With a week and half of the MLB season finished, see how the Cincinnati Reds are doing.
With such a small sample size in place, it’s hard to say if the Cincinnati Reds are the real deal or not, but so far, they appear to be. With nine completed games, they sit second in the National League Central Division standings at 6-4 and are heading to St. Louis to take on the Cardinals starting Friday.
Through the first week and change of the new season, the Reds have played in five one-run games and three extra-inning games. Last season, Cincinnati played the third most one-run games in the MLB but lost the most in the league.
The offense has been nothing short of great, led by Joey Votto who appears to be in midseason form already. After missing 100 games last season, he has three home runs, nine RBIs and six extra-base hits. Votto isn’t the only Reds player off to a fast start, as Todd Frazier also has three homeruns, nine RBIs and five extra base hits.
Prior to the season, manager Bryan Price made it very clear that the Reds were going to be more aggressive on the base paths, and they have done just that. Nine games into the season, the Reds have stolen 12 bases.
Hamilton, known best for his speed and base-running ability, has swiped eight bases on the year. Last season, Hamilton finished with over 50 stolen bases and is well on his way to surpassing that. Votto, Bruce, and Devin Mesoraco have each stolen a base as well.
Coming into the 2015 season, the biggest concern that the Reds had was the pitching. The bullpen was the biggest concern, but the starting rotation also had many questions.
Of the Reds three losses on the year, each one of them was lost primarily due to the bullpen. Kevin Gregg has been nothing but a mess for Cincinnati with a 17.18 ERA and seven earned runs allowed. J.J. Hoover, however, has been nothing but excellent so far, posting a 0.00 ERA with 4 1/3 innings pitched. For a reliever who a year ago struggled badly, he has been the biggest asset for Price out of the bullpen. Alrodis Chapman has also done remarkably well converting on all three of his save opportunities.
As for the starting rotation, Johnny Cueto and Anthony DeSclafini have pitched very well so far, allowing 15 hits combined in 27 innings. That is expected out of Cueto but DeSclafini, who was acquired from the Marlins in the Mat Latos trade, has played well above what was expected out of him. Rookie Raisel Iglesias made one start before being demoted, and it wasn’t a good one. Homer Bailey is set to make his season debut Saturday against the Cardinals in Busch Stadium. Bailey is coming off of offseason shoulder surgery.
The 25-man roster already looks different than it did on opening day as relief pitcher Josh Smith and catcher Kyle Skipworth have been added. Iglesias and infielder Chris Dominguez have been demoted to Louisville. Smith was sent back to Louisville yesterday and the Reds recalled right-handed reliever Pedro Villareal from AAA.
As long as nothing happens to Bailey in the next few days, he will be back in the rotation for what is likely to be the majority of the season. Mesoraco is ailing his left hip but looks to make a return to the lineup soon. Second-basemen Brandon Phillips is facing dizziness and concussion symptoms, but could return as early as tonight. Outfielder Jason Bourgeois and reliever Sean Marshall are on the 60-day disabled list, neither of them have an estimated return thus far.
The Reds dropped the series finale last night to the Chicago Cubs 5-0, behind a poor pitching performance from veteran right-hander, Jason Marquis. Marquis allowed 4 earned runs on seven hits with just one walk and six strikeouts in just four innings of work.
@Dannyjjo
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