Good, Bad, and the Ugly

[Hit-n-Run]

The Good: Winning three of four from the Brew Crew.

The Bad: Jay Bruce becomes the latest casualty.

The Ugly: Steve Smith might be the worst third base coach in the league. On more than one occasion this season with runners on 1st and 2nd and one out, the batter has hit what appears to be GIDP and the turn to first has been thrown away. Smith meets the lead runner at the 3rd base bag to retrieve the players batting helmet and such assuming the inning is over. The runner on 2nd should be busting ass around 3rd in this scenario, not loafing and exchanging equipment.

The player should know better, but the coach shouldn't be employed at the MLB level. There's been a lack of accountability when it comes to Steve Smith up to this point.

 

[Redsfan1507]

I was happy Mark Berry was replaced. I was however, under the mistaken impression his replacement couldn't be as bad. I was wrong. It is made worse by the work in progress on the teams new philosophy to be aggressive on the bases. You gotta have a grasp of arithmetic before learning calculus...baseball 101 says NEVER make the first or last out of the inning past 2b. Been a lot of 1st and last outs between 3rd and home. Berry's big misgiving was hesitation-forgetting trailing runners after often questionable lead runner direction. So far, trailing runners have fared better than lead runners. It's a problem.

Injuries have taken a toll so far, and continue to be a factor. To be honest, Latos, Chapman and Mesoraco's absence has harmed the Reds...but arguably, no more than Bruce, Bailey, the bullpen, and Cingrani, Phillips, Ludwick and to a degree, Votto's cumulative inability to go deep. Cozart hasn't hit at all. The bench is miserable other than Heisey and the catchers, who now have to be starters. Maybe Schumaker will help ?

Bruce can't be replaced, but he's not hitting anyway. Maybe it was the knee. If so, it's time he gets it fixed. I like the idea of manufacturing runs, but it's not enough in a smal park- gotta hit some homers and be able to hold a lead. Reds haven't done enough of either yet.

 

[Hit-n-Run]

In regards to HR's it's the same problem we all knew already existed. The Reds hit'em at GABP and warning track fly outs on the road. I think they've hit 21 at home in 15 games and only 6 in 16 road games. Their power doesn't travel well and makes it imperative that the pitching, defense, and running game does.

Bruce has been more selective at the plate this year which has translated into more walks and a higher OBP, but his K's remain high and has struggled at the dish overall. A day off yesterday seemed fitting until I heard it was a vacation with a side dish of surgery. JB hasn't hit much yet, but as we all know he's feast or famine prone and was probably due to go on one of his hot streaks.

 

[redsfan03]

I'm almost happy Bruce is injured because his "at-bat" yesterday was one of the most embarrassing things I've ever seen in my life. Good to know that there may be a reason why his performance has been so pitiful.

 

[Redsfan1507]

I think this division is weaker than last year. I like a lot of the new energy, and am realistic about the need for it, given the less than BRM offense on the roster. The D has been good, just need a better bullpen performance, and some hits.

Bruce's knee may be part of it, but the hole in his swing is harder to repair. He's a .250 hitter, but his 30 HR are needed in between in 140 K's. he's Adam Dunn with D. He's not Frank Robinson.

 

[Hit-n-Run]

Can't remember ever seeing Joey Votto struggle for such an extended period. No doubt he gets pitched tough being the focal point of the scouting report, but he hasn't been able to make the adjustment to the increasing number of inside two seamers he's seeing. Tough pitch to handle when your hitting philosophy is based on letting the ball travel deeper into the hitting zone. Pitchers have done a good job keeping him from driving the ball to left field this season.

 

[Hit-n-Run]

I think last night was the 11th one run loss for the Reds. It also marked the 10th runner thrown out between 3b and home. It's going to be tough making the Post Season if those two trends continue.

The walks from the pen continue to haunt their chances as well. Collectively the pen has posted a BB/9 of over 5. That's off the charts in the lack of command category.

There are positives with the team, but the negatives are dragging the overall results down.

 

[Redsfan1507]

Hoover can't throw a strike. Maybe we've extracted all the use out of what we got for Juan Francisco, who can't hit a strike. Just saying maybe it's time to stop depending on a firefighter that begins most of his missions by tossing gasoline in first.

I like aggressive baserunning, but you gotta evaluate the chances of slugs like Ludwick standing waiting on tags every couple of games a little closer.

