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Hit-n-Run

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The Lonnie Smith and Willie McGee Cardinals are a good comparison. That was a fun team to watch.

Ironically the Cardinals traded Lonnie Smith to the Royals and ended up losing the WS to the Royals that same year. I think it was the 1st time a player traded played against his former team in the WS within the same season.
 

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Sundays game was a nice win, even though the bullpen about threw it away. But I was wondering why Riggleman double switched and took, one of the best hitters on the team out of the game, with a 1 or 2 run lead. I guess he was hoping Scooters spot wouldn't come up again, I think that was a big gamble by Riggleman. He will double switch just about anyone on the team except Hamilton, and his defense is the reason for that.
 

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Reds sweep Cubs at home . There are a lot of sad Cubs fans driving back to Chicago this evening. This is probably the high point of the season but I'm going to enjoy it before reality sets in
 

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Not many weekends to have braggin' rights. I suppose they will come back to earth sooner or later. Nice hitting this weekend. Bullpen magic.
 

Hit-n-Run

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After such a horrible start to the season it makes fans leary of thinking this team has really gotten better as the season wears on. But they are over .500 the last 60 games or there abouts. So unless they start playing like the Bad News Bears again I'm going to assume they are better.
 

JohnU

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After such a horrible start to the season it makes fans leary of thinking this team has really gotten better as the season wears on. But they are over .500 the last 60 games or there abouts. So unless they start playing like the Bad News Bears again I'm going to assume they are better.
The offense is middle of the pack and if you throw out the crap, the ERA is in the high 4s now. Castillo can turn that around.
League average pitching and league average hitting tends to make a lot of things equal. This is a 78-win team.
Hamilton has mattered with his hitting. We knew that.
 

Hit-n-Run

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The infield offense is above average and the outfield is below average. You'd think it wouldn't be that difficult to field a better outfield, but it's apparently nearly impossible for this front office.

It would seem to me that most middle infielders can play outfield. The Reds have better hitting infielders at the Major League level and in the minors. You'd think they at least should be exploring the possibilities of a few switching to the outfield. The Reds have a lot of guys playing 2nd that can hit and a lot of guys playing OF that can't.

Ever wonder why the Reds don't have their catchers learning another position in the minors? I don't remember the last Reds catching prospect that played another position. They've drafted a couple catchers and switched them full time to another position, but they usually don't play elsewhere if they're catching. Votto and Shed Long were both drafted as catchers.
 

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This is a 78-win team.
Hamilton has mattered with his hitting. We knew that.

I'll take that for now. After that terrible start, that would show a lot of improvement over the last 3 or for years. But tonight they play a very good Braves team, and then they come back and play the Brewers for 4. If they can win 3 of those 7. I will still be pretty happy
 

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Ever wonder why the Reds don't have their catchers learning another position in the minors? I don't remember the last Reds catching prospect that played another position. They've drafted a couple catchers and switched them full time to another position, but they usually don't play elsewhere if they're catching. Votto and Shed Long were both drafted as catchers.
I think it behooves every catcher to at least play league average first base. Ramon Hernandez did it. Posey and Maurer extended their careers. So has Lucroy.
 

Hit-n-Run

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West coast games are the worst, but extra inning losses run a close second to sucking the most. You stay up late, or being honest falling asleep watching only to be disappointed in the end. If they weren't on a winning streak I'd probably went to bed and checked the box score this morning. Unfortunately watching doesn't change the box score.
 

Hit-n-Run

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I'm sure you guys can relate to falling asleep listening to the Reds on radio. If you're a baseball fan it's something you'd done as a kid for sure.
 

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I'm sure you guys can relate to falling asleep listening to the Reds on radio. If you're a baseball fan it's something you'd done as a kid for sure.
I did that a lot as a young fan when they played LA or SF. Some great memories of those years early 60s.

Felt kinda bad for Floro. Albies chunked a good pitch.
Rigs overmanaged with Scooter bunting. It nullified both Scootwr and Suarez and sent Winker up to fail. Wasted an out.
Crockett was always better than Peralta.
 

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Runner on 1st and 2nd no out and the league leading hitter at the plate and the RBI leader on deck. Give the opposing pitcher an out or let the middle of the order do their job?

The problem with the sac bunt is exactly what happened. If the next batter makes an out and the run doesn't score the odds of scoring with two outs is minimal. They thankfully take the free out and walk the next batter setting up the double play. The pitcher now has a clear path out of the jam.
 

