The Cincinnati Reds offense could never really get going, and Milwaukee hit two home runs to put the game out of reach at Great American Ball Park on Sunday afternoon. The Brewers 5-1 victory gave them a guarantee of a series win and tomorrow they have a chance to complete a 4-game sweep.
| Final | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|
| Milwaukee Brewers (32-27) |
5 | 7 | 0 |
| Cincinnati Reds (26-33) |
1 | 6 | 0 |
| W: Houser (2-1) L: Lively (3-3) | |||
| Statcast | Box Score | Game Thread | |||
The game didn’t get out to a great start for Ben Lively. He walked Owen Miller and Jon Singleton before giving up a 3-run home run to Andruw Monasterio – his first big league homer – and Cincinnati found themselves in a 3-0 hole before they had a chance to get to the plate.
In the bottom of the 4th inning the Reds seemed to be getting something going when Matt McLain doubled to lead off the inning and Jonathan India reached on an error, putting runners on 1st and 2nd to start the inning. But Cincinnati failed to capitalize as Jake Fraley fly out and Spencer Steer grounded into an inning ending double play.
Milwaukee came out for the top of the 5th and extended their lead when Victor Caratini hit a ball that nearly left the ballpark, landing a few rows from the top of the stadium in right field for a leadoff homer that made it 4-0. After a single and a walk, Owen Miller singled in a run to extend the Brewers lead to 5-0.
Cincinnati finally got on the board in the bottom of the 7th inning when Jake Fraley led off with a home run – his 7th of the season. That’s where the game remained over the next one and a half innings.
Down by four runs, the Reds entered the bottom of the 9th with the 2-3-4 hitters due up and needing a rally. Instead of a rally they went in order and dropped the third game in a row to the Brewers, and their fourth game in a row after a 5-game winning streak.
Key Moment of the Game
Andruw Monasterio’s 3-run home run in the 1st inning. It turned out to be all of the offense needed.
Notes Worth Noting
Will Benson is 6-17 (.353) with with three walks and three strikeouts in 20 late appearances since he was recalled from Triple-A last week.
Matt McLain just keeps on hitting. Picking up two hits on Sunday raised his line on the season through 18 games to .342/.402/.519.
Joey Votto went 0-2 with two walks in his second game on rehab assignment with Louisville. Henry Ramos went 1-3 with a 426-foot home run for the Bats on his rehab assignment.
Up Next for the Cincinnati Reds
Milwaukee Brewers vs Cincinnati Reds
Monday June 5th, 7:10pm ET
Julio Teheran (1-1, 0.82 ERA) vs Andrew Abbott (MLB debut)
This was all very predictable. Despite the 5 game winning streak, this is not a good team. Newman is not a good player. Even with his hot streak, he is still below average but some fans can’t see that. He is good vs LHP but I cannot believe they’d rather have him at DH rather than CES. Newman should never ever start at 3B either barring injuries. Lively still has an ERA of 3.14 which is plenty good enough to stay in the rotation. Baffling why EDLC wasn’t called up for this series. He has proven enough in AAA. He and CES will not be super stars as a rookie but they are good enough to help this team and provide some excitement.
Bring up CES vs. Kevin Newman?
Why, that’s more of that anti-Bell kind of talk…. 😉
It’s like you don’t have any faith in the Reds’ team leadership.
CES could’ve started with the Reds out of Spring Training, but he had “things to work on”. According to people watching the Bats game for free on MLB, he’s hacking it up at 3rd base. And really, of course he is learning third, because we already have two guys on the team that are much better 3rd basemen…Nick Senzel and Jon India.
But that just indicates the depth of thinking from the Reds’ “Top Men”.
I know it is frustrating after sweeping the lousy Cubs last weekend and winning 2 out of 3 from the Red Sox, but for all the people nay-saying the Brewers….well, they are in first place and have just beaten the Reds three straight, and I would give them odds on winning tomorrow. So yeah, they are a pretty lousy team. I get it.
Counsell is a great coach. He gets the best out of everybody.
Newman was the DH today.
Are you saying he couldn’t DH?
