Vladimir Gutierrez Pitches Reds Cactus League Opener Shogo Akiyama CF

The Reds start the Cactus League after a wet Saturday postponed the opener. The Reds started it today against the Chicago White Sox.

Vladimir Gutierrez out of Cuba gets the start. Shogo Akiyama singled in his first at bat off Chicago Pitcher Dylan Cease.  Jesse Winker was hit by a pitch and left the game.  Rule V draftee Mark Payton took his place but Winker's left wrist is fine.  Matt Davidson also left the game after he was hit on the hand with a pitch.  Winker appeared to be fine but had his forearm x-rayed.  There were no results available after the game.

Akiyama quickly got his first fielding chance fielding James McCann's fly ball in the second inning.  The Arizona sky makes it difficult to track fly balls.  Akiyama appeared to adapt.

The 31-year old Japanese League veteran was 1-for-3 and was caught stealing.  He had two fairly routine put outs in center field, given that it is difficult to track balls in the air in Arizona.

"I am relieved I got my first hit," Akiyama said through interpreter Luke Shinoda.  "I know how to prepare for the game.  At least for today, I was able to see the ball. I've heard that a lot of MLB ballparks it is hard to see. I always check the sun to see where the ball is. The best for me was to be able to play a game today, to see how the ball flew."

Gutierrez pitched two scoreless innings and gave way to Tejay Antone, who's father-in-law is named Gary Schatz. Antone pitched two scoreless innings. When the Reds regulars left the game after getting two or three at bats, there was no score.

The White Sox scored two runs against Lucas Sims.  James McCann doubled to open the fifth inning. Nicky Delmonico walked.  McCann scored on a single by Leury Garcia;

The White Sox' Seby Zavala hit the  first home run of the spring off Alex Powers.

The Reds didn't score until the eighth inning when they cut the lead to 3-2 when Stuart Fairchild hit a two-run home run off Matt Tomshaw with Tyler Stephenson who doubled.

The game got away from the Reds in a four-run ninth by Chicago.  Chris Volstad was the pitcher but two errors by the Reds' top draft choice.in 2018, third baseman Jonathan India made two errors.  Volstad was charged with four runs but only one was earned.

Despite the 7-2 loss manager David Bell was happy to get games started.  He has a lot to sort our with a lot of newcomers, including Akiyama.  There are nine outfielders on the 40-man roster.  He has to find out about players like Mark Payton, who was 0-for-2 today.

"We had good pitching early on.  It was good to get the first one under our belt," Bell said. "Some good things happened.  It got away from us there in the end.  It was good to start playing games."

"Akiyama looked comfortable," Bell said. "I know it's just spring training but it's kind of nice to get a hit in your first at bat.  It kind of takes the pressure off.  He settled in pretty quick after that.  He said he was nervous before the game.  I didn't see it. There were some extra feelings there for him, I'm sure, getting into the flow of the game really quick, getting a hit and getting on base, helps that a lot."

"Jesse is getting an x-ray just to be sure.  I'm not 100% if Davidson is getting an x-ray," Bell said.  "I haven't seen results but they appear to be fine."

The Reds First Exhibition Game Is Rained Out

The Reds were scheduled to open the Cactus League but the Phoenix weather did an impersonation of Seattle.

The Reds with Shogo Akiyama scheduled to make his Reds' debut Sunday when the Reds host the Chicago White Sox.

David Bell is leaning to push the lineup he chose for today, to Sunday

This is the expected lineup against the White Sox on Sunday.

Shogo Akiyama CF
Aristedes Aquino RF
Jesse Winker LF
Curt Casalli C
Kyle Farmer SS
Derek Dietrich 2B
Matt Davidson 1B
Scott Schebler DH
Alex Blandino 3B

Lucas Sims, Justin Shafer and pitchers from minor league camp were scheduled to start on Sunday but Bell might push Vladimir Guiterriez, TeJay Antone, Jose De Leon, Tonny Santillan and Alex Powers back a day.

Cactus League Begins Reds Begin Sorting Outfielders and Look For Lead Off Hitter

The Reds will open the Cactus League against the Cleveland Indians, weather permitting.

Heavy rain is forecast with flood watches.

Vladimir Guitierez will start.  Tejay Antone is scheduled to pitch a couple innings. Jose Deleon, Tony Santillan and Alex Powers will pitch as well.

Nick Castellanos, Joey Votto and Tucker Barnhart are expected to play 3-5 innings and get two or three at bats.

Shogo Akiyama will get a start against the Chicago White Sox on Sunday.

"We need to see all the outfielders to see what they can do," David Bell said. 

Nick Senzell and Eugenio Suarez will play later.  Senzell is on a throwing program but he is hitting and running bases.  Suarez is also staying in shape after having loose cartilage removed from his right shoulder.

Bell doesn't know who it will be yet but he has a prototype in mind to lead off for the Reds.  Senzell did some of it last season.  Castellanos had a .356 on-base-percentage last season.  Akiyama reaches base a lot and can run.

"We need to create more opportunities to score," Bell said.  "I don't have anybody specific in mind but I have a type of player in mind.  Getting on base will be important and it will help if they can run too."

Michael Lorenzen Will Get More Outfield Time

Michael Lorenzen will get more work in the outfield in spite of nine players competing for five spots in the outfield on the roster.

The Major Leagues have expanded the rosters to 26 this season and have capped the number of pitchers at 13.  From opening day to August 31, teams can have 26 players which expands to 28 active players in September.

Lorenzen is a special case.  He started in centerfield in six games last year with three or more plate appearances.  If a player pitches at least 20 innings, plays a defensive position or is a designated hitter in 20 games in which he has at least three plate appearances, he can be designated a two-way player and would essentially be the 14th pitcher on the roster.

Shohei Ohtani is the only player in the Major Leagues to qualify for 2020, although Lorenzens six games can be used to make him eligible to be designated a two-way player.

David Bell plans to use Lorenzen in similar roles this season.

“I don't know what the date was but there was a point at the end of last season, we said ok, when you're available as a position player, he will be totally available," Bell said. " Early on I was a little bit hesitant because I was worried about his energy level.  He was so important to our bullpen by the end of the year it got to where. It is different from day-to-day.  Depending where he is as a pitcher, his availability factors intova how I can use him for a game.  It will be different everyday but I'm not going to hold  him back in that way. If there is a way that we can win a game as a position player and it doesn't effect his pitching, he will be totally available.”

It was difficult for Bell last year to pull the trigger on use of Lorenzen's versatility.

“It was a combination of me feeling comfortable and his energy level,"  Bell said.  "I do think at some point, I realized that I probably held him back a little bit too much.  We got to a point in the year, that I felt like we could see the end.  I wasn't as concerned about wearing him out.  I said now is the time to see this and find out. He handled it extremely well.  It was important to go through that.”

Ther use of Lorenzen is difficult because of the requirements involved and the Reds are loaded with outfielders, the Reds signed Shogo Akiyama,Travis Jankowski and Nick Castellanos to join Aristedes Aquino, Phillip Ervin, Scott Schebler, Nick Senzel and Jesse Winker.   The Reds claimed outfielder Mark Payton off the A's roster in the Rule V draft.

“The way it would have taken him to qualify as the 14th pitcher.  It would have taken him starting every day almost.  It would have been tough. Right now just the one player qualifies for it. You never know.  We will see how that rule evolves.”

The 26-man roster provides more flexibility.  Last season Jose Peraza, who signed with the Boston Red Sox, and infielder Josh VanMeter and Kyle Farmer played in the outfield.

“We have to maximize it.  I know all the teams. We like to be able to carry 13 pitchers.  We have to make the most of it during the season.  Absolutely, it opens a spot for an extra position player.  We have some good options.  We have a guy like Kyle Farmer, who can catch and play multiple positions.  Potentially, carrying a third catcher will be an easier thing to do.  It opens up a lot of flexibility with the  roster.  It creates more opportunity for more guys.”

“Lorenzen doesn't qualify as a two-way player. He will have to be classified as a pitcher on the roster. We still have the ability to use him as a position player like we did last year.  This year he will have to be classified as one of the 13 pitchers.”

First Workout Reveals Decisions For David Bell

The Reds held a full squad workout for the first time this spring,‭  ‬David Bell has a laundry list of decisions to make.

Freddie Galvis will move back to his natural position at shortstop,‭ ‬replacing Jose Iglesias,‭ ‬who signed with the Baltimore Orioles.

