SAN DIEGO — When the Cincinnati Reds established an all-rookie rotation a dozen games ago, manager Bryan Price thought his club would need additional offense to remain competitive.
“The expectations were that we’d probably need to score more runs with these five rookie starters,” Price said, “but it’s just the opposite. We’re trying to find a way to score two, three or four runs and give them a chance to win ballgames.
“It’s been an unusual season, I can say that. … Five rookie starters, and they’re giving us a chance to win almost every single time they take the ball. We just haven’t been able to hit consistently enough to take advantage of how well these guys have been pitching.”
It happened again Monday night in San Diego.
Rookie left-handed starter David Holmberg allowed two runs on six hits and three walks over 6 2/3 innings — and lost. The difference in the Padres’ 2-1 win was a two-run homer by left fielder Justin Upton.
In the dozen games since the all-rookie rotation started, the Reds have scored 38 runs. However, 15 of those runs came in one game. Monday was the fifth time the Reds scored one run or none.
“Holmberg certainly pitched well enough to win,” Price said, “but we just weren’t able to get anything going offensively. We missed opportunities for sure.”