Stinking Pitching Thwarts Stirring Comeback

Reds 10

Twins 7

We were so close. So very close.

The Twins mustered up the most exciting inning of this whole season today, only to have the results of it immediately nullified by yet another bullpen implosion.  

For the first 7 innings there was little to indicate there would be anything particularly memorable about this game, aside from it being my 1st time seeing the Reds play in person since the great '06 trip. 

Bailey Ober started, and he did alright for a while. He did give up a homerun to the #9 hitter, but Ryan Jeffers hit a two run shot to give the Twins a 2-1 lead. Then it kind of fell apart in the 5th. Kepler failed to make an admittedly tough play against the wall, allowing the go ahead runs to score. Duffey came in and in typical Twins bullpen fashion allowed an inherited runner to score. It would have been two, but Larnach made a great throw home to nail the trailing runner.

Nothing else happened until the 8th, when we had to suffer through some more Alex Colome crap. Yes, the 3 Cincy runs off him included a Sano misplay at 3rd, but jesus this guy is just guaranteed to have bad stuff happen in his outings. 

Much of the crowd hit the exits at 7-2. But they would regret it.

In the bottom.of the 8th, the Reds pulled dominating starter Wade Miley and gave their own cruddy bullpen a shot. 3 Reds relievers came in. Each got rocked. 

Max Kepler hit a two run shot over the right centerfield wall. Larnach hit an absolute solo moonshot that clanged off the grandstand stairs. Miguel Sano hit a laser to left that had it been even an inch higher becomes a game tying homerun instead of a double. No matter. The next batter Alex Kirilloff blasted a ball off the scoreboard to tie the game.

There are few experiences more unique at a ballpark than sticking around after most have left and seeing a rally. It feels like you have been specially rewarded.

And with a team riding a 5 game win streak, and on the verge of getting to 9 games under .500 in a season where, honestly, getting back to .500 is the only realistic goal....yeah, it was pretty exciting stuff. I've never seen such a big comeback win in person. Maybe we get a walkoff. The dreams were plentiful.

And Hansel Robles fucking RUINED it. 

The supposed feather in the cap of this last disastrous offseason for the Falvine apologists to point to and brag about. Robles got the first out, but then Nick Castellanos doubled. I guess he mocked Hansel's delivery motion and Robles took offense to that. But Robles unraveled. He plunked the next batter, then served up a meatball that Tyler Naquin deposited deep into the bullpen. Just like that, that whole rousing 5 run comeback was ruined.

To spin it in a positive way, I guess, the Twins team we saw in April or May would have had NO chance to even rally. And it was a very entertaining game, probably one of the more memorable Twins losses I've been to.

But like so much in the 2021 season, it ended in frustration and disappointment.