his visit helped.”
He retired the next three with no damage and Yankee third baseman A-Rod said, “I don’t know what Dusty told him, maybe magic.”
Pure magic this day, pure magic.
Permalink | Comments (18) | Post your comment | Categories: Daryl Thompson
Comments
By Don L
June 24, 2008 12:19 AM | Link to this
lets sign Michael Inoa and trade him to the Rangers for Josh HamiltonBy ShockMonkey
June 22, 2008 9:59 AM | Link to this
Randy posted: I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt only because they’re about to have a helluva second half…this team is too good to keep playing as bad as they have been. Wish I could agree but it’s not possible based on managerial decisions which defy logic. Our bench is the worst in baseball. We make way too many base-running gaffs but the crux of the issue are lineup characteristics which make zero sense. There’s no way Patterson should get the nod over anyone, Griffey in the 3-hole is killing us, Dunn is awful plus Bako over Ross is beyond crass. Check out the averages of those mentioned. No way we can win. Dusty needs to go.By Randy
June 22, 2008 3:02 AM | Link to this
Ok, I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt only because they’re about to have a helluva second half if they can stay healthy. This team is too good to keep playing as bad as they have been. Bako or Weathers could have showed some quick thinking and had someone from the dugout adjust a shin guard or toss Weathers a towel to wipe the sweat off his pitching arm. No one is doing any quick thinking.By MAC
June 22, 2008 2:24 AM | Link to this
Y-City Jim mentioned C.C. Sabathia & I for one would like to see the Reds make a play for his services; I’ve herd he might be available? Even though the Reds have made great strides in the SP department, it still isn’t consistent enough to compete every night; something they still need to fix before the organization can move forward IMO. As for Bako, frankly I don’t see the allure? Many say he and Ross have done a good job defensively and handling the pitchers, but I’ve seen both of them make error after costly error and provide very little Off. while doing it. Valentine is not THAT bad defensively and he’s much more effective w/ a bat in his hands. Sure he’s good coming off the bench as a PH, but couldn’t he get at least one start/4ABs a week in an effort to jump start this anemic Offense? Last but not least, we continue to see pitchers obtained from outside the organization progress and do well many times passing the Reds’ own draft picks as they go. They couldn’t get through to Tomko, couldn’t smooth out Williamson’s delivery, couldn’t get the best out of Remlinger (an All-Star in Atlanta) while he was here and now it’s Bailey and Cueto that continue to struggle while players from outside the organization climb the latter better and faster…isn’t it time to try and bring a guy like Leo Mazzone on board in an attempt to solve the pitching problems once and for all?By nllspc
June 22, 2008 12:49 AM | Link to this
Hal, I appreciate you reading the comments to your blog because many wish their concerns to be made to the organization which we care about even though each of us contribute very little. Meaning you are our voice as the 4th Estate of Reds baseball. That being said, I hope Janish and Votto got an ear full after (or during) tonight’s game. If not, I hope you find out why they didn’t. Janish failed to find the third base coach during a hit and run and Votto was incongnizant of only 1 out. The possible outcomes of their lack of focus is the difference between teams with winning records and those with losing records. The whole purpose of a hit and run is for the runner on 1st to reach 3rd. Even after the fact Janish didn’t seem to realize his error. Votto smiled after his miscue like his miscalculation with a 6 run lead was insignificant and the yankee deficit was insurmountable. Tell that to Burton when Votto failed to throw out the lead runner which put a runner in scoring position. I just hope Baker isn’t throwing out too many carrots and not enough sticks. We have a young team and young teams need some discipline. Truthfully this isn’t really a discipline issue, these mental mistakes are fundementals learned in T-Ball which has me at a loss for an explanation as to why the players and/or coaches don’t seem to be in the state of consternation as I am.By Relayman
June 21, 2008 11:27 PM | Link to this