Absolutely. Newman cannot hit RHed pitching at all and yet he’s the DH and leadoff hitter ? If he had managed to get on base in the 7th inning, Fraley’s solo HR could have scored 3 runs. It’s hard to believe the Reds miss Friedl this much but it’s due to the awful handling of his absence.
We can talk about how we don’t like the Cubs or the Cardinals but the truth is the Brewers have been the biggest “pain in the butt” to us for the last SEVERAL years.
This series is very troubling. Milwaukee’s roster is an injury riddled mess. If we can’t beat this bunch at home it’s not a long drop to KC/OAK territory.
100% agree with you. since the last series in 1999 they have been a major thorn in our side
Here’s my suggestion:
Unless the opposing team is running out a left-handed starter, STOP BATTING KEVIN NEWMAN IN THE LEADOFF SPOT.
For one game in Boston, Bell played Newman in the leadoff spot against a lefthanded starter. Which ok, fine, Newman hits left-handed pitchers well, I can’t argue with that move.
But then, inexplicably, Bell seems to have made him a full-time starter and has left him at leadoff to face right-handed pitchers.
Newman does not hit right-handed pitchers well. He has a .238 AVG, .298 OBP, and .572 OPS against right-handed pitchers, and those stats got even worse after today.
I don’t understand why Bell is doing this. Why not move India back to leadoff? Don’t you want your best hitters to get the most ABs? If you must play Newman, fine, hit him at the bottom of the order. Why does he deserve to hit leadoff against right-handed hitters with his terrible stats?
By the way, for as much as people on RLN seem to hate Jose Barrero, here are his stats against right-handed hitters: 232 AVG, .297 OBP, and .663 OPS against right-handed pitchers. AVG and OBP are basically identical, but Barrero hits for more power than Newman against right-handed pitchers.
It’s not like I think Bell is going to play Barrero. That ship has quite obviously sailed and at this point I hope Barrero gets traded to a team who still sees the talent and potential in him and will provide him a positive environment to grow. But I do think it’s interesting for how much hate Barrero gets on this site, he’s still a better option against right-handed pitchers than Kevin Newman.
I’m not a big Barrero supporter but really unhappy with the inconsistent PT he has gotten this year.
I’m not a Barrero super-fan either. But I would much rather see him play than Kevin Freakin’ Newman.
The thing is, I CALLED it. I said as soon as they signed Newman, Newman was going to be the new Farmer, that gritty, mediocre vet that Bell falls in love with and turns into a full-time starter. Everyone told me I was being silly, and that Newman was being signed to be a bench player.
David Bell is nothing if not predictable. If Newman isn’t traded away, I fully expect him to finish in the top 5 for number of ABs on this team. He’s already #7, and will pass Friedl tomorrow for #6 when he’s inevitably hitting leadoff again.
Bell will always choose the mediocre journeyman over a younger guy with potential. And isn’t it time to end failed DJ experiment?
Sounds like more David Bell double-plus ungood talk there.
Here’s the thing. When a manager puts a player in a position to win or have an impact, and he does, then the manager is a genius. When the player fails, the manager is a dolt.
The Reds have lost four straight now, and really none of those four losses were pitching masterpieces by the Reds. Greene pitched really well for 6 innings on Thursday, but then…the bullpen caved in.
Newman, yeah, he’s kind of a mediocre, replacement value player (if that). They promoted McClain and he’s doing great. But we can’t have too much of that going around. CES, EDLC, still toiling down in AAA. Hopkins is up now…let’s see how he does. Benson seems to be hitting better, maybe he
s turned a corner.
And maybe 19 days away from the return of Joey Votto (huzzah?), being the DH and maybe batting 0.250, in the twilight of his career.
McLain is the guy I’d stick at leadoff. Long AB’s, speed, and he gets on base. Friedl should go back to the 2 hole when he returns, and India should stay at 3, I like him driving in runs.
1 McLain (2B) 2 Friedl (CF) 3 India (3B)
4 EDLC (SS) 5 CES (DH) 6 Votto (1B)
7 Steer (RF) 8 Fraley (LF) 9 Stephenson (C)
That would be a nice lineup, with guys playing positions they are best suited to. I’d try to split the 1B/DH duties between Votto, and CES.
