After an 8-1 road trip and currently riding an eight game winning streak, the Cincinnati Reds (37-35) return home to Great American Ball Park Monday night to face a Colorado Rockies (29-45) team that has lost five straight games and is buried in the basement of the NL West division. First pitch is at 7:10 EDT, pending weather.
Lineups
Colorado Rockies
|
Cincinnati Reds |
| LF Jurickson Profar | 3B Kevin Newman |
| RF Randal Grichuk | 2B Matt McLain |
| 3B Ryan McMahon | DH Jonathan India |
| C Elias Diaz | SS Elly De La Cruz |
| DH Jorge Alfaro | LF Spencer Steer |
| 1B Nolan Jones | 1B Joey Votto |
| CF Brenton Doyle | RF Nick Senzel |
| 2B Coco Montes | C Tyler Stephenson |
| SS Connor Kaiser | CF Stuart Fairchild |
Although not in the lineup tonight, Mike Moustakas makes his return to GABP this week. I don’t think he’ll get the same reception that Joey Votto will.
Starting Pitchers
Austin Gomber
With a 7.29 ERA and a 6.34 FIP, 29-year-old Austin Gomber has not had a great season for the Rockies. However, when you dive into his splits, it’s clear that he’s a much better pitcher away from Coors Field. In 37.1 innings at home, he has a 9.40 ERA and has allowed 12 home runs. Away from Coors Field, he has a 4.60 ERA in 29.1 innings. His most recent start came at Fenway on June 14, and while he took the loss, he did pitch a quality start, giving up only three runs in six innings and striking out five while walking only one.
Gomber is not a huge strikeout guy, with only 44 strikeouts in 66.2 innings. He also has gotten destroyed by left-handed hitters this season. Even in only 68 plate appearances, lefties are batting .390/.448/.712 against him, with a 1.160 OPS. It’s why my hope for tonight is this:
In 68 plate appearances this season, left-handed hitters are hitting almost .400 and have a 1.160 OPS against Rockies pitcher Austin Gomber. Can’t wait to see Joey Votto go yard off this guy and wear the Viking helmet for the first time.
— Ashley Davis (@AshleyDavis32) June 19, 2023
Splits
| Split | PA | H | 2B | 3B | HR | BB% | K% | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| RHH | 235 | 62 | 19 | 0 | 11 | 9% | 14% | .291 | .355 | .535 |
| LHH | 68 | 23 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 10% | 15% | .390 | .448 | .712 |
Pitch Usage
| 4-Seam | 2-Seam | Curve | Slider | Change | |
| Velo | 91.9 | 90.9 | 78.1 | 85.1 | 82.2 |
| Usage | 43.6% | 0.2% | 18.8% | 16.6% | 20.8% |
Brandon Williamson
It’s gotten worse for left-hander Brandon Williamson in his last three starts. In the month of June, he’s allowed 11 earned runs on 20 hits, including five home runs, in 17.1 innings. He had allowed eight runs in his first 14.1 innings in the big leagues through the month of May. He has cut down on the walks recently, only walking four, as compared to nine in the three starts he made in May.
The good news for Williamson is that the best start of his short major league career came in his debut against these Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. He pitched 5.2 innings, only giving up one run on two hits and striking out six.
Splits
| Split | PA | H | 2B | 3B | HR | BB% | K% | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| RHH | 112 | 25 | 7 | 1 | 7 | 10% | 16% | .250 | .330 | .880 |
| LHH | 26 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8% | 15% | .304 | .346 | .304 |
Pitch Usage
| 4-Seam | Cutter | Curve | Slider | Change | |
| Velo | 92.1 | 87.8 | 73.0 | 81.5 | 84.1 |
| Usage | 31.5% | 27.1% | 8.4% | 18.4% | 14.6% |
Details:
- Time: 7:10 pm EDT
- Place: Great American Ball Park
- TV: Bally Sports Ohio
- Radio: 700 WLW
- Forecast: 73°, cloudy, 37 percent chance of precipitation
News and Notes
#19 is back
The Reds activated Joey Votto from the IL and he will make his season debut at GABP tonight.
More Accolades for Reds Minor Leaguers
For the second consecutive week, Connor Phillips has been named Southern League Pitcher of the Week!
? 12 IP
? 1.50 ERA
? 20 K
? 1 BB pic.twitter.com/IjzTUgIbki— Reds On The Rise (@RedsOnTheRise) June 19, 2023
Final Thoughts
No words–I’m just going to leave you with this photo of Joey Votto with a giant smile on his face, because this is also how I feel about the return of #19.
“So, the excitement today is very clear, that you’re excited to be back?”
Joey’s response? No words, just a giant smile. ? pic.twitter.com/oER0MSUT4s
— Cincinnati Reds (@Reds) June 19, 2023
