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Nice winning streak

JohnU

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I am too cynical to say this group can be a contender.
They aren't. Holes in the lineup and some ridiculous meltdowns by the pitchers.
But winning 6 in a row is not nothing.
 

Hit-n-Run

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First 6 game winning streak since Dusty was manager. That's a long drought even if you're a bad team. First time the Reds swept a 4 game set in LA since 1976, that's more than a drought.

The Dodgers and Mets have both been struggling, but teams have been getting healthy on the Reds all season. So it's nice to see the tables turned for a change.

Winning and success breeds confidence. Whether the Dodgers are limping or not, it's a much needed boost for the team and it's fan base. When you dig yourself into a 3-15 hole it's tough to get out. Playing anywhere near .500 the rest of the way would be a big step forward.

This team isn't as bad as the record suggest, but it does reflect the way they played the first month.
 

JohnU

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I think finally it's going to be a little harder to pitch to this team but I do think Winker and possibly Suarez are going to wear down. Hell, most players wear down.

It will be curious to see, depending on their success, how the Reds get Lorenzen back into the bullpen and Disco on the roster. Garrett is shoving for a spot in the rotation.

I think we'll see Wandy sent out for awhile to get his delivery fixed.

Otherwise, the Cavalry ain't comin' from the minors. Could be, Kyle Crockett gets a look. I haven't paid any attention to Finnegan; Stephenson is a mess. Reed is ordinary.

Blugh.
 

Hit-n-Run

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Winker may not move fast enough to get tired. With the four man OF rotation none of them will get worn out before we've long grown tired of seeing them collectively sport that current .220 BA. Suarez just came back from a DL vacation and is probably the most well rested. Other than Votto everyone else seems to get enough scheduled days off. Peraza may be the guy that is the first to wear down. But as you mentioned most players get worn down by the grind of a 162 game schedule.

Desclafani and Lorenzen started their rehab assignment at the same time, but you'd think Lorenzen would be ready first. The obvious first guy to fall off the roster would be Jackson Stephens. Wandy Peralta could pitch himself off the roster if he's not careful. But in a couple weeks there may be someone else that we're saying the same thing about. Relief pitchers are funny that way.

As for Desclafani the end of May is too far off to know what the status of this rotation will be. Injuries always seem to create more than enough opportunity for players returning from the DL.

I think the Reds like Garrett right where he is. I would agree with them. I've seen him pitch several times prior to making it to the Majors and his stuff was never impressive. As a reliever he's been much tougher on hitters. I hope they leave him right where he's at.
 

JohnU

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I think Garrett has earned a spot on the roster. For now, that needs to be his goal. He can make the rotation next year. Stephens is clearly the guy who will get the demotion, though if I was the Reds, I'd be looking at a few more guys like Floro -- enough MLB experience to throw strikes, but not enough to be expensive. Replaceable.

If they go tinkering with the rotation, it's likely to be Romano, not Bailey. We still need to see what Harvey the Rabbit brings. I think we're a bit giddy over this deal, showing how far we have sunk!

The best way to win with this staff is to score 6 runs and hold out for a DP ball. Nothing really wrong with that. I don't think anybody in the NL-C has an overwhelming pitching staff. The Cubs can afford to improve. St. Louis generally is screwed right now. Milwaukee got a nice lift from a rookie. We shall see there.
 

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I agree with the calvary not coming analogy. There's a void in MLB ready talent in the system. Most of the options are players we've already seen struggle in their previous opportunities. Reed and Stephenson being the obvious two currently waiting for someone else to fail so they can be the default beneficiaries.

A kid named Jimmy Herget has been on the radar, but the Reds have held him back waiting for him to improve his ability to get lefties out. From what I've heard he struggles to pitch inside to LHB.

That's been one of Robert Stephenson's problem throughout his career. If you can't work both sides of the plate it doesn't take hitters long to search and destroy the only side you're pitching to. If one of the two zones you're pitching in is the middle you need to stay in school.

I think I like Romano more than most on this board. He reminds me of Lance Lynn.

The Reds can put Homer, Harvey, and Disco's names in a hat and pull one out as far as I'm concerned. None of those three are the future. The building blocks are Castillo, Mahle, and Romano until a better block comes along.

I'd rather see the club take the same approach with Reed as they have Garrett. I think Reed can give the team some value as a reliever and a lot of headaches as a SP.
 

Hit-n-Run

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The Nick Senzel repeated episodes of vertigo is concerning if you're a Reds fan. I wish the young man good luck. A person's health is always more important than a game.

Hunter Greene has struggled mightily in Dayton. Opposing batters are hitting over .400 against him. He may be more of a project than originally anticipated. It's way too early to worry, but I'm surprised that kids in low A would be hitting that fastball. Makes me think the secondary stuff is in need of improvement. Pretty common for HS pitchers that never need more than the number 1 to dominate
 

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I like Romano to, I'd leave Castillo, Romano, and Mahle alone. this is the time to see what they have and all three are pitching pretty good right now. Maybe it would be best to let Disco pitch out of the pen the rest of the year, that way it would be less strain on his arm and he can get used to pitching again. Or go to a 6 man rotation, which would save everyone arm except the bullpens. Hell just an idea to throw out there. Maybe send Herrera down and replace him with a bullpen guy.
 

JohnU

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The vertigo thing is not like a case of the flu.
Nick Esasky's career ended early because of it.
I tried to read about it but it's too complicated for me to understand.
 