‭“‬Freddie was a really great addition in the middle of the year,‭” ‬David Bell said.‭ “‬He is a really tough guy and winner.‭  ‬He fit in beautifully on our team.‭  ‬You look at what he’s done throughout his career as a shortstop and the consistency he provides.‭ ‬We need him.‭  ‬I believe offensively,‭ ‬he can continue to get better.‭”

Mike Moustakas is expected to move to second base after making most of his big league starts at third base.‭  ‬The Reds are confident that Eugenio Suarez will be ready close to the start of the season after having loose cartilage removed from his right shoulder.‭  ‬If he is not ready,‭ ‬Moustakas can fill in until Suarez is ready.

‭“‬Freddie Benevides will work with him,‭” ‬said Bell who was a big league third baseman as a player.‭  “‬If you played third base the transition is easier.‭  ‬He just has to get his footwork down.‭”

There are nine oufielders that need to be cut in half to fill the newly expanded roster of‭ ‬26‭ ‬players,‭ ‬only‭ ‬13‭ ‬of which can be pitchers.‭  ‬That gives teams a minimum of five bench players per game.‭ 

Aristedes Aquino and Phillip Ervin finished the‭ ‬2019‭ ‬in the Reds‭’ ‬outfield.‭  ‬Nick Senzel and Jesse Winker remain on the roster but were injured at the end of last season.‭  ‬Senzel had a torn labrum in his right shoulder repaired in September.‭  ‬Winker went down for the remainder of the season on August‭ ‬22‭ ‬with a cervical strain.‭  ‬He is fully recovered.‭  ‬Scott Schebler spent most of the year in Louisville.‭  ‬After playing in‭ ‬30‭ ‬games for the Reds,‭ ‬Schebler played in just‭ ‬53‭ ‬games for the Bats,‭ ‬hitting just‭ ‬.216‭ ‬in a season full of nagging injuries.

‭“‬I always thought highly of Scheb,‭” ‬Bell said.‭  “‬I know it was a disappointing year for him.‭ ‬You go through stuff like that sometimes.‭  ‬It is usually related to health like it was last year for Scheb.‭  ‬I’m looking forward to seeing him healthy.‭ ‬He’s still young.‭  ‬There is absolutely a path for him.‭”


The Reds added Travis Jankowski from the San Diego Padres for international salary cap space.‭  ‬They signed Nick Castellanos and Shogo Akiyama to free agent contracts.‭  ‬They claimed left handed hitting,‭ ‬Mark Payton,‭ ‬in the Rule V draft from the Oakland Athletics system.‭  ‬The Reds have to keep him on the roster all season or offer him back to the Athletics for half the claiming price of‭ ‬$100,000.

‭“‬Mark Payton is going to get an opportunity,‭” ‬Bell said.‭ “‬He absolutely has a chance to be on this team.‭  ‬We selected him for a reason.‭ ‬He is a guy who had a bit of a break through last year.‭  ‬You see that more and more.‭  ‬A player will make an adjustment and really take off.‭”

Payton hit‭ ‬.334‭ ‬with‭ ‬30‭ ‬home runs for Las Vegas last season.

‭ Former Reds‭’ ‬center fielder was working with a group of outfielders that included Akiyama on Tuesday.‭  ‬The‭ ‬31-year old outfielder from Japan played a lot in center field,‭ ‬is expected to play in right or left field.‭

Bell will give him a chance to blend in using his experience,‭ ‬watching Ichiro Suzuki in his first year with the Mariners

‭“‬Ichiro had his own way of preparing for a season that was new and different,‭ ‬Bell said.‭ “‬I don’t remember him having much success in spring training to the point there was some concern from management and our manager‭ (‬Lou Piniella‭)‬.‭  ‬Ichiro had a plan.‭  ‬All of a sudden the season started.‭ ‬He knew exactly what he was doing.‭”

Akiyama will get the similar benefit ot the doubt.

‭“‬It is very important to keep it in perspective,‭” ‬Bell said.‭  “‬I try not to get real caught up in results.‭  ‬I’d rather take a deeper look.‭  ‬I’m just hoping to support Shogo.‭ ‬We are really fortunate,‭ ‬he chose to be here.‭  ‬It is not easy what he’s doing.‭  ‬We have to allow him to from a comfort standpoint,‭ ‬that he’s been for a long time.‭”

Joey Votto Rested and Ready to Rock

Joey Votto needed a break from the worst season of his career.

"I had a lot of downtime,” Votto said..  I did a lot of training but no baseball stuff. I feel good and ready to go.”

The 36-year old decided to pace himself and take a mental break from the game and come into the season refreshed and ready to go.  The Reds brought the position players in closer to the opening of the Cactus League games.  It was the approached Votto used to ramp up for the season.

"I've had off seasons before where I didn't do any baseball stuff and just conditioned.  I needed to just get away from baseball stuff for awhile," Votto said.

Votto has been through lean times and good times with the Reds.  As a youthful player himself, he broke into the big leagues himself in 2007 with 24 games in which he showed promise, hitting .321.  The next season, he was a regular.  By 2010 he was an MVP of the National League Central division champion.

Votto is a six-time NL All-Star, a Sporting News NL All-Star and the only Reds’ first baseman ever to win a Rawlings Gold Glove Award. He received NL Most Valuable Player Award votes seven times in the 10 seasons, six times finished among the Top 10 and three times finished
among the Top 3.

The longest tenured current Reds player, who signed a 10-year contract through the 2023 season, he was a star player on a team that has suffered six losing seasons as they tried to rebuild.  Votto was not himself last season. His batting average was 40 points below his career average.  He hit just 15 home runs and walked just 76 times, the only time he has been below 100 walks in a season where he didn’t spend significant time on the injured list.

"Last year was the worst season of my career,” Votto said. “I played poorly and I don't want to rehash that.”

He decided to come to Arizona earlier than the appointed time.  He has been in and our of camp but didn’t work out a lot.

“I wanted to get acclimated to Arizona,” Votto said. “I was going to go on a trip I was going to go on a trip before I got here. But I decided against it because I didn’t want to deal with too much jet lag. I will have to save that for after we win the World Series”

Even though he was cleansing his mind from baseball.  He was aware of the many off season moves the front office was making.

"I followed the moves this winter,” Votto said. “I got a lot of messages from friends updating me on how we were looking. I was shocked for sure and it seemed like it was one after the other. I was pleasantly surprised.”

“Like anybody who has watched this team over the last little bit, I think we’re excited about being competitive throughout the entire season. If we stay healthy, we will play some meaningful baseball in September and hopefully in October,” Votto said.

Anthony DeSclafain First Player in Rebuild Deems Reds Ready

Anthony DeSclafani reflected on his best off season in years as he looked around the clubhouse that contained the Reds‭' ‬upgraded roster.‭ ‬That was clear when Pedro Strop entered the room and so many players who have had a heated rivalry with him as a Cubs reliever for the last six years roster.

The new faces and new attitude arrived together and DeSclafani watched from his winter home in Freehold,‭ ‬New Jersey.

‭“‬It was very exciting,‭” ‬Desclafani said.‭ “‬Early on it was clear that they‭ (‬front office‭) ‬was going to spend some money and make some additions.‭ ‬I think they exceeded a lot of people's expectations because of what that could have been.‭ ‬It seems like they added a lot of high quality players but also guys that are probably good team guys.

The first of the new players to sign free agent contracts with the Reds‭’ ‬left handed starter Wade Miley,‭ ‬who will bring a left handed presence to the Reds starting rotation.‭ ‬Sonny Gray,‭ ‬Trevor Bauer and Luis Castillo are expected to join DeSclafani in that rotation with Tyler Mahle adding depth.‭

DeSclafani was among the first wave of younger players that the Reds‭’ ‬wanted to build around.‭  ‬Luis Castillo is another.‭ ‬DeSclafani came to the Reds on December‭ ‬11,‭ ‬2014.‭  ‬Since then he’s had challenges on and off the field.

The Reds just were not a very good team after the last playoff game in‭ ‬2013.‭  ‬DeSclafani showed great promise in‭ ‬2015,‭ ‬making‭ ‬31‭ ‬starts,‭ ‬the most among National League rookies.‭  ‬He had a losing record at‭ ‬9-13‭ ‬with a‭ ‬4.05‭ ‬ERA and also had the most innings of any rookie‭ (‬184‭ ‬2/

‭“‬I've seen big players being traded away when I first got here,‭” ‬DeSclafani said.‭ “‬There were some big time Reds‭' ‬guys‭ (‬Jay Bruce,‭ ‬Johnny Cueto,‭ ‬Todd Frazier,‭ ‬Brandon Phillips,‭ ‬Mike Leake,‭ ‬Homer Bailey,‭ ‬Aroldis‭

The transition was painful on two levels.

