The right-hander was charged with the loss on Thursday after giving up nine hits and seven earned runs in only 3.1 innings pitched.
Brady Singer has been having a disappointing final month of the season, taking his second-straight loss on Thursday during the Cincinnati Reds' matchup against the Los Angeles Dodgers in which he gave up nine hits and seven earned runs through only 3.1 innings of work.
As a result, the Reds fell 8-2 and dropped three out of four games to the juggernaut Dodgers ahead of their upcoming series against the division rival Chicago Cubs.
Following the game, Singer shared what he believes is causing him to not get the results he and Cincinnati have been expecting.
"Obviously, pretty bad," he told Mark Sheldon of MLB.com. "A lot of walks and hard contact, stuff like that. Just trying to get the command going and obviously couldn't get the ball where I wanted. They did damage on bad pitches."
He added: "I think that's the biggest thing, try to figure out a way to have some command and put the ball where you want to and just keep working. We're doing stuff during the week, trying to figure stuff out. [Assistant pitching coach Matt] Tracy is trying to help me as much as he can and we work on those things and we've had good weeks. It's just not really carrying over to the games."
Kyle Tucker pounced on Singer early, crushing a two-run homer to right-center field in the first while Freddie Freeman extended the lead during the second with a sacrifice fly that drove in Alex Freeland. Tucker contributed once more, scoring Miguel Rojas with a one-run double.
Singer prevented further damage until the fourth when Max Muncy doubled in Freeman and Tucker. Recent Double-A call-up Josue De Paula then chased Singer out of the game with an RBI single that scored Teoscar Hernández.
Sal Stewart responded that same inning with a solo blast to right field to spoil the shutout, but it wasn't enough when Rojas launched a one-run shot of his own in the ninth. Dodgers reliever Seth Halvorsen also held on despite Stewart scoring off a groundout by Juan Brito.
With the loss, Singer's earned-run average has gone up to 5.67, exceeding his 2023 ERA of 5.52 as a Kansas City Royal.
His ERA improved the next season as Singer lowered it to a reasonable 3.71. Consequently, he caught the attention of Cincinnati president of baseball operations Nick Krall who reached an agreement with the Royals during the 2024 offseason that landed Singer in exchange for Jonathan India and Joey Wiemer.
Still, Singer's noticeable regression raises the question of whether the trade was truly worth it given the Reds parted ways with India, who at the time was one of their solid offensive pieces who was hitting .248 and also decent in the infield.
While greater pitching depth was a need for the Reds and was the driving factor in getting the move done, the 30-year-old right-hander hasn't exactly lived up to expectations and that has been evident not only on Thursday but also last Saturday against the Milwaukee Brewers when he surrendered eight hits and eight earned runs including three homers.
Singer should get his next opportunity to take the mound and prove his case for a qualifying offer during Cincinnati's upcoming series next week against the Atlanta Braves.