JohnU

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I think Greene is a "young" 18-year-old, so he probably shouldn't be at Dayton. Seems like the governor on his innings is prudent but I don't know what he's expected to achieve. Coaching and field conditions are better at Dayton than Billings or Greenville.
 

chico ruiz

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it shouldn't surprise you that kids in single a can load up on heat. we've been talking about this for years now. lots of dingers, k's, and bb's. there's a reason for the new dead ball era, and it starts way back in a prospect's career.
 

JohnU

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it shouldn't surprise you that kids in single a can load up on heat. we've been talking about this for years now. lots of dingers, k's, and bb's. there's a reason for the new dead ball era, and it starts way back in a prospect's career.
I watch a little Class A ball between S.B. and Ft.W. There aren't a lot of guys in the Midwest who can hit 100 on the gun. A lot of 88s, mostly. The guys who can throw harder than that usually are at Pensacola. Greene hasn't got even a full summer of pro ball. He's obviously not ready for AA ball yet and I don't know what he's doing at Dayton other than, the season starts earlier than Billings. He's been on a real strict pitch count -- around 60 -- and that's probably going to go up exponentially. I think for the moment, I suspect he's never really had to hold runners before. This is a lot of raw talent. I hope I get to see this play out.
 

chico ruiz

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the 'a' hitters i see in the batting cages are working out at 95. in brooklyn they are plastering 95mph. i saw an interview with johnny bench. he was breaking down the changes in the good hitters from now and in the 60' & 70's. he said they (his generation) went up looking breaking stuff, as opposed to today; they go up looking heat. that's not the hard and fast rule, but the majority. that puts it in nutshell.

it's nothing for most professional hitters to turn on 95 heat anymore. it's what they've been working on since they were 15 or 16. the up trajectory swings are a different matter. hitters have increasingly tailored their swings to get more loft and beat defensive shifts. exit velocity and launch angle has become an element of many hitters’ approach at the plate. and, as bench pointed out, they don't care if they strikeout. kingman used to be thought of as a freak. kong would fit in today's game very nicely. yeah, there are a lot of kingmans in today's game. these kids today can hit 95, because that's what most of them have been tuned to do.

i don't know if it's juice, statcast, mlb money grubbing, or a natural progression. i think it's probably a combination of all of them. regardless, it's a good part of why we're watching a different kind of game than the one bench referenced.
 

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I'd agree hitters are looking fastball more often than not. But many of them are guessing fastball and cheating a bit in triggering their swing early. Older slower bats would have always been guilty of it, but now you see a lot of younger guys doing it on first pitch swings. Todd Frazier would be a good example we're familiar with. You can always tell the guy that is cheating a bit. He's the one swinging at the pitch a foot and a half off the plate nearly falling down.

Regardless of velocity most fastballs can be timed if given the chance to adjust. There's one thing that hasn't changed. Hitting is timing and pitching is disrupting timing. The pitcher is supposed to he changing speeds..... you know actually pitching. Too many cookie cutter fastball slider pitchers in the game today. The menu has been streamlined.

Too many pitchers advance through a system throwing batting practice because it works. I always use Tony Cingrani as the example. He put up video game numbers with a mid 90's heater. Never was required to develop a descent secondary pitch and didn't.
 

JohnU

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I think the fastball-first for pitchers is pretty important if they haven't mastered a breaking pitch. Nothing speaks to success like an 0-1 count.

I think another part of the game that fascinates me is how they pitch on 0-2. They don't miss off the plate hoping to get an easy K. They throw 18 inches off the plate in the dirt. It's a waste pitch because they were trained to throw waste on 0-2. Now they don't have anything in their arsenal to throw a true waste pitch but, by god, they better throw one.

So it's wasted in the back 40 where it's swatted away. Even with men on, they expect the catcher to field that thing.

Pitchers who have real put-away stuff are rare and that's leading to 11-pitch at-bats.

I laugh when I hear announcers or scribes refer to coaches as "old school" ... from the late 1990s. What exactly is "new school" coaching?

Alas, I fear becoming a cranky old fart about the game. If the Reds were winning, I wouldn't care. In most cases, I still don't. Everything seeks its own level. Baseball is not as exciting now. MLB is selling us reality TV and making up nicknames to the point of absurdity. "Joey Bats" is the latest to make me say, "Oh, that's clever!"
 

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I laugh when I hear announcers or scribes refer to coaches as "old school" ... from the late 1990s. What exactly is "new school" coaching?

Sabermetrics coaching. Soon you will see a manager that has never played baseball managing a team, but knows the ins and outs of sabermetrics better than most. Probably sitting up in the press box with his computer. I'm not sure but they may have to make a rule change to do that , but they will
 

Hit-n-Run

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Hopefully this isn't the start of another streak in the wrong direction. Two sub par pitching performances in a row. That's to be expected from time to time, but this is where you need a stopper in the rotation. Not overly confident that Harvey is going to be that guy.

What is the expectation from Harvey today?
 

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What is the expectation from Harvey today?

Will, he make it to his pitch count number?

Can we go back and play the Dodgers and Mets some more, till they get healthy. Then we might have to move to the lower minors to get some wins

SF is a nightmare of a place to have to play. very few day games, and they seem to start later than other teams at night. And it always seems like the games last longer into the night. Probably because they are scoring so many runs against the Reds. Just the West coast
 
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JohnU

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Mahle should be in sick bay. He went out there to pitch and he's on antibiotics. What the HELL is that about?
 
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