(U) Reynolds (U) Senzel (C) Maile (OF) Benson
Hopkins, and Barrero down to AAA to get everyday PT until another opportunity comes up for them.
When facing a LHP
1 McLain (2B) 2 Friedl (CF) 3 India (DH)
4 EDLC (SS) 5 CES (1B) 6 *SENZEL* (LF)
7 Steer (RF) 8 *REYNOLDS* (3B) 9 Stephenson (C)
(1B) Votto (C) Maile (OF) Fraley (OF) Benson
Oh no, another Reynolds fan.
Lol, well not a Reynolds hatter, both Reynolds, and Senzel would make for good weak side platoons for Votto, and Fraley
Reynolds VS LHP .346/.414/.538 for a .953 OPS
Votto VS LHP .215/.313/.389 for a .702 OPS
2021 Numbers for Votto, 2022 was terrible from either side.
Senzel VS LHP .455/.500/.659 for a 1.159 OPS
Fraley VS LHP .143/.226/.250 for a .476 OPS
2022 Numbers for Fraley, 2023 numbers would be too small of a sample size.
If it makes you feel better I doubt Reynolds has a chance of making the 2024 roster. You could put Barrero in that role, but I’d rather Barrero get everyday playing time in AAA where he can also work on his OF defense. Barrero has a good shot at being a super utility player for the 2024 Reds.
Just saying 4 loses in a row and we are sending out a rookie tomorrow for his mlb debut. Not looking good. Oh then we get to play the Dodgers for 3 and then the Cardinals. My faith in this team is just not there yet.
Also agree with why in the world has Newman batting almost every day lately. I know Bell didn’t lose these games. Sure would be nice if he would do everything in his power to help the team win though.
Meant to say batting leadoff almost every day.
Wish we could edit our own posts.
I think the way it’s phrased originally is fine. 🙂
All of the playoff talk had me shaking my head earlier this week. I didn’t think they had much of a chance of being close to .500 after tangling with the Brewers, Dodgers, and Cardinals. Now folks are talking 100 losses again… I’m not a Bell fan but I think he’s done ok with this team. They play hard, aggressive and don’t give up easily.
A very realistic post sir, Thank you for that. I’m pretty sure they are not going to lose 100 but anyone believing they would make the playoffs is just not being realistic for this season and maybe not even next season. Goal for this season should be somewhere around .500 or no more than 10 games back of .500. Next season maybe a winning record. 2025 looks really inter
Yes, probably 2025. The team should be above .500 and in the wildcard hunt next season but for a division title to be possible next season, they need a couple of guys with 90-100 RBI and a couple of starting pitchers that make ~23-25 quality starts each. Who can produce this?
@Mario 2024 certainly is within reach for the division. Not including CES and Elly who are unknowns thus far, India, Steer, and McLain could all be in the 90-100 RBI club next year. Greene certainly can make 25 quality starts. Abbott’s an unknown, as is Lodolo because of his health issues. The rotation has become the question mark after appearing to be the strength going into 2023 and needs to be Krall’s focus moving forward.
I think McLain is and will be a top of the order guy with his speed and patience at the plate. It’ll be up to India, Steer, Fraley, CES, EDLC, etc to turn into the powerful middle of the lineup guys that the team needs to contend next season. I would like to believe the team will have enough young arms to have a good rotation and the depth to survive inevitable injuries. We’ll need to see rebounds from Ashcraft and Lodolo and a positive impact from pitchers like Stoudt, Connor Phillips, and Abbott. Hopefully even guys like Dunn and Santillan can be a part of the mix.
I’ll keep saying this until I’m blue in the face:
This team, on paper, is a .500 team.
With a better manager, they could probably win about 83-86 games.
With David Bell, they are going to win about 72-76 games.
A better manager would NOT bat Kevin Newman leadoff, or really bat him at all against right-handed hitters.
*Right-handed pitchers, not hitters.
Come on blue.
