April 3, 2008
12:35 PM
Great American Ball Park, Cincinnati, OH
Thursday's (POLITICALLY INCORRECT NAME ALERT) Businessman's Special (There. I said it.) is more than the rubber game between the Reds and Arizona. It marks the regular season big-league debut for a Reds phenom. His mound opponent was recently diagnosed with cancer, but is still making his scheduled start before treatment begins. If the rain holds off long enough to get the game in, it promises to be an interesting day at Great American.
Probable Starters
ARI: RHP Doug Davis
2007: 13-12, 4.25 ERA
Career vs. CIN: 14 GS, 6-2, 3.40 ERA
@ GABP: 7 GS, 4-1, 3.26 ERA
DAVIS OWNS...
LF Adam Dunn (6-32, .188 BA, 9 SO, 2 HR, 2 RBI)
RF Ken Griffey Jr. (5-26, .192 BA, 1 HR, 6 SO)
3B Edwin Encarnacion (1-13, .077 BA)
UTIL Ryan Freel (1-21, .048 BA, 8 SO)
Better hope Freel doesn't get a spot start anywhere.
DAVIS IS OWNED BY...
1B Scott Hatteberg (6-18, .333 BA, 1 HR, 4 RBI)
2B Brandon Phillips (7-15, .467 BA)
If I were a cynic I would say Davis is being forced to start because of his past success against the Reds. A former Brewer (2003-06), Davis has tons of comparables with the Reds of that era, mostly tilted considerably in Davis' favor. It will be difficult not to pull for Davis somewhat just knowing his story (diagnosed with thyroid cancer during spring training, leaving the team soon to start treatment but making this start) but it unfortunately will be the Reds job to beat him. Here's all my hopes for a speedy recovery in the future.
CIN: RHP Johnny Cueto
Major League Debut
After a mostly-scintillating spring, the Reds sent rookie phenom Johnny Cueto to the mound for the final game of the series. A non-roster invitee to camp, Cueto dazzled to the point of forcing the Reds' hand coming into the season. Into the rotation he goes, and the story of his rookie year is one of the most interesting coming into 2008. It all begins tomorrow.
REDS TAKE MOMENTUM INTO SERIES FINALE
It will be a short night for the Reds, who picked up their first win of 2008 Wednesday night in a 6-5 thriller over the Diamondbacks.
PLAYING FROM BEHIND
The Reds haven't spent much time on the "Smiling Side of the Scoreboard" so far this season. Cincinnati trailed the entire Opening Day game Monday, then only led after the fourth before immediately relinquishing the lead in the fifth Wednesday. They would not lead again until Edwin Encarnacion's walkoff homer gave them the lead for good.
BIG DAY FOR CUETO
Thursday marks the big-league debut for Cincinnati prospect Johnny Cueto. Last year saw the Reds bring up three rookies for starts in their big-league debuts:
RHP Homer Bailey (6/8 W vs. CLE, 5 IP, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 SO, 4 BB)
LHP Phil Dumatrait (8/2 L @WAS, 3 1/3 IP, 8 H, 6 R, 6 ER, 3 SO, 3 BB)
RHP Tom Shearn (8/26 W vs. FLA, 7 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 2 SO)
UPCOMING SCHEDULE
4/4 Philadelphia 7:10
4/5 Philadelphia 1:10
4/6 Philadelphia 1:15
4/7 Philadelphia 12:35
4/8 @ Milwaukee 5:05
Thursday, April 3, 2008
Wednesday, April 2, 2008
Game 2: Reds 6, Diamondbacks 5
Well. That was fun.
Wednesday's game definintely had its ups and downs, but it's hard to complain when you win like that. Baseball can be a funny game, and we saw that tonight. Before his game-winning home run, Edwin Encarnacion looked like the goat, throwing away a potentially inning-ending double play ball at the plate in the top of the fifth, instead tying the game and leading to Arizona retaking the lead. Great to see redemption for EdE, whose game-winning blast in the bottom of the ninth put the Reds in the win column for the first time in the Dusty Baker era.
It's easy to rationalize mistakes by players you like, and Edwin being in the lineup daily is something I want, but I was worried for him after his second straight game with an error directly leading to runs for the Diamondbacks. Perhaps the throwing issues will continue, and perhaps the homer will snap him out of his funk, but it was definitely a fun night, especially after comments by a certain color man immediately before the winning swing. I ended up writing so much about Cowboy that he got his own post, it's below this one.