‭“‬It was going through a rebuild and what not,‭ ‬It's definitely not fun.‭ ‬It is a completely different vibe now,‭ ‬knowing that nothing short of a World Series ring is acceptable.‭ ‬I feel like everyone feels that we can achieve that.‭  ‬It is up to us.‭”

DeSclafani stayed in tune with the changes in the National League Central with the moves that The St.‭ ‬Louis Cardinals,‭ ‬Chicago Cubs,‭ ‬Milwaukee Brewers and the Pittsburgh Pirates made this winter.

‭“‬The off season is fun in general to watch to see what moves are going on,‭ ‬who is going where.‭ ‬We were the most active in the division,‭ ‬We needed to be.‭ ‬It is very exciting,‭” ‬Desclafani said.

A painless off season after a strong finish to‭ ‬2019‭  ‬added to DeSclafani’s positive vibes.

Ijuries put him on the sidelines for most of the next three seasons.‭  ‬He made‭ ‬20‭ ‬starts in‭ ‬2016‭ ‬with a‭ ‬9-5‭ ‬record and a‭ ‬3.28‭ ‬ERA.‭  ‬He missed all of‭ ‬2017‭ ‬with a sprained right elbow.‭  ‬A strained left oblique limited the‭ ‬29-year old to‭ ‬21‭ ‬starts in which his record was‭ ‬7-8‭ ‬with a‭ ‬4.93‭ ‬ERA.

‭“‬It was great to have a full season under my belt,‭” ‬said the right hander who rebounded with a full‭ ‬31‭ ‬starts again.‭  ‬He was‭ ‬9-9‭ ‬with a very respectable‭ ‬3.98‭ ‬ERA.‭  ‬In his last‭ ‬8‭ ‬starts of the season beginning‭ ‬8/17‭ ‬went‭ ‬2-2,‭ ‬2.39‭ ‬and dropped his ERA from‭ ‬4.51.‭  ‬DeSclafani made five straight starts of at least six innings allowing fewer than three hits.‭  ‬That was the second time since‭ ‬1893‭ ‬when the mound was moved back to‭ ‬60‭‘‬6‭“‬.‭  ‬Only Johan Santana had a longer streak of seven games.‭  ‬He established a career high with‭ ‬151‭ ‬strikeouts,‭ ‬that included the‭ ‬500th of his career.‭  ‬He struck out the first nine Milwaukee Brewers he faced in a start on June‭ ‬23‭ ‬in Milwaukee.‭   ‬His success was not only attributed to his health but equally achieved with some changes made with the guidance of pitching coach.‭ ‬Derek Johnson.‭

“I struggled a few years.‭ ‬I'm feeling strong and healthy,‭” ‬DeSclafani said.‭ “‬I got a full year with mechanical changes and pitch usage‭  ‬If I can build off of that it is going to be an exiting year for me,‭ ‬too.‭”





A

Shogo Akiyama Takes First Batting Practice in America

Shogo Akiyama got into the batter's box and took his first swing with the Cincinnati Reds at spring training. He barely made contact.

“I was very embarrassed,” Akiyama said through translator Luke Shinoda. “I'm looking forward to tomorrow now."

He'll get plenty more chances.

Cincinnati signed Akiyama to a $21 million, three-year deal as part of its expensive offseason makeover. Akiyama, 31, became a free agent after his ninth season with the Seibu Lions in Japan's Pacific League, where he was a five-time All-Star.

The center fielder could move to one of the corner spots in the Reds' unsettled outfield. Manager David Bell envisions him playing often and hitting near the top of the order.

Cincinnati has lacked a dependable leadoff hitter. Akiyama is known for making contact and getting on base. He had 56 triples and 251 doubles with the Lions.

Cincinnati had been the only team in the majors that had not signed a player from Japan. Akiyama feels a responsibility to do well as the breakthrough player.

“I wanted my teammates to remember my name because I'm the first Japanese player," he said Thursday.

For now, it's about getting accustomed to a new country, a new league and a new team. He doesn't know any of his new teammates very well yet. He met third baseman Eugenio Suarez when he was part of a group that toured Japan after the 2017 season.

“It's great to find him here,” Akiyama said.

Akiyama was among players reporting early for spring training. Reds players have physicals on Friday and the first workout of pitchers and catchers a day later. The rest of the roster is required to report next week.

Akiyama introduced himself to teammates and headed for the batting cage, where the results were less than he'd hoped. In the new setting, he struggled to hit the ball sharply.

“I was still dragging, but I will try to get a little more practice," he said. "It was the worst start that could happen.  It can only get better from here.”

Bell will have to figure out how to use Akiyama.

Cincinnati also signed outfielder Nick Castellanos, infielder Mike Moustakas, left-handed starter Wade Miley and reliever Pedro Strop in the offseason, committing $165 million an an effort to become a contender again. Akiyama could give the offense the boost it needs at the top of the order.

"I got to meet Shogo and his family,” Bell said Thursday.  “I can't wait to see him on the field. He is exciting to have.”

Great Expectations, New Faces, Excite Reds

Winter is officially over.

The baseballs were already under assault in early batting practice when David Bell began a search for parking on the day pitchers and catchers reported to the Reds’ complex in Goodyear, Arizona. 

There are more position players who reported early as the Reds decided to condense their workouts leading into opening day on March 26.

“Players showing up early can be eyewash a lot of times; guys getting out of the weather at home or wanting to get on the field for the first time,” Bell said. “but having said that there are a lot of guys here early, I can feel the excitement.  You can say that every spring but you know when it feels different. You look at the clubhouse and see it is full.  It looks like a regular workout day.“”

The Reds were busy during the off season.  They signed infielder Mike Moustakas, outfielders Travis Jankowski, Nick Castellanos and Shogo Akiyama. 

From the pitching side, the Reds signed left handed starter, Wade Miley, who pitched for the Houston Astros last season and Milwaukee in 2018.  The Reds added Tyler Thorburg and Pedro Strop.  Both righthanders have experience in the National League Central, Thornburg pitched with Milwaukee. Strop was a quality relief pitcher and sometimes closer the last six seasons with the Chicago Cubs.

All of the new players are in camp.

With the newer players augmenting the core from last season, the Reds lost Jose Iglesias and Alex Wood to free agency.  Iglesias was signed during spring training last season.  Wood, who was injured most of the season, came to the Reds in the big trade with the Los Angeles Dodgers.  Kyle Farmer, who played multiple roles off the bench for the Reds is the only player from that trade left.  Wood, Matt Kemp and Yasiel Puig are all gone.

The Reds have raised the expectations of the Cincinnati fans with the acquistions and Bell feels that.

“The expectations are higher. That’s the way it should be. We felt the momentum at the end of last season,” Bell said. “What we’re feeling in the clubhouse is the excitement with the moves that we made in the off season.”

Eugenio Suarez, who had a monster season in which he hit 49 home runs, had loose cartilage removed from his right shoulder January 28.  He had an accident in a swimming pool.  Nick Senzel had a torn labrum repaired in his right shoulder on September 24.

“The last report I had on Suarez was very encouraging,” Bell said.  “He’s responding really well to treatment.  We don’t know when he will be ready but it is looking more and more like he realistically will be ready for opening day. If ir doesn’t happen, it doesn’t happen. He is very postitive that it will happen. Nick Senzell is on a throwing program. He is hitting and running the bases. He is on target for opening day.”

Bell is familiar with Strop.  He was a coach with the Cubs when Strop came from
Baltimore.
“Miley  and Moustakas were players on winning players on good teams,” Bell said. “They are good teammates.  I spent time with Miley and his family but most of what I know about him as a pitcher comes from D.J. (pitching coach Derek Johnson).  I spent time with Castellanos.  He is a leader. I can’t wait to see Shogo. He is a quality person. There is something behind all that success. It is exciting to have him.”

The Reds are starting camp a little later than most teams.  The pitchers will get the same amount of time but the posistion players report four days before Cactus League games begin.  Even so many are here already.

“I encourage early arrival but there is a tendency to pace yourself. We will be here 40 days. It is all designed around getting pitchers ready. The challenge to the players is to come in ready,” Bell said.

Pedro Strop, Sal Romano, Derek Dietrich and Blake Trahan Join Reds in Goodyear

The Reds signed RHP Pedro Strop, a relief pitcher, to a one year contract for $1.825 million on February 5.  To make room for Strop the Reds designated RHP Sal Romano for re-assignment. 

Strop is expected to add a veteran presence to the Reds' bullpen.  Strop, 34, spent the last six seasons with the Chicago Cubs after breaking into the Majors with the Texas Rangers in 2009. He pitched 2 1/2 seasons with the Baltimore Orioles.

Last season Strop appeared in 50 games for the Cubs.  He had a 2-5 record with 10 saves.

Romano cleared waivers and was invited to the Reds' major league camp as a non-roster player.  He pitched in 12 games in Cincinnati after spending most of the season in Louisville.  He was 1-0 with a 7.71 ERA. He also saved two games.

