"Cinc" some mojo?

[Cincy the Red]

Good to see Cueto back out there. Had a few rough patches, but really turned it up at the end and finished strong. Downside to that is the departure of "Cin-ful"...kid was fun to watch but developing that 2nd reliable pitch for him is a must for him to be successful at the MLB level. Looking forward to him coming back next year when Arroyo is released/traded which is what I personally expect to happen. What a young/strong rotation that would be next year (Cueto, Latos, Bailey, Cin, & Leake). Still a bit concerned with Broxton (never really like the guy for some reason).....Chappy, not so much.... he will be fine.

Hitting.....I am loving it. As we were used to from last year, when one has a bad game, another picks 'em up. It appears to me everyone is settling in and getting comfortable and starting to find their personal swing. You will have ups & downs all year of course but, maaaan....Votto/Bruce are rocking, Phillips is bang'n, and Choo has been everything we had hoped for from a lead-off perspective. I really believe when Luddy gets back and Phillips can move into the #2 spot (pushing Cozart back to near the end with Hanny) this line-up is one of the best out there....offensively and defensively.

All things considered.....the "Red Storm" is coming....and in my opinion, opposing teams better buckle their seatbelts going forward....gonna be a bumpy ride.

Long live Reds Nation.

 

[Redsfan1507]

I hope you are right. In sure I'm not the only daily follower of the Reds that have concerns about the frequent lack of mojo against teams with a chance of making the playoffs, however. Im afraid that all things considered, this teams weaknesses aren't exposed much against sub-500 teams, and are repeatedly exposed when playing equal talent. That said, I think the Reds have and had, plenty of talent to go farther than they've been with this crew.

They may indeed need more mojo, since I've come to expect to have to make up for less rhan sound fundamentals, plate philosophy and ability to make productive outs. They simply have to hit more, or find another method to win against top teams.

 

[JohnU]

You need a bit of luck here and there, as evidenced by the obstruction call against Ike Davis last night. That play turned that inning around. Over a month, you gotta win 16 games and letting one get away here and there will add up to about a dozen over a season. So any you can take back averages that out.

 

[Redsfan1507]

Most of what us casual fans call luck, isn't luck... At least not like being obstructed by a flying bird or lightning bolt is luck... It's a function of execution. Execution is a function of talent, preparation, and ability to adjust tactics to counter same. Ted Williams put it well; "The harder I work, the luckier I get"... but Ted also had substantial talent, superior vision and the ability to persevere. It's not an accident.

 

[JohnU]

I agree generally on luck and talent being mixed together to produce results.
All the same, an umpire can make a call that goes your way or he can miss it.

 

[Redsfan1507]

IMO, umps blow a game a year on teams, while managers blow a dozen. Players get blamed for 99% of them, and umps puck up the change.

 

[Cincy the Red]

Ahhhh, the wonderful storm I was referring to. Improving their road play as well....is good stuff.

Speaking of good stuff, nice to see Cozart wake up, Votto continues to roll, and what can you say about Phillips this year? Dude is being very clutch and I think nearing 50 RBI's already?

Bring the rain.....

 

[Redsfan1507]

Hey, the Reds don't make the schedule, they just have to play it...and they are thumping the dregs of MLB. The Reds just haven't figured out how those other plus .500 teams are beating them like dregs.

Phillips has done well. It sure helps when 2 of the top 2 in OBP are hitting in front of him, and the guy behind him isn't hitting .200. Imagine how many more RBI he'd have with a 2 hitter that wasn't hitting .200...

 

[bengaldoug]

They will be ok if they play .500 ball for the season vs winning teams and dominate the losers. Now I know they aren't exactly off to a great start this year vs winners, but the season is still young, and they did go 29-27 vs NL teams who had winning records last year, so I'm not going to panic yet. Here's the breakdown from last year

Atl 5-1
LAD 2-4
Mil 9-6
SF 4-3
StL 7-8
Wsh 2-5

Total 29-27

 

[bengaldoug]

Interestingly enough, last year the Cards were 2 games under .500 vs NL winners (29-31)

 

[JohnU]

Teams that are currently under .500 could be over .500 by the middle of August. After all, the Angels were 1-0 against the Reds after the first game. Does that count? I don't think this is meaningful unless every game you play is against Miami.

 

[Redsfan1507]

Well, so far the Reds aren't close to .500 against other .500 teams. They're like 5-13. I agree, if the Reds play .500 against the better teams, they are fine. I just hope they don't wait so long they have to play .700 for 3 months against them to accomplish that. Not likely.