I’ve talked about making a push for the division, but that isn’t by standing still. The Reds need more pitching, and more power in the middle of the lineup. If they stand pat a 73 to 77 win total is likely. If they make the right moves a 81 to 85 win total is possible. Need a staring pitcher, and at least 1 quality setup man who can close out games when Diaz isn’t able to go. They also need to bring up EDLC, and CES ASAP. Everyday they don’t is another day without your best lineup playing. If they wait too much longer that 73 number becomes more and more likely.
100% agree. CES may provide the missing power piece but not totally onboard that he is ready. I think we need to go outside the organization and trade for a DH/OF who can bang 30 HRs. A 1-2 year contract guy is fine until CES and others are ready. I am fully aware this will cost a top 5-10 prospect and $20M. But I believe it is the difference maker between 70-75 wins and Division contention. As Nick Krall said this spring re: the rich prospect bank and team needs. Time to show a little ownership commitment to this team.
In your heart of hearts do you really believe David Bell can lead this team to a World Series the way he manages the team and the game? Assuming we’ve got a bunch of studs coming up from AAA and we’ll get some better pitching, I still have
absolutely zero faith in him to be capable of doing that, regardless of improving talent around him on the diamond. And if he can’t eventually lead them to a World Series, then what the heck are we doing here? This is year five of the Bell era, and he still manages the team using the same poor tendencies when it comes to line-up preferences, batting orders, pitching management and in game decisions that circumvent that possibility in my eyes. So if this is the case, then you have to move on from Bell after this year… that is if you’re actually truly committed to winning as an organization from the top down. If not then we’ll agree to disagree.
Newman is being showcased for a trade. It’s June 4th. Trade deadline is 8 weeks away. Get used to Newman and Myers a lot when he comes back in 2 weeks. No next wave is imminent for 6 weeks.
EDLC is #1 on the organizational depth chart at SS. They are seeing what McLain can do at SS and he’s been good to say the least. If the Reds have (2) mlb caliber hitting SS on the team, that erases the need for a no hit all glove back insurance SS.
Barrero is no longer in the teams plans as the franchise SS and that was apparent in April when he was sharing playing time with Newman.
This is a 72-90 team. Just put Barrero in CF with Friedl out and trade Myers at the deadline for a new bag of baseballs and bucket of sunseeds. Barrero has all the tools to be a good CF. Old friend Jose Siri is still just 27. He has 10 home runs for the Rays and OPS-ing over .800. Barrero is barely 25. dont give up on him.
I want them to trade Barrero away. He needs to get out of this dysfunctional environment if he ever wants to have an MLB career.
What trade? He’s not worth more than a team’s 20th or higher prospect, and that’s probably being generous.
Agreed on Barrero. He likely has very little trade value. Myers has negative trade value meaning the team would have to pay the full salary to trade him.
I think you’d be surprised to see teams who are willing to take a chance on a young, cheap, talented player like Barrero. Barrero was putting up McLain-like numbers in AAA before he got injured, and I’m sure plenty of other team’s scouting departments noticed.
Barrero just turned 25, so teams know there’s still a chance for him to develop into the player he was supposed to be. His trade values not high, but there are plenty of teams that would like to have him.
Just curious what you think Barrero would bring back in a trade? Sure, other teams would like to have him, but what are they willing to give up in return? I am guessing if it’s a AA guy, it’s someone with a low ceiling. I would not be inclined to give up on him yet just trying to read the tea leaves on the Reds’ intentions for him.
Myers should be DFA’d unless he is really hitting the ball well on his rehab assignment. Nick Krall should be making trade calls on Newman right now. Get what you can and move on. The guy isn’t bad but he has no place on a rebuilding roster. They have plenty enough infielders to cover any possible injuries.
There will be no trade for Myers, unless he starts lighting up the field with hits. They (the Reds) will either have to hold on to him or release him and eat the rest of his contract. What team General Manager, in their right mind would trade ANYTHING to get an aging outfielder who is hitting out on the interstate?
If it were my team, once he comes of the DL (and maybe plays a few re-hab games at AAA), I would release him. Open up a spot on the 40 man and the 26 man for CES (to DH or play 1st).