Part of winning 1 run games is minimizing the gifts you give the other team. One a game isn't a a coincidence if it ends up beating you by one. This lineup isn't built to make up with a homer right now, so what you do on the bases, on the mound, and on D, leave little room for dumbass.

 

[Redsfan1507]

I think last night qualifies as the good. Walkoff HR by Votto against the Rockies LOOGY. Frazier's was a monster bomb. I like Votto in the 4 hole better than him doing a Pete Rose impersonation in the 2 hole. Need to get him swinging long a little more, I think.

 

[Redsfan1507]

Check another in the good column. After the best down on Saturday, Billy Ham takes over, Homer pitches a good one and AC looks un-hittable.

 

[eburg5000]

wasn't sure how Chapman was going to do today after being out so long , but he looked great

 

[Redsfan1507]

As I said before, I think this division is weaker than last year, and the Reds will be fine as long as they get the wounded back before the A-S break. They need Bruce's power and Latos in the rotation. Chapman wherever they use him is going to be a strength. I look for Mesoraco to be a better bat than last year, Pena and Schumaker as quality bench additions. Cozart is a fine SS, and his contribution on D will be enough when Votto starts being Votto, and the rest of the offense gets going. Ludwick appears to be at least serviceable in the lineup as a 6-7 hitter, as long as Frazier keeps hitting like he has.

I don't believe in the Brewers- their pitching hasn't changed enough to be as improved as they've appeared so far, and their D sucks. They have lots of holes in the lineup when you get past Braun, Gomez and Lucroy. The Cardinals pitching and D aren't great, and it's possible Craig's foot is still an issue that affects his bat, and Carpenter is hitting a more mortal .280 now. The Pirates pitching miracle appears to be thinning. The Cubs are weak. I think the Reds will be in the race to the end, if they can get healthy.

 

[Hit-n-Run]

I thought the Cards were at a risk of reduced offense when they stirred the lineup pot trading Freese and letting Beltran leave. They still lack power and speed, so if they're not going to hit .280 as a team they're not going to be the juggernaut offense they were. But to be fair, none of the Central Division teams are looking very strong offensively.

If the division continues to be a push offensively, I like the Reds D and pitching over the other teams in the division. I expect the bull pen to improve as they continue to get back to full strength. It would be another boost getting Latos back allowing Simon to return to the pen. Hasn't been too much in the way of positive news lately concerning Latos' return.

The Brewers look to be returning to the pack and I won't be surprised if the division is won by a less than 90 win team this season.

 

[chico ruiz]

i agree with you both. i think it was buck showalter who said, and i'm paraphrasing here, "you can judge teams that are going to be good by looking at the 3,4,5 starting pitchers, and the 6,7,8 hitters in a lineup." you guys get the idea. it's not rocket surgery. i happen to think that mike leake is the best #5 starter in mlb. imo, cingrani is the biggest question mark. he throws a lot of pitches. many are wasted that put cumulative stress on his arm overall. he reminds a little of matt moore in his first full year in mlb. and with a healthy mesoraco, frazier, and cozart you have a good young 6-7-8. i am assuming here that zach will get hot at some point. he had a very good second half last season. maybe he will again. i'm hoping anyway. he plays hard and as 1507 mentions, is a very good glove. what the reds lose in a 3 week hot jay bruce, they may gain in consistency with schumaker and heisey. both of them play all out. as a fan, i really do appreciate that. probably more than most fans actually. i know i'm looking at the potential bright side, but they're our team. when i saw heisey score the winning run last week from first base on a double in the corner i got excited about that potential. if the reds are + .500 after their west coast trip at the end of the month, i like their chances.

 

[JohnU]

Good: Hamilton is showing signs he has a clue. I think it's time he started thinking about stealing third.
Frazier has sneaked up on the league. When he stays smart, he will hit.
Cueto is due for a bummer start but ... I am also due to win the lottery.
Leake has it figured out, I think. Simon is pitching on borrowed time. Cingrani isn't going to get the job done unless he learns to throw effective pitches off the plate. He telegraphs his waste pitches.

Kinda-sorta good: Bailey claims he's getting it together. I think the groin problem was worse than he believed.
Defense is pretty solid but Cozart is not getting to balls like I want. Bleeders are bad news.
Votto appears to finally 'get it' that taking a walk is all well and good but the best hitters also need to ... um, hit.
Barnhart has been a very pleasant surprise. He's got double-A experience. Not a bad job of catching. He won't hit, so don't count on that. Pena will wear down too pretty soon.