The Reds signed INF Derek Dietrich to a minor league contract and invited him to spring training. They invited INF Blake Trahan to major league camp.

Dietrich was granted free agency on November 4.  He played in 113 games with the Reds, hitting 18 home runs with a .221 average in his first 52 games of the season but was relegated to a bench role, when Scooter Gennett came off the injured list on June 28. He managed just two home runs over the second half of the season while his batting average dipped to .187, spending 18 days on the injured list from August 5 through August 23.

Trahan played 11 games for the Reds in 2018, batting .214.  He played in 105 games for Louisville last season, hitting .228 with five home runs and 29 RBI.  Trahan was the Reds' third round pick in the 2015 draft.  The Reds designated Trahan for assignment on August 5.  He cleared waivers and assigned to Louisville, outright. on August 8.

Markus Howard Nears Milestone As Marquette Plays Xavier

Marquette Golden Eagles senior guard Markus Howard needs eight points tonight against the Xavier Musketeers to reach the 2,500 mark for career points.   Howard, who is now the leading scorer on Marquette's all-time list, also has a more personal plateau to reach because with 32 points he will be the leading scorer in his own family.

Howard's brother Jordan, scored 2,524 points while playing for Central Arkansas from 2015-18.

Xavier will send two newly minted 1,000-point club players to try to thwart Howard and his teammates from defeating Xavier for the fourth straight time in a series that spans 50 years.  Marquette record is 52-24 over Xavier since 1959-59.

Naji Marshall, the scoring leader for the Musketeers owns 1,072 poins and is 48th on the scoring list for Xaver.  Tyrique Jones is right behind him with 1,030 points at 53rd place.  Josh Carter, who transfered from Ohio University has 981 points, 145 of which he's scored at Xavier.

Xavier (13-7, 2-5) is coming off a 77-66 loss at Creighton on Sunday.  The Golden Eagles (14-6,4-4) lost at Butler 89-85 in overtime on Friday.

The Howard brothers is number one for NCAA scoring by brothers.  Their 5,016 points is more than Seth and Stephan Curry at 4,736.  Tyler and Ben Hansbrough have 4,523.  Larry and Eddie Bird scored a total of 4,405 and Chuck and Wesley Person have scored 4,377.

Eugenio Suarez Has Shoulder Surgery

Eugenio Suarez had surgery today to remove loose cartilage in his right shoulder.

The Reds' third baseman,who is coming off a 49-home run season, was injured in an accident in a swimming pool.

Suarez will be limited during the early part of spring training but is expected to be ready to play closer to the start of the season.

Xavier Sheds Losing Streak Downing Hoyas

It was no secret the Xavier Musketeers had been struggling through three straight losses coming into a Big East battle against the Georgtown Hoyas

Coach Travis Steele tol his team they had to play to our identity. "I told our guys that it didn't matter if it was five guards or five bigs, we were going to play the guys who earned it in practice."

Steele put a bigger lineup against a good rebounding team.  Zach Freemantle started along with Jason Carter and Tyrique Jones.  The big lineup paid off in a 66-57 win over the Hoyas.

Georgetown starting lineup included 7' senior center Omer Yurts3even and 6'8" Jamorko Pickett..  Xavier used a rebounding advantage 48-38 to stop the losing streak.

Xavier (13-6, 2-4) won for the first time since a 75-67 win over St. John's on January 5.  There were 16 rebounds among the 48 rebounds and the Musketeers turned that into enough points to earn the win over Georgetown (12-8, 2-5).

"We have to use our quickness to our advantage," Georgetown coach Patrick Ewing said..  "Sometimes you have to be like a junkyard dog when a team is bigger than you.  They got 14 offensive rebounds.  They got 22 points off that."

The larger Xavier lineup put pressure on Yurtseven, who was hampered by early foul trouble.

"I don't know if it was foul trouble or not but we need him to play bigger," Ewing said. "When he came back he still only got to rebounds.  We regrouped in the second half but we go too far in the hole."

Xavier led 35-23 at halftime and held off the Hoyas in the second half as the lead dwindled to eight with 3:00 left.

Xavier got a needed boost from Kyky Tandy, who scored 11 of his career-high 18 points in the second half.  He became the first freshman to score 18 points in a game since teammate Naji Marshall tallied 20 against Seton Hall in his freshman year two years ago.  Marshall matched Tandy with 18 points to share the high scoring honors for Xavier.

Mac McClung was the leading scorer with 19.

"He's a bucket machine," Steele said of McClung.

Jones who is averaging a double-double for the season pulled in a game-high 13 rebounds, four on the offensive end.  Freshman Freemantle had four offensive rebounds among his seven.  Josh Carter pulled in 10 rebounds.  Jones with 10 and Carter with 11 joined Tandy and Marshall as double digit scorers.

Pickett led Georgetown with 10 rebounds.

"We were outrebounded at Marquette," Jones said.  "We had a drill in practice that we used to help us.  If we couldn't get the rebound we were to tip it to keep it alive."

Steele dusted off the drill.

"It was a drill we used but one of our guys got hurt so we got away from it," Steele said.

Xavier played without Quentin Goodin, who was hurt in warmups but was a positive presence on the sidelines.  "He tweaked his knee. He was unavailable to play. You could hear Q in the huddles," Steele said.  "You know he wanted to be out there but he stayed with us on the bench. It was really good to hear.."

The win gave the Musketeers a 15-5 advantage over Georgetown all-time.

Xavier Hosts Swamp Dwelling Georgetown

The Xavier Musketeers host the Georgetown Hoyas at the Cintas Center.  The Hoyas are fresh off an 84-80  loss to Marquette in beleagured Washington D.C.

The Hoyas are 12-7 with a 2-4 Big East Conference record.  Host Xavier is 12-6 and 1-4 in conference play.

Xavier won its first Big East contest but has suffered losses to Seton Hall, Creighton and Maquette since.

Naji Marshall leads the Musketeers with a 16.7 ppg, followed by Paul Scruggs with a 14.7 average. Tyrique Jones leads Xavier with a 9.6 rebounds per game and 13.6 points.  Jason Carter is scoring at a 7.1 clip and Quentin Goodin rounds out the starters with 6.8 per game.

Mac McClung leads Georgetown with a 19 ppg average.  McClung is a sophomore.  Omer Yurtseven is next with 14.2 ppg.  Junior Jamorko Pickett scores 11.3 ppg.  Terrell Allen a graduate transfer from Central Florida is a 9.8 scorer and senior Jagan Mosely averages 9.3 per game.  Yurtseven, at seven feet tall, is the leading rebounder at 9.5 per game.

Xavier leads the all-time series 14-5 since, including a 1990 meeting in the NCAA tournament when Xavier reached the Sweet 16 for the first time under Pete Gillen.  Xavier's 74-71 win in the second round propelled the Musketeers with Tyrone Hill, Derek Strong, Aaron Williams, Jamie Gladden, Michael Davenport and Jamal Walker over a storied Georgetown squad with Alonzo Mourning and Dikembe Mutombo on John Thompson's unit.

Bluejays Clip Musketeers Wings

A season-long shooting slump bit the Xavier Musketeers again in a devastating second straight Big East Conference home loss.  This time the Creighton Bluejays absconded with a 77-65 at the Cintas Center.

Xavier missed 21 3-point shots and at the half were just 3-for-17 from behind the arc.  Creighton started slowly from the floor but Mitch Ballock with 19 points and Ty-Shon Alexander 18 points started to connect. Xavier made six 3-pointers for shooting percentage of 19.2.

"We didn't play good defense.  We have to be better," Xavier coach Travis Steele said.  "One thing you can't do when you're not hitting shots is play bad defense."

Xavier (12-5, 1-3) have dropped two straight and three of their last four games.  Creighton (13-4, 2-2) bounced back from a 64-59 loss to Villanova at home, the second of two straight losses.

"We lost two games in a row to Butler and Villanova then we have a very good Xavier team on the other end," Creighton coach Greg McDermott said.  "We have to understand that if you lose a couple games in this league, you can't throw every thing out the window. You have to stick to what you're doing and get better at it."

Naji Marshall led Xavier with 21 points but made just one of four 3-pointers.  Tyrique Jones managed 12 points as McDermott's strategy was to double down on Jones and let the Musketeers shoot the outside shot it paid off. Jones came into the game averaging a double-double at 13.65 points and 10.1 rebounds per game.

"Our guys did a great job in the first 15 minutes keeping Xavier at bay," McDermott said. "We weren't making shots. Today we tried to sag off and not let Tyrique Jones open inside.  We were going to let them shoot it.  We felt keeping the ball out of Jones' hands was our best option."

