The Cincinnati Reds won the NL Central a year ago to the surprise of many around baseball. Those who paid attention knew those Reds would be good but nobody really expected them to have 91 wins and win the division by 5 games (it wasn’t really that close). Joey Votto won the NL MVP over King Albert (At this point in his career, he’s more than a Prince) – easier said than done. The starting rotation is good, young, and deep but the Reds don’t feel like one of the top teams in the NL. Can they repeat and make the postseason for the second straight year?
Projected Lineup:
- Drew Stubbs (CF)
- Brandon Phillips (2B)
- Joey Votto (1B)
- Scott Rolen (3B)
- Jay Bruce (RF)
- Jonny Gomes
- Edgar Renteria (SS)
- Ramon Hernandez (C)
Projected Rotation:
- Edinson Volquez
- Bronson Arroyo
- Johnny Cueto
- Travis Wood
- Mike Leake
Strengths:
Rotation: They don’t have a true ace pitcher. However, they have a lot of really good pitchers. Edinson Volquez was 17-6 with a 3.21 ERA in 2008, his last full season, and will be the clubs’ Opening Day starter. Bronson Arroyo was 17-10 with a 1.15 WHIP and has had over 200 IP in each of the last six years while Johnny Cueto was 12-7 in 2010. None of these guys are all that fun to watch but, they are effective and give the team a chance to win. (Yawn…. maybe this why we dont think of them as elite. They’re BORING)
Joey Votto: For a guy with 37 HRs, a .322 avg, 112 RBIs and an MVP award, we really do not talk about Votto enough. He’s young, only three years in the league, and should be good for a long time. So let’s talk about him. How about a new nickname, Joey is a little unoriginal. We could call him Kangaroo (like an older Joey), Vota-roo (a play on the kangaroo), Votto-matic, Where’s Votto, Zorro (Because it almost rhymes with Votto), The Canadian. Good nicknames make good players so for his sake, I hope the public settles on one.
Organizational Depth: This is a club with a ton of young talent and has truly positioned itself to be good for the foreseeable future. Keith Law has 5 of their prospects in his top 100 list on top of the young Major League roster. With Brandon Phillips (29), Joey Votto (27), Drew Stubbs (26), Johnny Cueto (25), Mike Leake (23), Travis Wood (24), and Aroldis Chapman. who turns 23 on Monday, this team is expecting major contributions from 20-somethings.
Weaknesses:
Dusty Baker: While the toothpicks he chews are delicious and addicting, he has a way of running young arms into the ground (Ask Mark Prior, Kerry Wood, or Edinson Volquez). He’s not a good manager either (17 years, 1 World Series Appearance). Here’s to hoping he doesn’t do the same with Mike Leake, Edinson Volquez (Round 2), Johnny Cueto, or Travis Wood.
Backup Catcher?: When I find myself looking at your backup catcher to find a weakness, you’ve got a good team. (For the record, Ryan Hannigan backed up Hernandez last year and in 203 ABs hit .300)
Storylines:
Young and Unproven: While the youth is promising, its also very unreliable. Mike Leake is expected to be really good this year but a year ago posted pedestrian numbers of a 4.23 ERA and 1.50 WHIP. I realize a roster of mostly the same players won 91 games last year, but can they repeat that performance?
105.1: Allow me to repeat: 105.1. AND he’s left handed?? Aroldis Chapman makes you wake up in the late innings and is one of the most fun pitchers to watch. I can’t wait to see how he develops and fits into the closer’s role (eventually).
Prediction:
91-71; First Place, NL Central. The Reds will be stuck in a dogfight all summer long with the improved Brewers. Prior to the Wainright injury, the Cardinals also figured in this conversation. I think they will be a better team than a year ago but I don’t see them going 14-5 vs the Brewers this year, like a year ago. Joey Votto is better than Prince Fielder and the bullpens separate the two teams.
Bold Predictions:
- Joey Votto will have under 30 home runs, even while playing in the Great American Small Park.
- Dusty Baker chokes on toothpick and has to miss a weak after scratching his esophagus. After the ordeal, Dusty decides to stop with the sweat bands and he suddenly loses his managerial magic (like mojo), and retires.
- Brandon Phillips returns to form and goes 25-25 (not quite 30-30) but he hits .325 and finishes fourth in the MVP race.
- Joe Morgan (finally fired from ESPN) returns to manage the team with Pete Rose as his bench coach. Infuriated that Rose can’t coach anymore, Morgan decides on the upset pick Jon Miller who in 20 years as Sunday Night Baseball’s play-by-play man proved that he knows only marginally more about baseball than Morgan.
And Now For Something Completely Different:
C is for cookie. That’s good enough for me.
Real life Mario Kart! I wish I had done this. Entertaining video for those of us who played the N64
Something for the ladies.
Do you have Jaundice?
Keep up with your current events. Obama gives tax cuts (not a communist).
As always, feel free to comment below or send us an email at [email protected]
-Sean Morash
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