THE GOOD THINGS...
- Production out of the first two spots of the order. After the opener I was concerned about the 0-for-8 Corey Patterson and Jeff Keppinger dropped on us. The fear coming into this year was that Patterson would offensively be a big zero, and Keppinger wouldn't hit anymore because pitchers figured him out. Those fears may well still be true, but Wednesday both had nice performances at the dish. Keppinger had three singles, continuing to hone his "all seeing-eye singles" offensive attack (I kid, but he really did seem to build that batting average in 2007 on that kind of hit, not that there's something un-noble about that). Patterson opened scoring for the Reds with a solo shot leading off the fourth, which was nice.
- Brandon's dinger was a no-doubter. I'm not sure if that homer qualifies as one of his league-leading "most homers that are barely homers" stats, because it only landed a few rows back. It was a no-doubter off the bat, though. Haren breezed through the lineup the first time around, but the Reds touched him up a little bit later.
- Great snap throw by Paul Bako to nab Hudson straying too far off first in the 7th. I don't know that Bako has this great reputation as a defender (he certainly doesn't have a history of hitting much) but that was a very mindful, attentive play.
- Jeremy Affeldt is a guy I haven't really watched much through his big-league career, but being a former Charleston Alley Cats I've always rooted him on any time his name came up. His spring stats made me cringe and his ninth did too, but he did a nice job recovering from the mess he made and keeping the Reds in the game.
- Kent Mercker looked very good in his one inning of work. Located his fastball very well. Gotta love the hick way he curves the bill of his cap. If I saw that guy walking into an auto parts store no way would I think "millionaire" on sight. I love baseball.
- When it comes down to it, yeah, the Reds had a major defensive misplay tonight by EdE. Yes, Dan Haren started a rally with a double, AND had a sac fly. Yes, they trailed nearly the entire game, and yes, Todd Coffey's performance was reason for concern. But all of that goes away when you win like that. Walkoffs never get old. Arizona is a good team, let's win the rubber game tomorrow and move on to the Phillies.
Wednesday's game definintely had its ups and downs, but it's hard to complain when you win like that. Baseball can be a funny game, and we saw that tonight. Before his game-winning home run, Edwin Encarnacion looked like the goat, throwing away a potentially inning-ending double play ball at the plate in the top of the fifth, instead tying the game and leading to Arizona retaking the lead. Great to see redemption for EdE, whose game-winning blast in the bottom of the ninth put the Reds in the win column for the first time in the Dusty Baker era.
It's easy to rationalize mistakes by players you like, and Edwin being in the lineup daily is something I want, but I was worried for him after his second straight game with an error directly leading to runs for the Diamondbacks. Perhaps the throwing issues will continue, and perhaps the homer will snap him out of his funk, but it was definitely a fun night, especially after comments by a certain color man immediately before the winning swing. I ended up writing so much about Cowboy that he got his own post, it's below this one.
THE GOOD THINGS...
- Production out of the first two spots of the order. After the opener I was concerned about the 0-for-8 Corey Patterson and Jeff Keppinger dropped on us. The fear coming into this year was that Patterson would offensively be a big zero, and Keppinger wouldn't hit anymore because pitchers figured him out. Those fears may well still be true, but Wednesday both had nice performances at the dish. Keppinger had three singles, continuing to hone his "all seeing-eye singles" offensive attack (I kid, but he really did seem to build that batting average in 2007 on that kind of hit, not that there's something un-noble about that). Patterson opened scoring for the Reds with a solo shot leading off the fourth, which was nice.
- Brandon's dinger was a no-doubter. I'm not sure if that homer qualifies as one of his league-leading "most homers that are barely homers" stats, because it only landed a few rows back. It was a no-doubter off the bat, though. Haren breezed through the lineup the first time around, but the Reds touched him up a little bit later.
- Great snap throw by Paul Bako to nab Hudson straying too far off first in the 7th. I don't know that Bako has this great reputation as a defender (he certainly doesn't have a history of hitting much) but that was a very mindful, attentive play.