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Schebler has done a nice job in the lead off role. He said he's adjusted his approach to trying to get on base first over hitting for power. I hear a lot of players say that sort of thing about where they are batting in the order. They try to hit for power in the middle and on base at the top. The reality is they should always have quality AB's and the homers will happen along the way. Too many players having AB's with a single purpose in mind.

I think the single purpose approach leads to failing with a runner on 3rd and less than two out as well. Instead of a quality AB putting a good swing on the ball the batter is trying to hit a fly ball. Good hitters make outs 70% of the time, but they're not practicing getting out.
 

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Schebler has done a nice job in the lead off role. He said he's adjusted his approach to trying to get on base first over hitting for power. I hear a lot of players say that sort of thing about where they are batting in the order. They try to hit for power in the middle and on base at the top. The reality is they should always have quality AB's and the homers will happen along the way. Too many players having AB's with a single purpose in mind.

I think the single purpose approach leads to failing with a runner on 3rd and less than two out as well. Instead of a quality AB putting a good swing on the ball the batter is trying to hit a fly ball. Good hitters make outs 70% of the time, but they're not practicing getting out.
Schebler is crouching more now with 2 strikes. More like Rose. I think he will a real nice leadoff guy. His outfield play is still a bit tricky. Reds would be better off to work with him on that.
 

Hit-n-Run

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I'm interested to see if Schebler can stay within his current approach. Hitters tend to migrate back to their old ways when they hit a bump in the road.

Overall I'd say Don Long has done a nice job. Votto has played a role in some of the guys developing into what we're seeing as well. None more than Suarez. Extending him looks pretty good at the moment.
 

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West coast games are the worst, but extra inning losses run a close second to sucking the most. You stay up late, or being honest falling asleep watching only to be disappointed in the end. If they weren't on a winning streak I'd probably went to bed and checked the box score this morning. Unfortunately watching doesn't change the box score.

extra inning games on the road are tough, most of the time , they end in a loss
 

Hit-n-Run

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The Braves don't go quietly into the night. They try and claw their way back until the last out. It's been a pretty good first two games.

Nice win for Harvey. He's been showing improvement lately with his slider and it's made a difference. He may garner some interest as trade deadline draws near.

That's the part that still stinks about this team. Realistically they're probably still sellers. Harvey and Scooter could both help this team next season, but both may not be here past Aug 1st.

Harvey is a free agent and it's unlikely he'll sign here. He's building a resume to play elsewhere for more cash.

Scooter has expressed interest in signing, but the Reds haven't been inclined to oblige him. I think a 3 yr deal with an option would be a risk worth taking given the past two years performance.
 

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The Braves don't go quietly into the night. They try and claw their way back until the last out. It's been a pretty good first two games.

Nice win for Harvey. He's been showing improvement lately with his slider and it's made a difference. He may garner some interest as trade deadline draws near.

That's the part that still stinks about this team. Realistically they're probably still sellers. Harvey and Scooter could both help this team next season, but both may not be here past Aug 1st.

Harvey is a free agent and it's unlikely he'll sign here. He's building a resume to play elsewhere for more cash.

Scooter has expressed interest in signing, but the Reds haven't been inclined to oblige him. I think a 3 yr deal with an option would be a risk worth taking given the past two years performance.
The conundrum is that Blandino and Dilson Herrera are pretty much confined to the bench as long as Scooter keeps hitting. What's Scooter's ceiling? I'd sign him, truthfully.

Harvey is a puzzle. Does a non-contender want him? Maybe as a FA, they can make a deal. For the rest of the year, do any contenders want him? If he does a couple more good starts, maybe an NL team would want him. The AL races are mostly over, except the West.
 

Hit-n-Run

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I think Blandino's talent level confines him to a bench role. He didn't hit much in the minors and his defense is suspect at times. He's committed 5 errors in limited play. He showed a little power in the minors, but really haven't seen him try and drive the ball much since his call up.

Dilson has accomplished about as much as he's going to in the minors. The shoulder problems limited his exposure to playing multiple positions prior to surgery. Not sure where his arm strength rates or if he's better than a 4A type.

They like Shed Long. But he's a bat first second baseman that doesn't run or throw well. He may be limited to 2nd.

Nick Senzel if he can stay healthy is head and shoulders above everyone else in the discussion. He's also the only one that could be an everyday player at multiple positions. He runs well and that separates him from a lot of the other guys in terms of versatility.

Scooter wouldn't be much better than Winker in the OF and I think Suarez is slow, but could probably play a corner.

Votto, Suarez, Scooter, Senzel, Schebler, Winker, Peraza, and Barnhart are bats you can live with. It'd be an adventure on defense though.
 
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