Hoover and Christiani are rapidly working toward the DFA list. Chapman will shove somebody back to the minors. I don't think this bullpen is all THAT bad, but the problem, seriously, is that the starters are going very deep into games without much support. Reds are getting more innings from their starters than almost everyone. Price is slotting his relievers after basically saying he wouldn't. Not sure what to expect from the bullpen. This is not a bullpen that lacks talent or experience, except for Christiani. Hoover, I think, has tanked his chances. (Could be the Braves knew something.)

This team still can't hit and the short sample size on Schumaker is just that.
Ludwick has done OK and so has Pena. Frazier is now the power source. Cozart seems to be thinking too much and not doing a good job of it on the bases, the rare times he is ON a base.

And the bench is what it is.

Latos is not close to returning, regardless of the front office bullshit.

In short, being around .500 isn't all that bad.

 

[WvuDieHard]

The Reds will have a run in them and will reel of 6-8 in a row. The question is will it be enough? I guess that depends on if they can play decent baseball until Bruce and Latos can get back. Right now we have some absolute hacks on this club; Roger Bernadina, Ondrusek, Hoover, and Christiani. These dudes need to be somewhere else other than the Cincinnati bench.

 

[Hit-n-Run]

I agree with John on Cingrani telegraghing pitches. With him throwing such a high percentage of fastballs and none of his secondary pitches being a plus pitch to begin with, he needs his delivery of his secondary pitches to resemble his fastball delivery. A change in arm slot or arm speed and there's no deception to throw off the hitter's timing.

In regards to Hoover the scouting report on him prior to coming to the Reds was he lacked command and a true out pitch. IMO, his curve can be plus at times but hangs too many and his fastball is only effective out of the strike zone with little consistent command of either.

Frazier has made a solid commitment to this point to better plate discipline laying off the balls diving off the outside corner. Still gets out on his front foot too much but has shown the most improvement this season among the hitters.

Cozart lacks the discipline to hit 8th where all the hitter gets is junk with the pitcher on deck. He should be walking much more than he has, but he has never walked much even in the minors. He's the pitchers best friend at this point. He does play a good SS, but better plate discipline and occasionally a SB and he'd be good to go

 

[Redsfan1507]

I seem to keep asking the same questions, to things the Reds don't seem to acknowledge. Hoover may not have options, but he hasn't gotten many outs in 2 months of trying. Simon may be on borrowed time as a SP....and I've always wondered why Cingrani's absence of secondary pitches hasn't been considered to a bullpen role, and why after 4 years of pushing Chapman's superior stuff to the rotation with a manager refusing to consider it, they get a manager that would, but just inexplicably defer to status quo.

Bernadina isn't a MLB player, ditto Christiani. Barnhart is gritty, and Soto....well, hard to imagine these guys on the roster with Bruce, Schumaker, Mesoraco, Latos and Chapman back. Cozart isn't hitting a ton, but I don't see Santiago as a better player. If/when Hannahan comes off the DL, what good will he be ?

Still, there have been strides. No way Dusty would have scored half the runs this year Price has, because 90% of the small ball that advanced runners wouldn't have been tried. Hamilton would be a PR. Logical roles are important, and even though the Reds are short on talent to adequately fill some roles, they aren't just standing waiting on 30 HR seasons from all 8 guys to score 4 runs a game. I don't believe PED's are gone, but they have declined enough where the last 25 years strategy of homer or else, is already becoming antiquated...so the Reds may be a little ahead of the offensive curve to come, where speed and small ball are a higher priority than most are used to currently.

 

[JohnU]

As for the bench, I am not all THAT unhappy with Bernadina's effort. He's trying too hard to make the team and he has no chance of enduring that anyway. But he plays good outfield and provides an element of speed if he's on base.

The guy who intrigues me is Heisey. He plays well enough for 10 at-bats to make you think he ought to get a chance. Then he gets a chance and you are quickly reminded why he isn't in there. He plays hard, runs hard, is a good baserunner and plays the LF corner in GABP very well.

The dude just can't seem to get it together.

 

[HammerDown]

Anyone watching game 1 of the Padres series? You guys gotta be pissed off about the bottom half of the sixth.