- Jeremy Affeldt is a guy I haven't really watched much through his big-league career, but being a former Charleston Alley Cats I've always rooted him on any time his name came up. His spring stats made me cringe and his ninth did too, but he did a nice job recovering from the mess he made and keeping the Reds in the game.
- Kent Mercker looked very good in his one inning of work. Located his fastball very well. Gotta love the hick way he curves the bill of his cap. If I saw that guy walking into an auto parts store no way would I think "millionaire" on sight. I love baseball.
- When it comes down to it, yeah, the Reds had a major defensive misplay tonight by EdE. Yes, Dan Haren started a rally with a double, AND had a sac fly. Yes, they trailed nearly the entire game, and yes, Todd Coffey's performance was reason for concern. But all of that goes away when you win like that. Walkoffs never get old. Arizona is a good team, let's win the rubber game tomorrow and move on to the Phillies.
Reds TV Production: F-Plus
Some of the announcers the Reds employ do not act as promoters of the team, it seems they feel their job is to be the team's harshest critics. A confession: I watch most games the sound completely off. The "analysis" heard in the chunks I did turn up don't make me anxious to start listening anytime soon.
Jeff Brantley was one of my favorite players with the mid-90s Reds. From the curly mullet streaming from the back of his hat, to the "warming up by throwing his glove" routine, to the exaggerated fist pump after every save, the JB experience was throughly enjoyable. It pains me to say what I'm about to say, but here goes.
I would say I have a decent amount of experience listening to baseball play-by-play. I'm 26 years old and I've been watching games since I was about seven. I have never heard a broadcaster bash any player to the degree to which Brantley bashed this team tonight. People that regularly listened to him last year may say it was par for the course, and I remember last year's criticism of Todd Coffey making the paper at one point. That makes his commentary even more outrageous. How Bob Castellini could pay him to say things that will only make people actively dislike players on the team he owns, I don't know.
Yes, Todd Coffey had his struggles last year, and he had a bad inning tonight. But Brantley's "back in my day if I gave up a hit to a pitcher I'd kill somebody" routine was embarassing. Does he think Coffey was happy he gave up a sac fly to Dan Haren? He bashed Coffey for throwing an 0-2 breaking ball and letting him drive in the run, but does he know that was necessarily Coffey's decision? He similarly bashed Arroyo for giving up a double to Haren in the fifth. Seriously, does he believe all Reds pitchers call their own pitches? Is the onus entirely on the pitcher when he makes a mistake? Did Brantley himself never make a mistake? I recall Brantley being a solid closer for a few years, before injuries, but I also remember many of those saves being an adventure. He constantly seemed to get himself into jams. It kind of made him more endearing at the time, but remembering that makes his "I am Mr. Baseball, and everything this team does is ridiculously shoddy" routine even more irritating than it would be if it were coming from Marty.
While it was nice seeing Dunn go the other way in the bottom of the ninth to put himself on and setting the table for Encarnacion, Brantley's comments immediately afterward were a little confusing. It was something to the effect of "See, if more guys would stop swinging for themselves, and start swinging for the team, they would have a much better chance of contending."
First off, what, exactly, does that mean? Swinging for themselves? Has anyone, in the first two games, been noticably swinging for the fences every pitch? Is that what "swinging for yourself" means? And if so, what should they be doing? "Get 'em on, get 'em over, get 'em in" is George Grande's gimmick, and he shouldn't be messing with it. I suspect that may be what he means. "More guys need to concentrate on hitting behind the runner, hitting sacrifice flies and doing the little things right." Commentary like this is just justifying the status quo in the mind of Reds fans who call the Banana Phone, believe what the broadcasters say is gospel, and, bless their hearts, just don't know any better.
Is two games even enough to come to any conclusion as far as who is swinging in what way? We're talking about eight at-bats here. And even if he believes there are guys swinging for themselves, that comment leaves too much open to interpretation. If he is trying to imply there are members of the team that are selfish, he should be man enough to call them out. Making cryptic insinuations that "certain people" are swinging the bat selfishly (whatever that means) just leaves everything to the viewer's imagination. If you're going to criticize someone in particular or several players on the team, be man enough to say it. He was certainly man enough to continually bash pitch selection for Arroyo and Todd Coffey.