Creighton was cold in the first half also but stuck with their plan.

"All of our guys work on our 3-point jump shot. Defenses are getting out on shooters more often. It is hard to get looks we were finding our rhythm in the second half," leading scorer Marcus Zegarowski said. "Our plan was to not let them post up.  We're kind of small. Big Tyrique is a lot down there. We were trying to make sure they didn't burn us down there and play strong team defense.  I think we did that."

Zegarowski scored 11 points, six points below his 17.4 average per game.

Creighton is the first Xavier opponent to win four games at the Cintas Center.

Xavier is 267-43 at the Cintas Center in the 20 years it has been open.  It is the seventh best home record in the country but they've now lost two in a row there.

Colerain Miami Grad To Coach Detroit Lions

Colerain High and Miami University grad Brayden Coombs was named special team coordinator for the Detroit Lions today.

Coombs, graduated from Colerain High in 2005.  He was a two-year starter at defensive back and returned punts on a team the won the Ohio State Division I football championship in 2004.

The son of longtime Colerain coach Kerry Coombs, played four season at wide receiver for the Miami Redhawks.

The 33-year old Coombs started on the staff of Cincinnati Bengals Head Coach Marvin Lewis in 2009.  The last five seasons he was the assistant to Bengals's special team coordinator Darrin Simmons.

Xavier Hosts The Fighting Bluejays At The Cintas Center

The Musketeers take on the Creighton Bluejays in the geographically incorrect Big East Conference this afternoon at the Cintas Center.

Creighton is the western most member of the conference with it's Omaha, Nebraska campus just this side of the middle of the country.  From Creighton's campus it is 1,668 miles to the Pacific Ocean and 1,212 miles from the Atlantic Ocean.  Creighton is the only team housed in the Central Time Zone.

Coach Greg McDermott in his 10th season at Creighton brings his squad 719 miles to oppose the Musketeers both teams bring identical records of 12-4 overall and 1-2 in the conference.  Xavier leads the all-time series 17-13.  They last met in Madison Square Gardens in the Big East tournament on March 14, 2019.  Xavier pulled out a 63-61 win in overtime.

Creighton starts three juniors, Ty-Shon Alexander 15.9 ppg, Damien Jefferson 8.7 ppg and Mitch Ballock 12.3 ppg.,  The other two starters are, Marcus Zegarowski 17.4, the leading scorer and Christian Bishop 8.9 ppg.   Alexander is the leading rebounder averaging 6.0 per game.

Both teams are coming off home losses.  Creighton fell to Villanova 64-59.  Xavier dropped a game to Seton Hall 83-71.

Xavier is led by Naji Marshall 16.5 ppg and Tryrique Jones 13.6 ppg and 10.1 rebounds per game.  Jones is trying to become the first Xavier player to average a double-double since David West did it in 2002-03.

Myles Powell Wrecks Xavier's House

Myles Powell led the Seton Hall Pirates to a 83-71 win over the Xavier Musketeers with 24 points.

Powell missed two games with a concussion that he suffered against Rutgers on December 14.  He returned to score 27 in a win over DePaul and 15 points in a win over Georgetown since returning to the court.  He is second behind Marcus Howard of Marquette for the Big East scoring lead.

In wining its fifth straight game, the Pirates is 3-0 in the Conference for the fourth time.(2017-18, 1998-99, 1992-93).  Seton Hall played in the NCAA Tournament in two of the previous three season that got off to a fast start.

"I'm 100 percent now," Powell said.. "The school and  the coaches did a good job of getting me ready to play by not rushing things  The guys did a good job of finding me.  We ran some plays to get me open."

His coach Kevin Willard believes there is even more in Powell's game that will dazzle the conference.

"I think Myles is about 80 percent right now.  As he gets back in shape and over the concussion, you're going to see a guy that will elevate his game even more," Willard said.

The result was a key road win for Seton Hall and a hurtful home loss for Xavier.

"Road wins in this league are huge.  As even as we all our they are hard to come by," Willard said.

Powell and his teammates are up for the challenge.

"People forget, we're battle tested. At the beginning of the year we lost some close ones, some big ones," Powell said. "We went back and coach did a good job of making us realize, how not to be in that situation again.  When they cut it down to four or six, we did a great job of getting under control. We got an alley oop  to Rho (Jared Rhoden) and came down and got a big stop. Every body is getting older and knowing their role and what they have to do."

Xavier coach Travis Steele is aware of it and will implore his team to play with more urgency.

 It's huge. It's everything. You want to give yourself a chance to win this league, you've got to protect home court," Steele said. "We weren't able to do that tonight, unfortunately. We've got to protect the Cintas Center, man. That's big for us going forward.



As painful as it was to get his bell rung at Rutgers, Powell thinks it turned into a positive.

"It may sound crazy but that concussion could have been the best thing that happened to us. Everybody put their big boy pants on and picked up their game," Powell said.

Trailing by as many as 16 with 9;38 remaining, Xavier used a press to cut the lead to four with 2:55 remaining.  Seton Hall stole back a bad pass after a Xavier steal and scored.  They made their free throws down the stretch to close out the win.



Four of Powell's mates ended up in double figures.

Jared Rhoden scored 16.  Quincy McKnight added 15 and Romano Gill had 11.

Xavier played from behind after the first five minutes of the game, and trailed 40-32 at the half.

Tyrique Jones, who is averaging a double-double on the year scored 19 points to lead Xavier.  Paul Scruggs had 17.  Leading scorer joined the 1,000-point club with 15 points and has 1,003 points for his career.  Jason Carter hobbled by an ankle sprain suffered in shoot-around before the game scored 14 points, two off his season high.

Xavier Hosts The Seton Hall Pirates

In the talent laden Big East Conference it is important to "hold service" at home.

The Xavier Musketeers will host the streaking Seton Hall Pirates with that in mind.  Xavier lost on the road to Villanova but defeated St. John's at home.  The Pirates have won four straight and both of their Big East contests, beating DePaul 74-66 on the road and Georgetown 78-62 at home.

The Pirates and Musketeers split their two games last season with each team winning on the road, ironically.  Seton Hall is 11-9 against Xavier all-time and 7-6 since both entered the Big East together.

Seton Hall (11-4, 2-0) is an experienced team, starting seniors, Quincy McKnight 11.1 ppg, Myles Powell 21.2 ppg, the Pirated leading scorer and Romaro Gill 6.1 ppg.  Junior Myles Cale 7.9 ppg and sophomore Jared Rhoden 8.1 ppg fill the first five.

Xavier (12-3, 1-1) boasts leading scorer Naji Marshall, a junior who averages 16.6 ppg and will become a 1,000-point scorer with his 12th point.  Senior Tyrique Jones averages a double-double with 13.2  points and 10.1 rebounds per game.  The last player to do that for a season was NBA star David West, who averaged 16.9 points and 10.4 rebounds per game.

Xavier will host Creighton on Saturday January 11 at 2:00. Seton Hall plays Marquette at home at 4:00 on Saturda.

Xavier Calms Red Storm For First Big East Win

Naji Marshall scored a game-high 20 points and Kyky Tandy hit four 3-pointers during a key 9-0 run to calm the St. John's Red Storm as the Xavier Musketeers won its first Big East Conference game 75-67.

"We stayed together," said Quentin Goodin about surviving turnovers.

Tandy's shooting helped Travis Steele's squad forget its 19 turnovers.  The Musketeers were fortunate to push the lead.  St. John's connected on just one of 16, 3-pointers.

"We didn't shoot the ball well," St. John's coach Mike Anderson said.  "We had 17 more possessions than they did.  When you go on the road and don't make shots it is kind of disappointing.  They (Xavier) did what they're supposed to do.  They held serve at home. The Tandy kid was the hero for them."

Tyrique Jones took advantage of a soft middle of the Red Storm defense to slam home three dunks leading to his 12 points.  Tandy finished with 12 points and Paul Scruggs contributed 14 points to the Xavier (12-3, 1-1) cause.  Scruggs hit four free throws in the closing minutes.

"My teammates were finding me," Tandy said.  "I just trusted the process and my teammates believed in me."

"It made my job a lot easier. Kyky is a great shooter and opened the middle for me," said Goodin of his fellow Kentuckian.  Goodin dished out a team-high five assists, some of which led to Jones' dunks.

St. John's (11-4, 0-2) dropped its 10th straight decision to the Musketeers.  LJ Figueroa led the Red Storm with 17 points. Marcellus Earlington scored 12 points off the bench but it wasn't enough to give St. John's its first win over Xavier since the 2014-15 season.

Mustapha Heron, who missed St. John's previous three games with an ankle injury, scored just 11 points after showing some rust.  Heron is the Red Storm's leading scorer at 15 ppg coming into the game.