Barring injury, signing Roy Hobbs, or a Mayan disaster, Marlins, Cubs, Mets, etc. are going to lose big,and I think unless they grow some pitching, the Brewers are too. Even though they are above .500 now, until the Pirates finish above .500, I'm doubting. One thing is near certain, make all the excuses you want, if you get dominated by the Braves, Giants and Cardinals in season, you should expect same in post season. Best solve that IN season, unless the goal is to be the first team out of the playoffs when you do manage to make them.

 

[Cincy the Red]

Once again folks, a lot of ball to be played and I still our best ball is yet to come. I don't care much about the .500 measurement vs. the over & under....the goal for any team is to be above the .500 mark as far as they can prior to the break. And our Reds are doing well in that respect. Our best ball is clearly ahead of us now that we have Cueto back, Hanny healthy to guide our pitching staff, & Luddy on the mend....we should be good to go barring any additional injuries *knocks on wood*. Thus far in May....when our offense has put 4 runs on the board in a game....we have lost ONCE. Pitching is solid, hitting is coming around, and it's game on going forward in my opinion....

 

[JohnU]

Luddy ain't gonna be back till August. Bet on that.

 

[Cincy the Red]

Yeah JohnU, could definitely be a possibility with Luddy, but I am hoping for sooner than that. But how 'bout this Reds fans! Our Reds are 1 of only 3.... 30 win teams in MLB thus far!!!! Unfortunately, the damn Cards are one of the other 2, heheh.

 

[JohnU]

I'm sure some bozo will disparage it by saying it's by beating bad teams. There's a reason teams are bad and a reason teams are good. I get weary of reading about how we beat the teams under .500, as it in the end anybody cares. The BRM also thumped the turkeys too and nobody condemns them for it.

And once again the NLC gets blasted as mediocre, as if the rest of baseball was all that grand and glorious.

Reds aren't getting much credit for winning games. Maybe it's justified. I sometimes think they do it with mirrors too. But a "W" is not spelled with an "L" either.

 

[WvuDieHard]

Baseball has a great degree of parity. The Cubs, Marlins, and Mets can beat anybody on a given day. Sure we know they are bad but they are not so bad as to automatically think every game is a win. The Reds have a lot of strengths. 1) starting pitching 2) relief pitching 3) defense. If there is a weak link on this team, it is the manager first and foremost and then the bench as it is on the weak side. Otherwise this team is solid and should be playing post season ball where we can watch DustMop and his brilliance shine again.

 

[chico ruiz]

actually, the talk around mlb is the nlc is one of the best divisions, if not the best, in baseball. i know what you mean about the beating bad, or -.500, teams comments john. it's a weak argument ,and like many posts on this board, it has become tiresome. half the teams in the league are under .500. it's usually cited as evidence that baker can't beat the good teams. maybe so. on the managerial gaffes thread i was, once again, thwarted in my efforts to widen the scope of the conversation and keep it from degenerating into the exact same criticisms. criticisms are fine when you justify them. but, i'm reminded of a quote; does anybody need to be told over and over spitting in the wind comes back at you twice as hard. example: i counted 50 posts from one individual that said almost the same thing. i mean, what is that? seems like a problem to me. i read more negative posts on this board, by far, compared to positive. and that's with the reds having the 3rd best record in all of baseball. make an effort to get outside of your own head. try to look at the game through the lens of a 10 year old occasionally. forget the money, media, agents, steroids, etc, etc. gabp is a wonderful place to see a game. go to a game and observe the kids rooting for their favorite player, and not giving up hope that a reds player is going to come through in the bottom of the ninth. there's a innocence and spontaneity to our game that is incomparable. it seems many on this board have forgotten the joy of the game. download the 'field of dreams" script and read it, or get to cooperstown asap. and for goodness sake, have some fun.

 

[WvuDieHard]

actually, the talk around mlb---yes we read the standings in the newspaper everyday and its not just talk--it is actually in black and white print
like many posts on this board, it has become tiresome---you obviously must be referring to the 360 word rant with 3rd grade grammar that you spewed above
i counted 50 posts from one individual that said almost the same thing. i mean, what is that? ---evidence of a strong opinion of a not so good manager who makes bonehead decisions like batting relief pitchers and pulling them the next inning?
i read more negative posts on this board, by far, compared to positive:---If you are looking for something positive may I suggest a book by Tony Robbins, Then you will learn to deal with negativity.

 

[JohnU]

I'm as hard on Dusty as the next guy and he frustrates me frequently with decisions that didn't make sense only because they didn't work.

As for fun, folly and frivolity ... about all I have to amuse myself these days is baseball, my cat and my cat's love of baseball. Truthfully, that's not much different from having a wife and kids, IMO. Anyway, I find the game intriguing on every level and confounding when it doesn't work the way I want it to work.

I like coming from behind in the 2nd inning, not the 7th.

But the sport is as simple as shoving a square peg into a square hole. Only the bat and the ball are round, which makes the square peg principle somewhat controversial.