Also he was certainly man enough to call out Edwin Encarnacion so badly it made my ears bleed. His blabberings of "he's not a clutch player, he just isn't" immediately before the game-winning homer made for one of the greatest crow-eating moments of our lifetime.. and the payoff was immediate. It was beautiful. The words were barely out of his mouth before the ball was deposited into the left-field stands and it was over. But it's concepts and ideas like that, just thrown out there on such a public forum (the only source so many Reds fans have for even formulating opinions on the team) that are very dangerous. There were no numbers used to justify this opinion of his, nothing concrete cited, just (likely) a couple of throwing errors early this year, paired with a "sense" he has from "watching him play every day," something that I have never done and therefore have no right to comment on. Never mind that Brantley didn't even work for the team until last season, a year that I watched most of on cable here. I never played the game, so "I just don't know."
We should stop a minute and throw out what he actually said and what player he was talking about and consider the situation here. The Reds employ this man to do analysis for their games, and he's just going out and bashing players? You don't hear national broadcasters doing that. I have Extra Innings, and you don't hear other teams' announcers doing that. You hear the Reds announcers after hearing other teams and you think, "what is their problem?" The TV broadcasts are the Reds' best tool to advertise their product. I'm not saying the broadcasters should be pitchmen, but could they at least hold off on bashing players?
The main concern here is that what they say colors fan opinion to such a great extent. Look at Adam Dunn; any other city would love to have him. He should be a hero. Half the Reds fanbase wants to run him out of town because of Marty Brenneman. A team of Dunns will beat a team of Freels and Hoppers every day of the week.. but Joe Redsfan likes a guy who always has dirt on his pants. Give me a break. When you have the broadcasters reinforcing outdated concepts like "who is clutch" and "BA with RISP" and "Patterson's steals went up and homers went down in Baltimore and that was a good thing" (Thom Brenneman said that tonight! Swear to God! That's what got Patterson run out of Baltimore, but it's a good thing!) it really makes me fear for the future of this franchise, because if someone in power is listening to this, it might take another sale of the team to turn things around, and Lord knows how long it will be before that happens.
One more thing about the television.. this is a minor complaint, but the "Dusty looks mad" reaction shots are going to get old really quickly. I think having a stonefaced manager like Narron/Boone/Mackanin/Miley is preferable to seeing Dusty looking all mad after Adam Dunn takes a very borderline pitch for strike three. This team needs less Freels, or at worst the same amount of Freels (sorry to pick on Freel, but the "scrappy" Freel/Eckstein type doesn't singlehandedly win championships, he is a complementary piece to an already-good team, not a centerpiece or a key cog) and more Dunns, not a bunch of people getting mad about Adam Dunn doing Adam Dunn stuff. Somehow it would have been preferable for him to weakly tap out to second than strike out looking? If that pitch were called a ball it would have been a man on first, if he'd swung it would have been an out for sure. How is taking that a bad thing? But no, every time something happens, let's show Dusty looking all mad. He's so scrappy.
Jeff Brantley was one of my favorite players with the mid-90s Reds. From the curly mullet streaming from the back of his hat, to the "warming up by throwing his glove" routine, to the exaggerated fist pump after every save, the JB experience was throughly enjoyable. It pains me to say what I'm about to say, but here goes.
I would say I have a decent amount of experience listening to baseball play-by-play. I'm 26 years old and I've been watching games since I was about seven. I have never heard a broadcaster bash any player to the degree to which Brantley bashed this team tonight. People that regularly listened to him last year may say it was par for the course, and I remember last year's criticism of Todd Coffey making the paper at one point. That makes his commentary even more outrageous. How Bob Castellini could pay him to say things that will only make people actively dislike players on the team he owns, I don't know.
Yes, Todd Coffey had his struggles last year, and he had a bad inning tonight. But Brantley's "back in my day if I gave up a hit to a pitcher I'd kill somebody" routine was embarassing. Does he think Coffey was happy he gave up a sac fly to Dan Haren? He bashed Coffey for throwing an 0-2 breaking ball and letting him drive in the run, but does he know that was necessarily Coffey's decision? He similarly bashed Arroyo for giving up a double to Haren in the fifth. Seriously, does he believe all Reds pitchers call their own pitches? Is the onus entirely on the pitcher when he makes a mistake? Did Brantley himself never make a mistake? I recall Brantley being a solid closer for a few years, before injuries, but I also remember many of those saves being an adventure. He constantly seemed to get himself into jams. It kind of made him more endearing at the time, but remembering that makes his "I am Mr. Baseball, and everything this team does is ridiculously shoddy" routine even more irritating than it would be if it were coming from Marty.
