Cincinnati Reds: Where has the offense gone during this road trip?

The Cincinnati Reds offense has been nonexistent over the past four games. It’s not just getting on base, but it’s getting those runners in to score.

The Cincinnati Reds lost another road game last night. The Milwaukee Brewers dismantled the Reds 8-0 in Game 1 of a 3-game set in Milwaukee. The Reds are now 1-3 on their road trip with 6 games to play and have scored only 5 runs in those 4 games. Where has the Reds offense gone?

The Reds are 5 losses away from another 90-loss season. What seemed like a resurgence under interim manager Jim Riggleman has come to a screeching halt. After a dominating performance in June had the Reds fans believing again, this September has been a stark reminder of how far they still have to go.

Granted, the Reds have played 4 games against the NL’s best, and up until last night have been in every game. Even more astounding, until last night, was the fact that the starting pitching was not the Reds undoing. Unfortunately, it was the offense.

The Reds’ bats were not silenced by the Brewers last night. Cincinnati had 8 hits, but only 1 went for extra bases. Backup catcher Tim Federowicz laced a double into the outfield at Miller Park in the top of the ninth inning. The Reds’ starting catcher on Monday night, Curt Casali, was the only player to have multiple hits in the game.

The Reds All-Star trio of Scooter Gennett, Eugenio Suarez, and Joey Votto went 1-for-10 last night. In fact, Gennett, Suarez, and Votto have a combined average of .237 (9-for-38) over the last 4 road games. The Reds can’t get production like that from their stars and expect to be competitive.

Even more shocking might be the Cincinnati Reds team as a whole with runners in scoring position. Mason Williams had the first hit last night for the Reds with runners in scoring position on this road trip. Cincinnati was 0-for-24 until Williams hit in the ninth inning, which didn’t even score Federowicz from second base.

I realize that it’s late in the season in a year that’s lost, but the Cincinnati Reds have to find a way to score runs. Riggleman reset the entire infield in the eighth inning, putting Tucker Barnhart at first base, Dilson Herrera at second, Brandon Dixon at third, and Blake Trehan at shortstop. Even Federowicz replaced Casali behind the plate.

If the Reds starters can’t get the bats going, maybe it’s time to turn to a few of the younger players on the team. With the season all but over, it would be nice to see if the Cincinnati Reds have any keepers among their youngsters.