PALMS ROUTED IN QUEEN CITY AS BUNDY, BATS STRUGGLE

 The Miami Palms stepped into Great American Ball Park on Wednesday looking to keep pace in the AL race. Instead, they ran into a Cincinnati lineup that found barrels early and often, handing Miami an 8–2 defeat in the opener.

Dylan Bundy never settled in. The Reds ambushed him with a run in the first, then cracked things fully open with a two-run third and a five-run fourth. By the time Scott Hatteberg came to get him after five innings, Cincinnati had tagged the right-hander for nine hits, eight runs, no walks and seven punchouts.

“Bundy had good stuff,” Hatteberg said after the game, shaking his head. “Velocity was there, break was there. But they were on everything up in the zone. Sometimes hitters tell you more than the radar gun does.”

The biggest blows came from Josh VanMeter, who delivered a three-hit, three-RBI performance, including a booming homer into the right-field seats in that fourth-inning avalanche. Shogo Akiyama added two doubles and two RBI, while Jesse Winker and Eugenio Suárez each chipped in run-scoring swings.

The Palms, meanwhile, never found the sustained pressure they had shown during their recent stretch of strong play. Chris Korb smashed two hits, including an RBI single in the third, while Brock Holt doubled home the other Miami run in the second. Miami actually out-hit Cincinnati through three innings—then watched the Reds pull away while Trevor Bauer tightened the screws.

Bauer was sharp and relentless, carving through Miami for 7 innings, 8 hits, 2 earned, no walks and seven strikeouts, with his fastball tunneling perfectly off his sharp cutter. The Palms struck out eight times and never drew a walk against the Reds’ staff.

“It wasn’t approach, it wasn’t preparation,” said Korb. “Bauer just didn’t give us mistakes. When he’s got that thing moving three directions, you tip your cap and get ready for tomorrow.”

Brian Matusz and Mike Morin stabilized things late, combining for three scoreless innings, but the damage had long since been done.

Despite the loss, Miami (32–26) remains in the thick of the NL Wild Card mix, but the momentum they carried out of Atlanta cooled quickly in Ohio. The club turns to Erick Fedde tomorrow in hopes of taking the rubber match before heading to Toronto for a weekend series.

Hatteberg kept perspective afterward.

“It’s one game,” he said. “We’ve won plenty on this trip. Win tomorrow, and it’s a good road week.”

The Palms will look to prove him right.


 Cincinnati Reds 8, Miami Palms 2

 Wednesday, May 27, 2020

 

 

 Miami Palms (32-26)                                      Cincinnati Reds (1-1)                                   

 Player          AB R  H BI BB SO  P  A  E LOB   Ave      Player          AB R  H BI BB SO  P  A  E LOB   Ave      

 ------          -- -  - -- -- --  -  -  - ---   ---      ------          -- -  - -- -- --  -  -  - ---   ---      

 Munoz ss        4  1  1  0  0  2  0  2  0  1   .315      Winker lf       5  0  3  1  0  0  3  0  0  0   .500

 Markakis lf     4  0  1  0  0  1  0  0  0  0   .339      Suarez 3b       5  1  1  1  0  1  1  0  0  4   .250

 Grant rf        4  0  2  0  0  1  4  0  0  0   .278      Votto 1b        4  0  1  0  0  1  8  2  0  1   .333

 Encarnacion dh  4  0  0  0  0  1  0  0  0  1   .265      Castellanos rf  4  1  1  0  0  2  1  0  0  0   .250

 Korb 3b         4  1  2  1  0  0  0  3  0  1   .277      Moustakas 2b    4  1  1  0  0  1  0  3  0  0   .125

 Sohn cf         4  0  1  0  0  2  4  0  0  2   .274      Barnhart c      4  1  1  1  0  1  8  0  0  1   .375

 Wieters c       4  0  0  0  0  1  10 0  0  0   .249      Galvis ss       4  0  0  0  0  3  0  4  0  0   .000

 Holt 1b         4  0  1  1  0  0  6  0  0  0   .254      Akiyama cf      4  2  3  2  0  1  4  0  0  0   .500

 Koch 2b         4  0  1  0  0  0  0  1  0  2   .295      VanMeter dh     4  2  3  3  0  0  0  0  0  0   .750

 

                 -- -  - -- -- -- -- -- -- ---                            -- -  - -- -- -- -- -- -- ---            

 Totals          36 2  9  2  0  8  24 6  0  7             Totals          38 8  14 8  0  10 27 9  0  6  

 

 

                         1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8  9      R  H  E

                         -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -  -      -  -  -

 Miami Palms             0  1  1  0  0  0  0  0  0      2  9  0  

 Cincinnati Reds         1  0  2  5  0  0  0  0         8  14 0  

 

 

 

 LOB- Miami Palms 7, Cincinnati Reds 6; 2B- Holt(5), Winker(2), Akiyama 2(2), Castellanos(1),

 VanMeter 2(2); HR- Suarez(1), VanMeter(1); RBI- Holt(14), Korb(32), Winker(2),

 Suarez(2), Barnhart(3), Akiyama 2(2), VanMeter 3(3); RLSP- Koch 2, Sohn, Suarez 2,

 Votto, Barnhart;  

 

  

  

 

 

 Miami Palms                IP   H  R  ER BB SO    ERA

 Bundy(L 2-5)               5.0  9  8  8  0  7    5.63  

 Matusz                     2.0  3  0  0  0  1    4.50  

 Morin                      1.0  2  0  0  0  2    4.03  

 

 Cincinnati Reds            IP   H  R  ER BB SO    ERA

 Bauer(W 1-0)               7.0  8  2  2  0  7    2.57  

 Garrett                    2.0  1  0  0  0  1    0.00  

 

 Pitches-strikes- Bundy 82-54, Matusz 24-18, Morin 16-15, Bauer 101-71, Garrett 16-10;

 Batters faced- Bundy 24, Matusz 9, Morin 5, Bauer 29, Garrett 7; 


  

 

  

 Temp - 77, Sky - Mostly Cloudy, Wind - SE 3mph 

 

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