Observations from Cincinnati Reds 4-2 Win Over Chicago Cubs

The Cincinnati Reds moved to 3-1-1 on the spring with a 4-2 win over their National League Central rivals, the Chicago Cubs, on Saturday afternoon in Mesa, Arizona.

Here are some observations from the game:

Cave, Ervin keep on raking

Few hitters have impressed through five games more than young outfielders Jake Cave and Phillip Ervin. Cave picked up hits in both of his at-bats against the Cubs, raising his spring slash line to .500/.556/.600. In vast sea of candidates for a backup outfield spot, the Rule 5 selection has really been turning some heads with his early play. Ervin has gotten off to an equally hot start, though he’s not competing for a roster spot. The 2013 first-round pick smacked a solo home run on Saturday and is now 5-for-9 on the spring. It’s been an up-and-down professional career for Ervin to this point, but it’s easy to see his potential with his plus power, speed and on-base skills.

Finnegan impresses in second spring appearance

After coming on to throw a scoreless inning out of the bullpen in the Reds’ first game of the spring, Brandon Finnegan made his first start against the Cubs, tossing two innings of shutout, one-hit baseball. Adding to the southpaw’s solid day was a pair of strikeouts. Early indications are that Walt Jocketty and Co. made a sound decision in letting Finnegan start instead of pitching in relief as he did in his brief time with the Kansas City Royals.

Devin who?

With Devin Mesoraco continuing to work his way back from hip surgery last year, additional at-bats have gone the way of Tucker Barnhart. It’s safe to say he’s made them count. The switch-hitting catcher has hit the ball with authority all spring and on Saturday, he launched a two-run, opposite-field home run to put the Reds on the board. Through four games, he’s now 3-for-6 with two extra-base hits and a walk. While Reds fans were undoubtedly disappointed to see Brayan Pena leave via free agency, Barnhart has proven he can play at the big-league level and should be a more than adequate backup to Mesoraco for years to come.

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Other Notes

• Tony Cingrani, Carlos Contreras and Drew Hayes pitched a shutout inning in relief, each striking out one.
• Blake Wood and A.J. Morris both pitched two frames and gave up a run. Morris did strike out three, however.
• The early struggles continued for Jose Peraza, who went 0-for-2 and is now hitless through seven at-bats. Looks like we can go ahead and say the Reds lost this trade. (This is a joke. Please don’t say mean things to me in the comments.)
• While Peraza continues to search for his first base knock, Yorman Rodriguez was able to get off the schneid on Saturday with a ninth-inning single.