While it was nice seeing Dunn go the other way in the bottom of the ninth to put himself on and setting the table for Encarnacion, Brantley's comments immediately afterward were a little confusing. It was something to the effect of "See, if more guys would stop swinging for themselves, and start swinging for the team, they would have a much better chance of contending."
First off, what, exactly, does that mean? Swinging for themselves? Has anyone, in the first two games, been noticably swinging for the fences every pitch? Is that what "swinging for yourself" means? And if so, what should they be doing? "Get 'em on, get 'em over, get 'em in" is George Grande's gimmick, and he shouldn't be messing with it. I suspect that may be what he means. "More guys need to concentrate on hitting behind the runner, hitting sacrifice flies and doing the little things right." Commentary like this is just justifying the status quo in the mind of Reds fans who call the Banana Phone, believe what the broadcasters say is gospel, and, bless their hearts, just don't know any better.
Is two games even enough to come to any conclusion as far as who is swinging in what way? We're talking about eight at-bats here. And even if he believes there are guys swinging for themselves, that comment leaves too much open to interpretation. If he is trying to imply there are members of the team that are selfish, he should be man enough to call them out. Making cryptic insinuations that "certain people" are swinging the bat selfishly (whatever that means) just leaves everything to the viewer's imagination. If you're going to criticize someone in particular or several players on the team, be man enough to say it. He was certainly man enough to continually bash pitch selection for Arroyo and Todd Coffey.
Also he was certainly man enough to call out Edwin Encarnacion so badly it made my ears bleed. His blabberings of "he's not a clutch player, he just isn't" immediately before the game-winning homer made for one of the greatest crow-eating moments of our lifetime.. and the payoff was immediate. It was beautiful. The words were barely out of his mouth before the ball was deposited into the left-field stands and it was over. But it's concepts and ideas like that, just thrown out there on such a public forum (the only source so many Reds fans have for even formulating opinions on the team) that are very dangerous. There were no numbers used to justify this opinion of his, nothing concrete cited, just (likely) a couple of throwing errors early this year, paired with a "sense" he has from "watching him play every day," something that I have never done and therefore have no right to comment on. Never mind that Brantley didn't even work for the team until last season, a year that I watched most of on cable here. I never played the game, so "I just don't know."
We should stop a minute and throw out what he actually said and what player he was talking about and consider the situation here. The Reds employ this man to do analysis for their games, and he's just going out and bashing players? You don't hear national broadcasters doing that. I have Extra Innings, and you don't hear other teams' announcers doing that. You hear the Reds announcers after hearing other teams and you think, "what is their problem?" The TV broadcasts are the Reds' best tool to advertise their product. I'm not saying the broadcasters should be pitchmen, but could they at least hold off on bashing players?
The main concern here is that what they say colors fan opinion to such a great extent. Look at Adam Dunn; any other city would love to have him. He should be a hero. Half the Reds fanbase wants to run him out of town because of Marty Brenneman. A team of Dunns will beat a team of Freels and Hoppers every day of the week.. but Joe Redsfan likes a guy who always has dirt on his pants. Give me a break. When you have the broadcasters reinforcing outdated concepts like "who is clutch" and "BA with RISP" and "Patterson's steals went up and homers went down in Baltimore and that was a good thing" (Thom Brenneman said that tonight! Swear to God! That's what got Patterson run out of Baltimore, but it's a good thing!) it really makes me fear for the future of this franchise, because if someone in power is listening to this, it might take another sale of the team to turn things around, and Lord knows how long it will be before that happens.
One more thing about the television.. this is a minor complaint, but the "Dusty looks mad" reaction shots are going to get old really quickly. I think having a stonefaced manager like Narron/Boone/Mackanin/Miley is preferable to seeing Dusty looking all mad after Adam Dunn takes a very borderline pitch for strike three. This team needs less Freels, or at worst the same amount of Freels (sorry to pick on Freel, but the "scrappy" Freel/Eckstein type doesn't singlehandedly win championships, he is a complementary piece to an already-good team, not a centerpiece or a key cog) and more Dunns, not a bunch of people getting mad about Adam Dunn doing Adam Dunn stuff. Somehow it would have been preferable for him to weakly tap out to second than strike out looking? If that pitch were called a ball it would have been a man on first, if he'd swung it would have been an out for sure. How is taking that a bad thing? But no, every time something happens, let's show Dusty looking all mad. He's so scrappy.
