Regular Season

[eburg5000]

Simon was good at keeping them off the plate, but he still couldn't get anyone out

 

[JohnU]

This team stopped being an insult weeks ago and is now an embarrassment. If this is what these bastards think is big-league baseball, may they go fuck themselves.

 

[eburg5000]

But John, they are building for the future. In 2 years the Reds will have a team that will make the BRM look like a little league team. Just wait and see.

On another note, If I were Hoover, I might be breaking out my plans, for what he was going to do after baseball.

 

[JohnU]

I am at a loss for words. I guess I have officially stopped giving a crap.

 

[Hit-n-Run]

Hoover optioned, Sampson recalled.

Price is confident JJ will get the ship righted and be back up to help the team the second half. Haven't we heard that before?

 

[JohnU]

You know the ship is officially sinking (<----------------------------) when:

Kevius Sampson is considered superior to anybody.

 

[eburg5000]

I thought that Ramirez was better than both, and he was bad. time to cut bate

 

[JohnU]

Reed in 4 innings threw 71 pitches.
Sampson, better than Hoover, threw 73 pitches in 2.2 innings, including 4 walks.
Reds have been outscored something like 87-32 against the Cubs in 9 games.
In 2 fewer games, Cubs batters have 125 more walks than the Reds.

 

[Hit-n-Run]

If you're going to be an aggressive early in the count hitting team you're not going to walk a lot, but shouldn't strike out a lot either. The Reds are 27th in walks and have the 8th most K's. Doesn't work well together.

The pitching staff has the opposite problem. They walk too many and don't K enough batters.

 

[JohnU]

I think all these numbers combined are fairly strong evidence that the dugout staff is -- if not inept -- marginally incompetent. I realize the players have to deliver, but if the coaches don't matter, why have them?

 

[JohnU]

I would be curious that if this team was playing this badly under Dusty Baker, if anybody would be letting HIM off the hook, like they do with Price, who is completely clueless.

 

[Hit-n-Run]

Dusty's short comings are well documented, but he was overly criticised during his tenure in Cincinnati. You can't reasonably blame a guy for every loss and give no credit for the wins.

I'd agree that Price has escaped criticism for the most part for a team that has been in constant decline since his hiring. Lower expectations is part of it, but there's more to it than just that.

 

[JohnU]

The argument that Price is given a roster that can't win is not totally untrue, but I don't understand the logic unless Price just wanted to "play manager" for a couple of years. That would suggest that the front office is deliberately trying to give the guy a bad record because that gives them an excuse to fire him.

That simply makes NO sense.

These players have done nothing to improve, despite everything else. Yeah yeah ... I get it about the injuries, but when you come back from injury, building a portfolio of 4 walks per 9 and an ERA north of 5.00 ... was there nothing other than rehab?

I can't blame the front office for that disaster in D.C. or the 87-32 difference in runs against the Cubs.

I can't blame any of Suarez' hack-and-bail on the front office. He picked that up on his own sometime in mid-May.

Votto, a "student" of hitting, is "hitting" .246 and has evidently had enough of trying to get on base. He will probably try for 30 HR this year and screw the average. That suggests a lot more than just a need to help the team. It suggests a frustration with a lot of things.

This ain't all about Devin Mesoraco or Homer Bailey. It is about JB Diaz and JC Ramirez and JJ Hoover. None of those guys belongs in the majors and if Price is spineless enough to just keep running them out there, he's the problem. Fans don't mind the growth process, but this has been an insult. The Price apologists have worn very thin because they were relentless in criticizing Baker for "ruining" young arms, or complaining about walks clogging the bases. Baker's team is in first place.

What Price has contributed is a team that can't even get to 35 wins by the AS break, which was a benchmark in 2007 with Jerry Narron, a team that we thought was as bad as it could get. Losing games 4-2 is hard to swallow. Losing games 13-4 sends a very serious message that the manager has literally no control over his team.

I suppose the next question is: Is that the strategy the front office intends to employ in the future? If so, there are lots of managers who would not even apply for the job.

 

[eburg5000]

At the rate the Reds are going now. I'm not sure they will win 30 by AS break. It also seems most of the starters that have been keeping us in games are running out of gas. Not looking good at all.

 

[Hit-n-Run]

There may be managers that don't want to be in Price's shoes, but they'll have no problem filling the vacancy when he's gone regardless.

Any candidate that looks at this team and doesn't see a path to success isn't the guy they should hire anyway.

 

[eburg5000]

Right now the Reds are going to lose know matter who is manager who is manager. I think that they don't want to get a new manager until they are more competitive. Price is a lame duck manager and I believe he knows it.

 

[JohnU]

I suppose H n R is correct. Every manager believes he can win but it appears this franchise has a somewhat convoluted idea about "rebuilding." One would assume that a degree of improvement should be at least noticeable. For about 10 days, I was cautiously impressed. It seems clear they haven't scouted their opponents much in the last week or so. This losing streak could reach 10.

 

[eburg5000]

I don't see this as rebuilding, they are just going cheap.

 

[JohnU]

last word, just to annoy Chico.

 

[Redsfan1507]

Managers know when they can't win. They also know they will most likely be fired, or have to quit to maintain sanity, in the end. It beats $80K a year as a bullpen coach in AA, or $4,500 as a H.S.coach. They also know MLB managers are retreaded pretty often. Ned Yost was a castoff loser, you know. A better team made him a lot smarter, didn't it ? It works both ways...there are a lot of half-assed managers that should have term limits shorter than half-assed elected officials.

Anyone that refuses to embarrass Jon Lester by bunting and stealing repeatedly, isn't really trying...or is blinded by his desire not to expose a handicap, even if it costs a win. As far as a fan can see, Price is not brilliant, or motivational enough to improve much anytime soon, at least not within the constraints of his GM who hired this team.