Newman MIGHT have some moderate trade value for the right team that needs a Ute infielder or SS. That’s it.
Kevin Newman again hitting lead off is like waving a white flag. Horrible roster management with DelaCruz in AAA setting the world on fire.
The sad thing about Newman batting leadoff is that he is currently the most replaceable player on the roster. They certainly don’t need him at SS with McLain and Barrero up and Elly and CES wasting away in Louisville. They don’t need him at 3B with Senzel and Steer available, as well as potentially India. They definitely don’t need to use him at 1B, where they have rookie of the month Steer, as well as Stephenson available. So what is Krall doing? Just DFA him and move on. Stop playing games with the roster and start trying to win games on the field.
If things don’t get better, 26 and 33, the only thing left for the fans will be the call ups of EDLC and CES. However the Reds have put themselves in a horrible spot with those two. It’s almost like the brass would hope they don’t come up and do really well because if they do many fans will wonder what could have been had they been called up earlier. For that reason I don’t think we will see them until at least August. By that time they will be way way out of any contention and most fans won’t care. The bump at the box office for calling them up in August will be no where near what it would have been in June. This team is really run by a ship of fools, I just wish I didn’t care.
Exactly right about the brass (Nick Krall) not wanting EDLC/CES to do too well when they are called up because it would make him look bad for not calling them up earlier. McLain is already doing that. No reason why he wasn’t the opening day SS or at least called up in mid-April.
But it would give Castellini the perfect timing to fire Krall and turn the page with a new GM in charge. Assuming Castellini actually cared about winning and filling GABP of course.
3 things I know for sure:
1 – Matt McLain is the best player on this team right now.
2 – Tyler Stephenson is lost in the twilight zone.
3 – If the front office doesn’t make any moves tomorrow, the Reds will be back in last place by Wednesday.
That is the issue, they won’t make the needed moves because they are afraid that EDLC and CES would do what Mclain is doing. I really think they are upset about Mclain. If he had struggled they could have had their reason not to bring up the other two. The question has to be, Why are they doing this? Please don’t mention service time it really doesn’t matter that much. The bottom line is that Reds fans need to not go to games as long as this bunch of clowns is making our team less than it should be.
What in the world are you rambling on about? The Reds are upset McLain’s done well? Good lord.
Matt McLain is off to a great start, but I would still go with Spencer Steer as the team’s best player.
India and Friedl are better than all of them
And now the latest trend on Reds Twitter seems to be “Fire Derek Johnson”. Not “Sell the team” or “fire Nick Krall” or anything making sense. But fire Derek Johnson. Why? It’s not like he has much to work with. Greene’s improved throughout the season. Lodolo’s injured. Ashcraft was never a top prospect to begin with and may very well have been pitching over his head in the beginning. There is a reason Lively was available to the Reds.
To Johnson’s credit, look at the bullpen. Diaz is one of the top relievers in the game in only his second season. Buck Farmer has turned into a key relief pitcher. Young has been reliable. Giabaut and Sims continue to get the job done.
The fault ultimately lies on Krall for providing the lack of quality talent aside from these guys.
DJ has more injured pitchers than success stories.
I personally never thought our pitching would hold up with all the injuries we have had and really young guys. Agree with pretty much everything except your last sentence. The fault lies in ownership who tells Krall how much he can spend.
If you don’t think Ashcraft has arm talent, then you haven’t been paying attention. Why hasn’t DJ been able to get him over this?
The bullpen has looked ok….but has definitely taken steps backwards lately. Sims looked great early, but DJ’s max effort teachings causes him to break down.
His philosophy of strikeouts causes most of his pupils to nibble too much….too many walks.
Kind of hard to believe some on RLN want Derek Johnson gone with the Reds bullpen one of the league’s best and a host of other success stories. Nope, he cannot succeed with everyone. Can’t always blame leadership.
Most successes are followed by regressions…This has been outlined by me and several others over the past 2 seasons.
This team have a good core of position players. When you add EDLC, CES and possibly Marte to the lot there is no reason this team can’t score a lot of runs in a couple of years.
