The Reds have had an impressive late kick. From Baseball Prospectus:
The Late Show: Winners of eight out of 10 and 21 out of 31, the Reds continue their attempt to salvage some dignity. Leading the way is Joey Votto, who collects 18 hits and scores 12 runs over that 10-game span while hitting .500/.571/.833. His .321 EqA not only ranks eighth in the league, it’s the highest among any Red with 400 plate appearances since Barry Larkin in 1996. Also making a solid September push is Homer Bailey, who’s put up a 1.79 ERA with 39 strikeouts in 45 1/3 innings
They’ve had help. Drew Stubbs has a .781 OPS since his recalling, replacing Willy Taveras and his .561 OPS…which is a 44% improvement offensively in centerfield, plus the improved defense.
Paul Janish has played an outstanding shortstop defensively since being given an opportunity to play. His OPS is now .624 as compared to Alex Gonzalez’s .554, which is nearly a 13% improvement at the plate. Janish’s range factor per innings is 4.95; Gonzalez’s reached 3.98 balls per 9 innings, a 25% increase for Janish over Gonzalez. Janish’s fielding percentage is .990 as compared to the .977 Gonzalez posted for the Reds.
Offensively, Scott Rolen has been nearly the same as Edwin Encarnacion at the plate. Rolen’s Reds OPS is .717, while Encarnacion was .707 while with the Reds. Their range factors are nearly identical: Rolen’s is 2.45, Encarnacion’s was 2.39 with the Reds. However, Encarnacion made four errors in 45 games at third base, and Rolen has not made an error in 33 games with the Reds and Reds pitchers seem more comfortable with him there.
Bronson Arroyo has pitched very well; he sports a 2.34 ERA for the second half of the season after posting a 5.38 ERA the first half.
So, what’s your take? Who’s made the most difference? May be it’s just Dusty’s managing?