Xavier survived 13 turnovers, including five by leading scorer Naji Marshall in the first half to lead the Red Storm 34-32 at halftime.  Marshall led all scorers with 15 points at the break.

St. John's put together an early 11-0 run but Xavier fought back with 15-4 run to regain the lead.  Xavier had its largest lead of six at the four-minute mark but St. John's tied the game two minutes later. LJ Figueroa led the Red Storm with six points.  St. John's turned the ball over just four times.

"We knew they were going to press us the whole game," Travis Steele said.  "You see the press on film and you really don't know what it's like.  Then the more you see it the better you handle it.  We turned the ball over 13 times.  Give St. John's all the credit.  They scored a lot of points off turnovers.  I thought we got into a better rhythm as the game went on."

Dontarius James came off the bench to grab eight rebounds to go along with six points.  Jones led the Musketeers with 12.

"Dontarius played more minutes tonight than he's played all year," Steele said.  "He scored six points and he's a better shooter than that but I'm proud of him.  I made it crystal clear with what he had to get playing time and he's done that.  He added great defense and got big rebounds."

James got an ovation when he came out of the game in the waning minutes.

Xavier Faces St. John's Looking For First Conference Win

The Xavier Musketeers will host The St. John's Redstorm, looking for its first Big East Conference of the season after falling to the Villanova Wildcats on Monday 68-62.

St. John has not beaten the Musketeers since the 2014-15 season when the Redstorm swept the series to earn a spot in the NCAA Tournament.

St. John's has two seniors and two grad students on its roster but senior Mustapha Heron is expected to start for the first time in four games.  Heron leads the Redstorm with a 15.0 points per game average.  They will start a freshman, a sophomores, a junior and Heron the senior. Nick Rutherford, who is a grad transfer from Monmouth College, fills the starting lineup..

St. John's upset AP#16 Arizona to cap a seven-game winning streak before losing a close conference battle with Butler on New Year's Eve 60-58 to post an 11-3 overall record and 0-1 in the Big East.

Xavier lost its first conference game and enter Sunday's game with an identical record.  Xavier led by Naji Marshall's 16.4 ppg has won five of its last seven games after starting the season 6-0.

The Musketeers are 11-3 all-time against St. John's.

Mike Anderson replaced Chris Mullins after a 21-13 record but a disappointing 8-10 Conference showing.  Anderson coached Arkansas, Missouri and Alabama Birmingham (UAB).  Anderson was on the staff of Nolan Richardson at Arkansas which used a full court press for "forty minutes of Hell."  Anderson has never faced Xavier as a head coach.

Xavier Rebounds With A Win In Skip Prosser Classic

The Xavier Musketeers used a 11-0 run to take a 60-55  lead in the second half to defeat the Western Carolina Catamounts in the Skip Prosser Classic.

Xavier (10-2)  road the momentum to a 74-61 win over Western Carolina (7-3, 1-0 Southern Conference).

WCU coach, Mark Prosser is the son of the former Xavier coach who died of a heart attack while coaching Wake Forest University.  Wake Forest defeated Xavier 80-78 on Saturday December 14.

Prosser was a child when his father coached at Xavier.  It was a unique experience for him to come back to coach this game.

"This one was different for me," Prosser said.  "Seeing the logo on the floor was really special.  It was fun to be a part of this.  I want to thank Wake Forest and Xavier for continuing this series to remember my father.  It is special."

Xavier led 32-29 at half but the Catamounts broke out with a seven-point lead.  Xavier's run put an end to WCU's aspirations.

Quentin Goodin scored 25 points and made all four of his 3-point jumpers to lead the Musketeers.  Josh Carter scored 14 points and had nine rebounds. Zach Freemantle scored 13 points off the bench.

"It was the next play mentality.  I knew I'd have to pick up my game with Naji not being here," said Goodin, who notched career high.  Marshall was ill and could not play.  He remained in his room and wasn't on the bench.

"Quentin played like a senior with great poise, great rhythm.  He was confident," Xavier coach Travis Steele said.

Tyrique Jones had 11 rebounds in six minutes of play but was cold from the floor.

"Zach Freemantle picked us up.  Tyrique didn't have it<" Steele said.  "Tyrique is a really good player.  He could be the dominant player on the floor every single night."

Carter used a couple dunks to amass his point total.

"I felt a little bouncy today," Carter said.

Cincinnati native and former Walnut Hills High School star, Kameron Gibson led the Catamounts with 16 points.  Mason Faulkner, a transfer from Northern Kentucky University added 14 points for WCU.

"It was special and fun to come back and play in front of my family and friends and have a good game," Gibson said.  "I don't get to see them too much during the season."

Northen Kentucky Takes Down Eastern Kentucky An In State Rivalry Where Basketball Matters

The Northern Kentucky Norse won the budding intrastate rivalry with a 76-57 win over the Eastern Kentucky Colonels by taking charge in the second half.

Dantez Walton and Trevon Faulkner scored 18 points to lead the Norse.  Walton scored 10 in the second half when the Norse pulled away.

"I'm going to keep on saying it changes, if there's a guy playing better than Dantez Walton, I'd like to see him," NKU coach Dsrrin Horn said.

Walton was one of five NKU players that logged over 35 minutes against a team that forces up tempo basketball by pressing for 40 minutes.  Tyler Sharpe played all 40 minutes and Bryson Langdon along with Falkner ran up and down the court the entire game.

"We turned the ball over 21 times but give credit to Eastern.  They are good at what they do," Horn said.  "I'm proud of our guys and the conditioning that they put in to hold up against a team that presses like they do."

The Norse survived 21 turnovers against a team whose strategy is to force a lot of turnovers and spark their own offense with a transition game.  Eastern came into the game with second in the nation with 21.8 turnovers forced per game.  They are also fourth in steals per game with 11.  Indeed they stole the ball from NKU 11 times.

"We talked about it at the eight minute time out," said 40-minute man Tyler Sharpe.  "I don't think the were getting up the floor as fast in the second half. They got tired toward the end and we took advantage of that."

Notrhtern's late run indicates that.  The score was 56-48 at the eight minute timeout.  Eastern cut it to four with a layup by Houston King at the 6:52 mark but NKU put the game away with its run that ballooned the lead to 19 points, 74-55 with 1:23 left in the game.

A 3-point shot by Adham Eleeda at the 3:24 mark gave the Colonels a 14-point lead, extending a 14-0 run over a three- minute stretch to turn the game into a rout.

The game was tied after 20 minutes at 35-35.  Eastern led by as many as 12 points, using the 3-point shot.  The Colonels scored 21 of its 35 points from behind the arc on 7-for-14 accuracy..  It was contrary to their season stats coming into the game. The Colonels (3-6) were shooting 31% from the outside.

Northern (7-3) turned the ball over 10 times against the Colonels pressing defense in the half.  The Norse stayed in the game with 10 points from the foul line as the Colonels were whistled for 11 fouls.

NKU has been a success by any objective measure in its eighth year of NCAA Division I play and just its fourth season as a member with active status, making two trips to play in the big tournament in March.

Eastern won last year's contest in Richmond on a last second shot and still leads the series 6-4 all-time but the Norse is becoming the type of dangerous team that the big schools shy away from.

To compare Eastern played its long time bitter rival Western Kentucky at home.  They also traveled to Lexington, losing to the big boys, the Kentucky Wildcats 91-49.  They play the other major program in the state the Louisville Cardinals on Saturday the 14th at noon.

Northern in the Horizon Conference has scheduling challenges but indicated that they would like to extend this series beyond next year's commitment to play Eastern.

Sharpe from Mt. Washington Kentucky put it this way.  "It would be a rivalry any time you play in-state schools.  With us three or four mid major teams (EKU, WKU, Murray, Belmont and Morehead State) There should be a little chip on our shoulders.  There is a difference in the energy when an instate teams comes in to play."

Horn, a native of Lexington, played at Western Kentucky when there was a grudge-match rivalry between Eastern and Western.

Could the newly knighted Division I Norse be the new rivalry since Western has moved on from the old Ohio Valley Conference days.  Eastern coach, A.W. Hamilton, is a native of Georgetown, Kentucky and played his college basketball at Marshall another of Eastern's traditional rivals.

"I've known A Dub a long time.  I had respect for him when he was a player coming out of high school," Horn said.  "I've watched his coaching career and I think he's got the right stuff. His team plays the right way,.  He has a definite vision of how he wants his team to play.  They are recruiting to it and playing that way."