The pitching however is no where near good enough for this team to compete in the long one. The Reds depending on the “Big Three” was obviously a mistake. It’s been more like the “Big One and a Half”.
If Bob is willing to spend money on pitching this winter, I think this team can be competitive, as soon as, next season. If he is unwilling to open his wallet, then it will be yet another failed rebuild.
plus 1000%. The problem is not the lack of position players. Sure, I’d like to see EDLC called up but we are losing the last 4 because our pitching staff is falling apart and there is no depth behind it. Except for today, we are scoring plenty of runs.
Big miscalculation/lack of $ support for pitching depth this off-season. Had no business spending 7.5$ million on Will Myers but they didn’t know EDLC and CES were going to hit 1000 OPS in AAA this quickly.
Also, who would have thought the NL central would be this bad this year.
Agreed 100%. I am sure ownership knows they can’t just call up a bunch of prospects hope they stick at leave it at that. Realistic ability to be competitive for a playoff position in 24 is a must. The way to do that is get two above average starters #3 #4 types and probably two middle relief guys you can count on. Once Votto’s salary comes off the books they will have no excuse not to spend. Time will tell.
I’ve said it before: This organization is defrauding the fans, the city, and MLB by not fielding the better talent on the field. How do you justify EDLC and CES still at AAA. In the meantime, Fairchild, Newman, etc playing regularly. Bell, is an impediment, and a subpar manager. It’s time (overdue) to replace him.
plus one billion…..
??????
Nailed it! Well said.
I have often wondered how much if any does our ownership or the GM have to say about when someone gets called up and when they don’t. Is Bell really the driving force behind this? Maybe he is just the fall guy, the face out front?
Ultimately, Nick Krall and the Management Partners have the last say on who is on the roster.
But is David Bell in the front office (during a home stand) pounding on Nick Krall’s desk, demanding that CES and EDLC be promoted?
Unknown.
If Nick Krall REALLY wanted those guys up here, they would be here.
Period.
But my hypothesis is this:
They are waiting on Joey Votto to return to the lineup, and the 26 man roster.
They are unwilling (yet) to DFA Wil Myers (and eat his contract) , which they can’t actually do right now while he is on the DL. He has Zero ! trade value on the market.
They are unwilling to dump/DFA “gritty veteran” Kevin Newman, because they also would have to eat his contract and they did trade a decent young reliever for him. They are waiting for a chance to get something in return for him.
Still with the three catcher thing. Stephenson, for whatever the reason, is not really hitting as we expected. Does he have lingering shoulder weakness from the broken clavicle last summer? Will he be stronger in 2024? I would not trade Stephenson, but this three catcher thing is clogging the roster with at least one too many catchers.
So, there’s Four (count them!), 4 big roster spots for
1) Joey Votto
2) Wil Myers
3) Kevin Newman
4) one of the three catchers
EDLC is on the 40 man, CES is not. There have to be two more spots on the 26 man for both of them.
I predict NOTHING will happen until Joey Votto is re-activated (19 days?) and Wil Myers is off the DL.
Tick, tick, tick……
Look at how long it is taking Votto to get back from shoulder issues. Look how long it is taking, or took, Barrero to get over hamate surgery. Not surprising it is taking Stephenson so long.
Not sure what a hamate is, but if it’s not part of the brain that regulates pitch recognition then it has zero to do with Barrero’s hitting. Now Stephenson makes weaker contact then he used to and the ball has no juice when he hits it. I think he is compromised health wise.
Idk? It’s just tough being a Reds fans. Plug one hole and 2 more leaks pop up. Lodolo 60 day, Ashcraft is horrible, Law’s out idk how long? Stoudt pitched like 13 innings in May and he’s out. They won’t call up anyone to help with the power outage? Just keep drafting top 5 for the next 8 years and our aging fanbase can watch from the nursing home when they turn it around.
The hamate is a bone in your hand. This actually happens with some frequency to ML hitters, getting your hamate broken. Hit by a pitch, etc. I think that Aristides Aquino broke his hamate in 2021.
And it is possible that the injury to Barrero’s hand started him down the road to some bad hitting habits which you (and the rest of us) see.