The obvious reason to keep track of the outs is so you know when to look for the double or triple(!) play. So it’s not just something to laugh about as it can make the difference in a game.By Y-City Jim
June 21, 2008 11:00 PM | Link to this
Where does Manhattan end? Harlem River? Past the Columbia University football field?By David Malmquist
June 21, 2008 10:18 PM | Link to this
Hal: I enjoyed your blog, as usual. It is amusing that Bako, Weathers, and Votto can’t seem to count to three. However, when you said that “Daryl Thompson did it up big in Manhattan in his major-league debut,” you seemed to not know where you were. Yankee Stadium is in the Bronx, not Manhattan. That’s why the Yankees are called the Bronx Bombers! On a more serious note, do you think that Thompson will be able to stick around and fill the gaping hole that Fogg, Belisle, and Bailey, etal. could not? DaveBy Y-City Jim
June 21, 2008 8:26 PM | Link to this
Saw this on Fay’s blog: I guess on WLW Extra Innings today they said that Keppinger would be activated for tomorrow’s game. He was not in the Bats line-up today.By Y-City Jim
June 21, 2008 8:22 PM | Link to this
If Bailey had the kind of ball movement that Thompson has he would be a whole different pitcher.By coach
June 21, 2008 8:11 PM | Link to this
I couldn’t help but think how much Thompson physically looked like a young Satchel Paige. The slim build—the way he wore his hat. Terrific was he.Uplifting performance. New hope abounds! I have to believe that within five years, this team will be remade into a force to be reckoned with.By HuberTucky
June 21, 2008 7:46 PM | Link to this
Watched and ejoyed the whole game. Thompson? Just one game but I really like his grit. He’s got good stuff and seemed fearless. VERY much unlike what we’ve seen from Homer. What a difference. Thompson was poised and confident and mostly went after the hitters and got himself out of EVERY jam. Seemed fearless. Hell of a first game young man, especially considering WHERE your 1st game was! Congratulations and thanks! We really NEED you!By Y-City Jim
June 21, 2008 7:40 PM | Link to this
jimt, I want the players held accountable because you are right, they should know. Mike, I think Marty needs to get back to the basics, which is play-by-play. It sounds like a social most of the time.By Mike-Cinci
June 21, 2008 7:08 PM | Link to this
Speaking of keeping their heads in the game has anyone else noticed that the self described Hall of Famer, Marty Brennaman, is making a large number of errors during his broadcast. He gets the players and teams wrong, he has the ball hit to left when it goes to right, he gets the outs and pitch counts wrong, and this past week had the team the Reds were playing wrong. He misses players coming into a game for defensive purposes. He gets the inning and score wrong. It is getting worse the last couple of years. I hate to bring this up but Marty is not shy about critcizing players who make mistakes. For a guy who is sitting down all game he makes a ton of unforced errors. Maybe he is losing a step!By jimt
June 21, 2008 6:51 PM | Link to this
Y-city Jim, Let me understand this, you want to blame the manager because the PROFESSIONAL ballplayers can’t keep track of how many outs there are in a inning.Don’t you think they should know the basics before they get to this level. /especially vets like balo and WheathersBy Jeff in Oakwood
June 21, 2008 6:44 PM | Link to this
We can’t predict how successful Daryl Thompson will be over the next several years, but he clearly has the make-up that is required of a Major League pitcher. For those people who were sniping about how Bowden got the best of Krivsky, take a look at what Kearns and Lopez have done in DC. Both are players with some talent but have very little work ethic. Ryan Wagner is yet another example of wasted talent. For the Reds, Bray is developing into a good reliever and Majewski is starting to look like the relief pitcher he was with the Nationals. If Thomson develops into a solid starter for the Reds, that trade will turn into just another piece of evidence why Leather Pants is one of the worst GMs in modern day baseball.By Mighty Forego
June 21, 2008 5:50 PM | Link to this
Just back from the big Ballyard in the South Bronx. A great day for Reds fans and there were a lot of them there. Lots of cheers when EE got his big 2 out hit.By Y-City Jim
June 21, 2008 5:19 PM | Link to this
So who is coaching this team? You forgot some of the base running blunders this team has pulled off the past couple of days. Next up for Thompson: C.C. Sabathia on Friday in Cleveland.