"I think this is a good game," Horn continued.  "There is one more year on the contract.  It is definitely something that we would look at again.  We've got some scheduling challenges that I don't want to get into tonight with adding league games.  I don't know how that is going to work. But yes, I like this game.  Basketball matters in this state."Eastern

"

Big Second Half By Naji Marshall And Xavier Wins Crosstown Rivalry

Naji Marshall tool control of the game for the Xavier Musketeers, who took down its crosstown rivals, the Cincinnati Bearcats in a 73-67 win at the Cintas Center.

Marshall led all scorers with a career-high tying 31 points to lift the Musketeers in a second half ambush.

"We were locked in for 40 minutes.  They hit some tough shots but we played hard to the end," Marshall said.

Cincinnati was within three points at halftime, 32-29..  Tyrique Jones only played four minutes after he was whistled for two early fouls.  Zach Freemantle took his place and scored seven points and pulled in four rebounds.

"I was going to put Tyrique back in but Zach Freemantle was so dang good," Xavier coach Travis Steele said.

It allowed Jones to be fresh in the second half without the added pressure of foul trouble.  Jones scored four points and Marshall seven in the first six minutes of the second half.  Xavier built a 10-point lead.

'We dame out in the second half and they punched us in the mouth.  We never recovered," Jaevin Cumberland said.  Jaevin Cumberland had 14 points and his brother Jarron had 11.  Jarron, a senior, is the Bearcats leading scorer on the season, averaging 14.3 points per game.  He is nursing a minor injury and was not at his best.

"He looked pretty good to me," Steele said, "We had Naji on him and he played pretty good defense.  People will talk about his 31 points but he played dorn good defense.'

"It isn't about me," Marshall said.  He got great respect from the Cincinnati coach.

"Naji is a big time player," UC coach John Brannen said.  "He took over the game in the second half, both halves really. He had an unbelievable game."

Brannen thought his team was good in the first half but was subpar in the second half.

"It was a lack of intensity in the second half and focus on guarding the basketball," Brannen said. "We've had that issue in the second half of the games for most of the early season. That being said we cut it to a two possession game with two minutes to go.  We fought back but at the end of the day we have to defend at a higher level."

Xavier maintained a double digit lead, stretching it to as high as 16 points until the 2:27 mark of the second half. 

Mika Adams-Woods hit a 3-point basket on a fast break feed from Jaevin Cumberland to cut their deficit to eight.  Trevon Scott stole a Marshall pass to give the Bearcats a chance to close the gap to five but Jaevin Cumberland missed a 3-point shot at the other end.  Jones snatched his sixth rebound to preserve Xavier's lead.  Chris McNeal scored a basket with nine seconds left to provide the final tally.

Jones narrowly missed his sixth double-double of the season with 10 points and nine rebounds despite playing just 22 minutes.  Marshall had eight rebounds to go with his 31 points.  Freemantle finished with nine points and four rebounds.  Quentin Goodin had eight assists and played 'darn good defense," according to Steele.

Cincinnati got the 25 points from the Wilmington, Ohio Cumberland brothers.  Ketih Williams led the Bearcats with 15 points.  Adams-Woods scored 10.  Freshman Chris Vogt, who was recruited by Brannen at his old gig for Northern Kentucky but followed the coach to UC, scored 10 points and led Cincinnati with eight rebounds.

The Queen City Rivalry Epic Writes Its 87th Chapter

To Cincinnati basketball fans, this is the most important game of the season.  There are greater goals at stake for sure, a conference championship, a good seed in the NCAA tournament but for thousands of people in the area this is it.  Many educated people attend undergraduate school at the University of Cincinnati and earn advanced degrees from Xavier University or vice versa. 

Others have strong preferences that their next door neighbor may not share to them this game is for bragging rights and is mostly friendly.

I say mostly because there have been some ugly incidents on and off the court.

There have been fights between coaches after games.  Cincinnati coach Bob Huggins and Xavier coach Peter Gillen had a shouting match during what should have been post game handshakes.  There was a fight on the court in the 80's between Cincinati natives, Keith Stark of  UC and Byron Larkin of Xavier.  There was an ugly fight at Xavier several years ago.  The last time the game was at Xavier's Cintas Center, Cincinnati coach Mick Cronin had harsh words for Xavier's J.P. Macura.  Macura was defended vigorously by Xavier coach, Chris Mack.  Ironically, the pair who grew up two miles apart in Cincinnati's northern suburbs were high school rivals.  Cronin played at LaSalle and Mack competed for St. Xavier High School.

Cincinnati holds a 51-35 advantage but over the last 25 years the rivalry has been more competitive.

Since Xavier moved to the Cintas Center and Cincinnati played at the Shoemaker Center the teams are 16-16 on their home court.  Cincinnati won on December 8 last year, 62-47 at UC, Cronin's last game of the series before moving on to coach at UCLA.  New UC coach John Brannen will be in his first Crosstown meeting.  Xavier coach Travis Steele will be in his second game of the rivalry as a head coach.

Xavier won four of the last six games and eight of the last 12.

This game tips off at 5:00 pm.

Xavier Takes Down Green Bay With Crosstown Shootout Ahead

Naji Marshall took control of the game in the second half and led the Xavier Musketeers to a 84-71 win over the University of  Wisconsin Green Bay Phoenix.

The Musketeers are tuning up for their big rivalry game against the University of Cincinnati Bearcats on Saturday at 5:00 pm.

The Musketeers will take a two-game winning streak and a record of 8-1.  The Phoenix will play at Eastern Illinois on Saturday.

Perhaps the Musketeers were looking ahead.  Travis Steele was unhappy with the effort even in the win.

"Our heads weren't in the game on either side of the ball," Steele said.  "That's on me.  I have to figure these guys out.  The tape doesn't lie.  There is no sensitivity in our film sessions.  We need to do a better job or we are going to learn the hard way.  I don't want to learn the hard way."

Green Bay slowed the Musketeers down and made them look out of sync in the first half.  Xavier used its depth and strength to wear down the Phoenix and win what turned into a physical game.

"For the most part we did what we wanted to do, keep it packed in and make them hit jumpers. I thought the guys in the first half did a great job of executing it," Phoenix coach Linc Darner.." In the second half, they decided to slash and drive get it to the rim and then go get the rebound.  They are a lot bigger and stronger than we are.  I thought our guys did a great job.  They only had four offensive rebounds in the first half. They had 14 in the second half."


Marshall notched 12 points in the first half on by hitting four of six shots, including a 3-pointer and making all three of his free throws. He matched the point total in the second half, making all four shots from the field.  His 24 points was the game high.

Tyrique Jones scored 14 points and pulled in 14 rebounds, seven of which were on the offensive glass. It was Jones' fifth double-double of the season and 16th of his career.  Paul Scruggs scored 4 1points and Quentin Goodin added 11 points.

Although turnovers were down for Xavier, they had trouble scoring early in the first half.  They built an eight-point lead near the middle of the first half to build an 38-30 lead but Green Bay closed out the first half with a 5-0 run.  Will Chevalier missed a 3-pointer at the first half buzzer that would have tied the game.  Xavier took a 38-35 lead into halftime.

Green Bay freshman, Amari Davis from Trotwood Madison near Dayton, led his team with 19 points.  He scored 28 in the Phoenix last game against Montana State.

Xavier Hunts Bison To Extinction In A Tune Up Win

Tyrique Jones turned in his fourth double-double of the season. The Xavier Musketeers used a 14-2 run over the last six minutes of the first have to shoot down the Lipscomb Bisons of Nashville, 87-62 in a tune up for the Crosstown Shootout next Saturday against Cincinnati.

Jones commanded the boards with 10 rebounds.  No other Musketeer had more than four.  He added 14 points, shooting 7-for-10 from the field, including a game opening dunk.

The game was even for the first 14 minutes with Xavier leading, 26-24 when a run fueled by a slashing layup by Paul Scruggs put separation between the teams.  Scruggs scored on a turn around jumper off an aborted drive on the next trip down the court.  Lipscomb (2-5) wore down into a halftime deficit of 40-26.

Bryce Moore and KyKy Tandy contributed 3-pointers to the run, coming off the bench.

Lipscomb scored on five straight possessions mid way in the second half but Xavier (7-1) pulled away with a fresh bench that Lipscomb couldn't keep up with.

Jones watched freshman Zach Freemantle operate in the second half.  Freemantle scored a career-high 15 points and 7-for-7 from the foul line.  He chipped in five rebounds.

Scruggs had 15 points and Naji Marshall added 13.

Freshman KJ Johnson scored a game-high 25 points for the Bison. Ahsan Asadullah scored 18.  Only four Lipscomb players scored.  Xavier had 10 players with points.

"We wore down.  We have three players out and it showed," Lipscomb coach Lennie Acuff said. "If you take the first 14 minutes of the first half and the first few minutes of the second half, it was an even game.  They killed us on the glass.  Our youth and their physicality was too much for us."