You might be interested to know that Barrero actually has one of the highest walk rates on the team.
Of the players currently on the team, Fraley leads at 11.8%, followed by Barrero at 10.6%.
It also probably doesn’t surprise you to learn Barrero has the 4th worst K% on the team too, which puts him between Fairchild and Stephenson.
So Barrero walks a lot, and he also strikes out a lot.
Funnily enough, Kevin Newman is the the polar opposite. He has both the lowest BB% AND the lowest K% on the team. Literally the worst possible choice to leadoff. If he’s not strinking out much, that means he’s making contact but getting out. Those could be productive outs if he was making them with someone on base. Then again, maybe he would just be a double play machine.
Wander Franco broke his hamate last year…vs the Reds….5 months after Barrero.
Wander – .305/.367/.493
Stop with the injury excuses for Jose.
One thing I will say: it’s pretty cool seeing Benson living up to the hype in a very small sample size. He’ll have to keep playing like this for a few more months, at least, but if he can hit well enough to stay up this time, it would be huge for the Reds.
He plays really good defense, has blazing speed, and is another left-handed bat. An outfield of Fraley, Friedl, and Benson plus EDLC would go a long way to balancing out all the right-handed infielders.
How about this batting order by the end of the year?
CF Friedl
3B India
SS EDLC
1B CES
LF Fraley
2B McLain
DH Steer
RF Benson
C Stephenson
That’s almost lefty/righty all the way through. Bell should love it.
And yes, when all those players arrive, that means Senzel becomes a Super Sub. Hopkins and Robinson can also be on the bench.
Trade away Newman, Barrero, and Myers. It shouldn’t be hard to find new homes for Newman and Barrero, but it might be tough to move Myers for anything.
Let’s see if Benson can keep it going. I’m rooting for him.
I think that Barrero still has options. If they won’t play him every day at the ML level, he should go back to AAA and play every day, maybe get his value up as a player.
His trade value is probably very limited, at this time. He could become more valuable to trade, or…several other possibilities.
And I would have Steer at 1st base and CES at DH, but otherwise, think you are about on target with all this.
I do think Jon India should be offered the chance to play 3rd, and re-align the infield to put McClain at 2nd and EDLC at SS.
I think this might the 2024 solution, but still a lot of hakey stuff will happen in 2023, including Wil Myers, Joey Votto and Kevin Newman.
Barrero has one option left
When the Reds won five straight I thought great, but we’ll see how they do against Brewers pitching. I’m not at all surprised they’ve lost three straight to those guys. They couldn’t hit them last year, either. The Reds don’t have a strong enough line-up to face the pitching of the upper echelon teams, plain and simple. Bring up the wood, please, and make it fast.
Note to Reds Hitters: Hauser likes to throw a sinking fast ball that jams RH Hitters. Consider adjusting your stance and opening up a little to attack the pitch instead of trying to defend against it. H3ll, even consider stepping in the bucket and letting it rip early in the count on at least one AB…..! Geez guys make an adjustment already!
P.S. pls free EDLC b4 the team is completely out of the playoff picture
The plot against Barrero and the kinship for Neumann both seem real but the grinding of these stories gets a little overwrought. Just for a change of scenery, I don’t think it was noticed that after an greatly anticipated but in the the end unsuccessful stint with the Reds and Nationals, the Braves have followed suit last week by releasing Chad Pinder. Sorry, Chad, we were rooting for you to get that second hit on the first go around.
I thought he retired.
What this place is overwrought with is the same old tired complaints. Most everyone’s comments are exactly the same with different words. Now we’re talking about Pinder again? The guy everyone was certain the Reds would carry north and he was released mid spring? Meh, why bother.
I dont see this team any differently than a week ago. They could go on a winning streak tomorrow all the same. It’s called just trying to enjoy something I enjoy, pretty plain and simple.
Win five, lose four, so far. I had hopes of challenging .500 but ownership, in the offseason, did not provide money for a complete group of starting pitchers. The reality is, it’s a sorting season. Do what other teams do with a veteran who doesn’t work out, let Myers go and take the loss. Roster space is needed for a young player.