Monday, March 31, 2008
Game 2: Arizona Diamondbacks (1-0) at Cincinnati Reds (0-1)
April 2, 2008
7:10 PM EST
Great American Ball Park, Cincinnati, OH
Another solid pitching matchup highlights Game 2 of the Reds' season-opening series against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Cincinnati is looking to even the series after an Opening Day loss Monday afternoon.
Probable Starters
ARI: RHP Dan Haren
2007 w/OAK: 15-9, 3.07 ERA
Career vs. CIN: 3 G, 2 GS, 1-1, 5.93 ERA incl. 7 IP, 6 H, 3 R in W 6/20/07
@ GABP: 2 G, 1 GS, 0-1, 8.10 ERA in 6 2/3 IP
HAREN OWNS...
HAREN IS OWNED BY...
No one for either, really. The only hitter likely to be in the lineup Wednesday with over a handful of at-bats against Haren is Corey Patterson. He's 3-8 (.375 BA) with 3 BB in 11 career PA against Haren.
Johan Santana aside, Dan Haren was the biggest prize to be had in the 2007 offseason, and getting him cost the Diamondbacks a pretty penny. A five-prospect package went to Oakland in the exchange to bring Haren to the desert. However Haren has a very favorable contract, locked in at reasonable rates for the next three seasons, years likely to be very productive barring injury (he turns 28 in September). He adds a second genuine #1 starter to an already solid rotation,
This has been discussed by the Cincinnati media and fanbase ad nauseum, but I'm not sure why the Reds didn't make a stronger push to get Haren in the offseason. Granted, we do not know, nor are we likely to ever know, what the A's were asking for from the Reds (most reports had Billy Beane hot for Johnny Cueto, Joey Votto and Jay Bruce, just like the rest of baseball, which made the deal a no-go for the Reds). What's frustrating for Reds fans is that none of the prospects the Diamondbacks gave up seem to be as highly-regarded as the Reds' three, perhaps encouraging the thought that the Reds could have gotten Haren for some of their lower-level prospects instead. Given what Billy Beane wound up asking for in return for Joe Blanton (pretty much the same Cueto-Votto-Bruce-Drew Stubbs package he was rumored to be asking for Haren), this thought is likely misguided. If the organizational decision was to keep Cueto/Votto/Bruce instead of getting Haren, then the decision to hold off on Blanton (purely league average) for the same package was definitely a good one. Haren, though, isn't league-average, doesn't look to be a product of park effects, and his numbers are nearly as good as Johan's at a fraction of the cost. I would be much more gung-ho on the Reds contending this year if he were in the 2 slot, Bronson were 3, Cueto were 4, Volquez were 5 and Josh Fogg was someone else's problem.
Anyway, Haren is good, and the Reds might have some problems scoring runs Wednesday.
CIN: RHP Bronson Arroyo
2007: 9-15, 4.23 ERA
Career vs. ARI: 5 G, 3 GS, 0-2, 4.56 ERA
@ GABP: 33 GS, 12-7, 3.43 ERA
ARROYO OWNS...
2B Orlando Hudson (6-28, .214 BA, 1 2B, 3 RBI)
ARROYO IS OWNED BY...
1B Conor Jackson (4-7, .571 BA, RBI, 2 BB, 1381 OPS)
Bronson came back to Earth somewhat in 2007, struggling through a difficult campaign. He started strong but hit the wall after Narron pitched him til his arm fell off during a 3-game stretch in May (366 pitches over three starts, culminating in a 129-pitch complete game loss here at Petco May 16). Then in a stretch in June and July he went over the 100-pitch mark in nine of ten starts. The pattern of abuse ended somewhat under Mackanin, though he did throw 123 pitches against the Cubs 7/27. Hopefully Dusty recognizes that while Arroyo's motion makes him a bit more durable than some, his arm isn't completely made of rubber and with overwork, you'll get performances like 5/21 vs. Washington (2 IP, 6 H, 6 ER, 3 BB, 62 pitches after the SD start) and 8/1 at Washington (1 2/3 IP, 7 H, 7 ER, 2 BB, 58 pitches after the 9-games-in-10-over-100 stretch). The Nationals must think Bronson really sucks.
