John Lamb rights ship, navigates Cincinnati Reds to win over Rockies

The Cincinnati Reds were able to bounce back from a drubbing to get a win on Wednesday.

With a 7-2 victory over the Colorado Rockies, the Reds will have an opportunity to win their first series in over a month in Thursday’s finale in Denver. The outcome was a result of contributions from the entire club, as Cincinnati got offense early and often to go along with a rock solid pitching performance.

The Reds now move to 18-35 on the season and 6-20 on the road.

Here are some observations from the game:

Lamb rebounds

Coors Field typically isn’t a good place for a pitcher to get his confidence going again following a rough start, but that’s exactly what John Lamb did on Wednesday. After getting knocked around by the Milwaukee Brewers his last time out, the left-hander was able to hold the Rockies offense to just one run in a career-high seven innings, one night after the club had bashed Reds pitching for 17 runs. En route to his first win, he had his best game of the season from a command standpoint, issuing only one walk and throwing 65 of his 92 pitches for strikes. Considering he gave up a lot of contact — he had a mere two strikeouts — the performance was even more impressive given the park it came in.

Billy ball

Someone is going to have to drag Billy Hamilton to the plane when the Reds leave Denver. The speedy center fielder had another big day, going 3-for-5 with two doubles (one on a routine grounder up the middle — yeah, he’s fast), two stolen bases, two runs batted in and a run scored. In the series, he’s 7-for-13 with three doubles, four runs, three steals, three RBI and a walk. He’s been showing improvement at the plate this year, and his recent hot streak has raised his triple slash line to .255/.300/.386. Additionally, he already has 12 doubles, four more than he had all of last season.

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Production across the board

Hamilton wasn’t the only Reds hitter to contribute to the win. Zack Cozart continues to heat back up in the leadoff spot, as he hit a single on the first pitch of the game and later added a double, his team-leading 15th of the year. Jay Bruce also stayed hot, smacking his 11th home run of the season in the eighth inning. Additionally, Joey Votto and Eugenio Suarez reached base three times (single, two walks) and Ramon Cabrera drove home two runs.

Notes:

• Ross Ohlendorf kept his string of solid outings going, throwing a scoreless ninth inning. He’s emerged as the Reds’ most reliable reliever and should continue to get late-inning opportunities moving forward.
• Tony Cingrani‘s inconsistency continued in this one, allowing a walk and an unearned run in the eighth inning. He also airmailed a throw into center field on what should’ve been a routine double play.
• For a second straight game, Brandon Phillips was out of the lineup with a sore left ankle.