'Wild Thing': You can't make up some of the ways the Cincinnati Reds are winning games

KANSAS CITY — Cincinnati Reds teammates hung around in the dugout after the game and chanted Ricky Karcher’s name after the kid with the big arm and the bigger minor-league ERA survived a wild big-league debut to close out the Kansas City Royals Monday night.

“Ricky’s an awesome dude,” said TJ Friedl, the guy who scored the go-ahead run in the top of the 10th before Karcher’s cardiac bottom half of the inning – on a night he was the only available reliever left.

“Moments like that, in a win like that, with so much back and forth – everyone’s just energetic and rooting him on,” Friedl said. “It was an incredible debut.”

Karcher dropped a certain four-letter word during that live postgame interview that had teammates laughing loudly in the clubhouse afterward as they watched it again and shared it.

“You can only dream to go in a save opportunity in your first big-league game,” said Karcher, who got the promotion three days earlier because the Reds desperately needed a 13th arm on the roster as they opened a long road trip Friday. “Obviously, there was some adrenaline there.”

Karcher, who might not have pitched at all during this first trip to the big-leagues in an ideal Reds world, said he nearly teared up in the bullpen Monday night when it looked like he’d go into the game.

“Which I thought was cool, because that doesn’t happen to me a whole lot,” he said. “But I’ve worked my whole life for this day. It’s awesome.”

The reality is Karcher will probably head back to the minors with his 99 mph when somebody higher on the pecking order is eligible to return.

The reality also is that after one inning Monday, he has a 0.00 big-league ERA. And a 9.27 minor-league ERA.

Very little else seemed remotely like reality about an outing in which Curt Casali looked more gymnast than catcher lunging for fastballs high, outside and both – and in which Royals DH Michael Massey escaped serious injury thanks to his bat somehow winding up absorbing the fastball toward his head as he tried to get out of the way.

It was just another Strike 2 on a night Karcher threw just nine strikes among his 21 pitches.

“The fastball was Wild Thing I guess tonight,” said Casali, who got a well-deserved hug from Karcher after the final out on a fly to left.

Wild Thing.

The way this season is starting to look, that might as well be the marketing slogan for the year.

“He said, ‘Congratulations,’ and then he said, ‘We gotta work on the fastball,’ “ Karcher said of Casali. “Couldn’t be more spot on.”

None of which is not to pick on Karcher as much as it is to underscore the absurdity of the way the Reds are winning baseball games these days.

“It’s like a movie, bro,” Karcher said during that postgame TV interview.

“What a great way to start your career. It doesn’t really get much more difficult than that,” manager David Bell said. “And to find a way to navigate through that. Curt did a nice job obviously to help him through it. That’s one thing when you have all working. When you find a way to get it done to get the team a win there, it can’t be any more beautiful than that.”

The Reds have come from behind to win more than anyone else in the National League this season: 21 times.

Only the Baltimore Orioles and Los Angeles Angels have done it more often, with 22 each.

No surprise that they lead the NL, said Friedl – who scored what turned out to be the game-winner Monday on a slide/collision at the plate that initially was ruled an out before a replay challenge.

“That’s kind of what this team is about, grinding out games until the very last out,” he said. “This is kind of our MO.”

The Reds are still three games under .500 even after winning six of their last eight.

But that ties their high-water mark since a 7-15 start. They’re 25-20 since then – the best record in the NL Central in that span.

And they moved to within 3 1/2 games of first place, and 2 1/2 of wild-card playoff position with the win.

With 95 games left to play.

Ninety-five games that – if the last few weeks is any indication – might be impossible to avert your eyes from.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Ricky Karcher survives wild debut to close Cincinnati Reds win