Xavier got 33 points from the bench.  Lipscomb had no points aside from the starters.

"I have a lot of respect for them.  They will win a lot of games.  This is a great environment."

Xavier rebounded from its lone loss on Sunday a 70-65 decision against Florida in the Charleston Classic. 

"This is just one game and we've played a lot of styles.  That will help us in the Big East," Xavier coach Travis Steele said.  "We had too many turnovers (14).  We have to get that down to 10.  We moved the ball pretty well but we didn't play defense for 40 minutes.  I will look at the tape to see but that needs to be our identity."

.

Cincinnati Dogs Huskies In Lopsided Homecoming Win

The Cincinnati Bearcats took care of the hapless Huskies of Connecticut in a bruising 48-3 win on homecoming.

The Huskies (2-8, 0-6) suffered their 17th straight American Athletic Conference loss.

Meanwhile, the Bearcats (8-1, 5-0) put together its seventh straight win since a 42-0 loss to Ohio State in the second game of the season.

Desmond Ridder connected with Josiah DeGuara for a pair of touchdowns of 18 and 15 yards, the first multi touchdown game of DeGuara's career.  Michael Warren scored from six yards out and one yard out as UC took a 38-0 halftime lead.

"It makes a lot of difference in matchup issues. Josiah has grown into doing a lot of different things. It doesn’t give people the ability to pinpoint what’s going on with him. He’s come along way, his ability to be a complete player," Luke Fickell said.

"In the second half, the idea was to go out and play our best so a lot of other guys could get an opportunity. It was really great for us to be able to get those guys in there," DeGuara said.

Ridder completed 13 of 23 passes for 136 yards,  He ran for 94 yards.  Gerrid Doaks was the Bearcats' leading rusher with 123 yards on 13 carries.  He scored on a one-yard run.

Connecticut's longest and deepest drive was 34 yards to the Cincinnati 31.   Darrick Forrest stopped that drive by intercepting Jack Zergiotus.  All of the other eight possessions ended on UConn's side of the field in the first half.

The Bearcats added 10 points in the second half.

Graduate student, Mike Beaudry led the Huskiies deep into Cincinnati territory twice in the second half.  One ended at the UC seven yardline on downs.  The Huskies got on the scoreboard with a 32-yard field goal by Clayton Harris with 5:37 left in the game.

Freshman Jack Zegiotis was 4-for-14 with an interception and -12 yards rushing.

Coach Randy Edsell replaced him with graduate student Mike Beaudry, who played Divison II before going to UConn.

"I told Jack at halftime, you're like a starting pitcher in baseball today," Edsall said. "You just didn't have it.  It's like you gave up five home runs.  Guess what you have to put the other guy in..  You didn't have it today,.  Next start it might be a lot better..  If he's struggling like that.  Get him out. Let him relax.  Get someone else in and see what they could do."

Beaudry led the team deep into Cincinnati territory twice in the second half.

The Huskies lone bright spot was the third consecutive 100-plus yard rushing performance by Kevin Mensah, who finished with 115 yards on 24 carries.

The Huskies wanted to run the ball but UC's front seven was too tough.

"We wanted to be able to run the ball, so we could run play action and do those things but we just got Whipped," Edsall said.  "We got whipped by a better team.  We have a lot of young guys on the perimeter.  Kevin Mensah, Artie Tompson, give you everything they've got. We didn't match their physicality upfront."

Mensah is the ninth UConn rusher to gain over 2,000 yards in a career.  In a dismal season in a blow out game, Mensah was running hard.

"Pride." Mensah said.  "Just go out there and give it all you got; try to motivate the guys; try to motivate the team.  Show them to keep going and if we play like a team, good things can happen."

The Huskies had two defensive starter disqualified for targeting.  The press box consensus that neither was justified.

"I thought the first one (call) was very poor," Edsall said. "On the second one from what I saw, he put his nose right in there.  If they are going to be throwing people out of the game for playing football.  We might as well stop playing football.  The two calls they gave if that's targeting.  Let's stop playing.  I don't know how to teach my guys any more."

Cincinnati Host UConn For Homecomig

It is homecoming 'for the Cincinnati Bearcats and they square off against the University of Connecticut  Huskies.

The Huskies have lost 16 straight American /Athletic Conference games, including five this season.  They are 2-7 with wins over Wagner and UMass.

The Bearcats are 7-1 with their lone loss to Ohio State, 42-0.  Cincinnati starting linebacker, Darrien Beavers, transferred from UConn.  He is a Colerain High School grad along with defensive back Ja'von Hicks.

The Huskies leading rusher, Kevin Mensah, became the ninth runner to gain over 2,000 yards.  At 2,409, the junior has a chance to catch the Huskies All-Time leading rusher,  Donald Brown at 3,800 yards.

The Bearcats are 3-12 all time against UConn.  Cincinnati won seven of the last eight games with Connecticut last besting  UC, 20-9 at Hartford in 2016.

If the Bearcats hold on to the best conference record, they could host the conference championship game on December 7 at 3:30 pm.

Xavier Musketeers Swim With The Dolphins In Season Opener

The Xavier Musketeers looked like they were on vacation in the Caribbean in its first game of the 2019-2020 season.  It was like a day at the beach at least for the first half.

The Xavier Musketeers had little trouble winning its 20th straight season opener at the Cintas Center with a 76-57 runaway victory over the Jacksonville Dolphins.

"We played really hard from the jump," coach Travis Steele said.  "We were kind of complacent for a couple minutes in the second half.  We turned it back up though.  You can't take any plays off in our league.  Overall, we had good effort."

Xavier ranked 19th in the Associated Press initial poll, was able to ease Jason Carter into action.  Carter, a transfer from Ohio University battled injuries during the preseason after earning respect on the Musketeers trip to Spain over the summer.

"Jason only practiced twice," Steele said.  "He was pretty good tonight, not a good as he was this summer.  We got him some time and he looked good."

Seniors Naji Marshall 17, Tyrique Jones 17 and Paule Scruggs 12 handled the scoring. Freshman Zach Freemantle added 11 for the Musketeers. Tyrique Jones and Dahmir Bishop controlled the boards with 11 and seven rebounds, respectively.

"I give Xavier a lot of credit.  He has his players playing hard, Jacksonville coach Tony Jasick said.. They're very physical defensively.  We didn't handle that very well in the first half. We dug ourselves a hole because of it."

Xavier raced out to a 43-22 halftime lead, closing with an 8-0 run in the last two minutes.

Paul Scruggs had 12 points at the half and Tryrique Jones contributed 10 points.  Aamahne Santos had nine points for the Dolphins.

Santos finished with 15 for Jacksonville, tying Bryce Workman for the team lead.  Workman led the Dolphins with eight rebounds.

Jacksonville came back in the second half, outscoring the Musketeers 35-33 as Xavier worked on new combinations getting Bishop and Bryce Moore into the mix.

"We have a lot of new guys (nine newcomers),"  Jasick said. "Obviously we're playing against a team that has a lot of accolades early in the year.  I think we settled in a little bit.  We finished some possessions defensively in the second half.  We would guard and then foul at the end of possessions.  In the second half, we finished more possessions with rebounds that allowed us to play with a little better pace and flow on the offensive end."

"Their were a lot of challenges in this game for us.  Obviously putting a new group together, playing against Travis and his group in this environment, there were a lot of challenges but that's why we do it.  We can see where the team is at.  We found a lot of good things that we can take a handful of good things out of this game."



.

Xavier Opens The Season Against Jacksonville Ranked 19th

The Xavier Musketeers are opening its 20th season at the Cintas Center against the Jacksonville Dolphins.  They have never lost a home opener.

It will be the first of four home games to open Travis Steele's second season as head coach of the Musketeers.  Naji Marshall, Paul Scruggs, Quentin Gooden and Tyrique Jones are back for Xavier. They will be joined by Leighton Schrand, who worked his way into the starting lineup as a walk-on.

Schrand's father Ryan starred at LaSalle High School and Northern Kentucky University.

The 19th ranked Musketeers face a Jacksonville team that features nine newcomers. 

Three seniors return to lead the newcomers.  David Bell, Anderson High School grad DeAnthony McCallum and Aamahne Santos return with last year's scoring leader, Tyreese Davis who scored 10.1 points-per-game last season.  Sophomore Bryce Workman rounds out the starting five.

The Dolphins had a 12-20 record from last season.  The Musketeers were 19-16 and 9-9 in the Big East Conference.

The Musketeers won the only meeting between the two teams with a 103-94 win in 1962-63 at Schmidt Fieldhouse.

Jacksonville is celebrating the 50th anniversary of its Cinderella NCAA tournament team.

That team was led by Artis Gilmore and Rex Morgan.