Anyway, Arroyo is a lot of fun to watch, with his giant yakker curveball (an absolute marvel to witness in person; I've never heard a reaction quite like that to a single pitch than the first time he busted that out at Petco in 2007) and otherwise-hittable looking stuff. He got considerable pub and some Cy Young hype in 2006 but the league seemed to catch up on him a little; that combined with overwork and perhaps a little more familiarity by NL hitters added up to a considerably worse season.
OFFENSIVE STRUGGLES HURT REDS IN LOSS
Cincinnati dealt with a nearly impossible-to-win situation Monday: scoring runs without runners on base. While they left more runners stranded than Arizona (5 runners to 4), none of the Reds' runners were left in scoring position, and it didn't even seem the Reds mustered a rally against Brandon Webb and the Arizona bullpen arms Chad Qualls, Tony Pena and Brandon Lyons. Indeed, as mentioned before, seemingly the only hard-hit balls were Brandon Phillips' triple to center and Javier Valentin's single off the right-field wall.
One thing that particularly struck me watching Monday's game was how many players were starting from whom you expect no power. The heart of the lineup is pretty good, with Griffey, Phillips, Dunn and Encarnacion all nice bats. Some would say Encarnacion is suspect until he puts an entire season together. You will hear no Dunn bashing around here. But Patterson doesn't strike any fear at the top, and Hatteberg and Valentin at the bottom can easily be pitched to (and in Valentin's case, if they plan on hitting him eighth, can easily be pitched around to get to the pitcher's spot).
Yes, the Reds have several injuries making their lineup different than they expected it at the start of the year, but I'm not convinced Alex Gonzales brings anything more offensively at short than Keppinger would over a full season (in fact, I suspect he'll give them less than a full year of Kep). Votto should be getting the ABs at first, regardless of Hatteberg's good spring numbers. David Ross brings a little more to the table offensively than Javy, but neither are great shakes.
I know they've only played one game, but this suspicion isn't based on Mondays' game. I'm afraid Krivsky took a team full of mashers, able to score runs at will with a horrible staff, and made a team of OK hitters and OK pitchers that will win about as many games.
HOLDING THEIR OWN
Despite Monday's loss, the Reds still have some reason for optimism in this season-opening homestand against the Western and Eastern Division champion Diamondbacks and Phillies. Last year Cincinnati played .500 baseball, 15-15 against division winners, somewhat impressive in a 70-92 season.
OH, AND ANOTHER THING...
With the win Monday Arizona evened their all-time record at Great American Ball Park. They are now 8-8 all time at GABP.
UPCOMING SCHEDULE:
4/3 Arizona 12:35
4/4 Philadelphia 7:10
4/5 Philadelphia 1:10
4/6 Philadelphia 1:15
4/7 Philadelphia 12:35
7:10 PM EST
Great American Ball Park, Cincinnati, OH
Another solid pitching matchup highlights Game 2 of the Reds' season-opening series against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Cincinnati is looking to even the series after an Opening Day loss Monday afternoon.
Probable Starters
ARI: RHP Dan Haren
2007 w/OAK: 15-9, 3.07 ERA
Career vs. CIN: 3 G, 2 GS, 1-1, 5.93 ERA incl. 7 IP, 6 H, 3 R in W 6/20/07
@ GABP: 2 G, 1 GS, 0-1, 8.10 ERA in 6 2/3 IP
HAREN OWNS...
HAREN IS OWNED BY...
No one for either, really. The only hitter likely to be in the lineup Wednesday with over a handful of at-bats against Haren is Corey Patterson. He's 3-8 (.375 BA) with 3 BB in 11 career PA against Haren.
Johan Santana aside, Dan Haren was the biggest prize to be had in the 2007 offseason, and getting him cost the Diamondbacks a pretty penny. A five-prospect package went to Oakland in the exchange to bring Haren to the desert. However Haren has a very favorable contract, locked in at reasonable rates for the next three seasons, years likely to be very productive barring injury (he turns 28 in September). He adds a second genuine #1 starter to an already solid rotation,
This has been discussed by the Cincinnati media and fanbase ad nauseum, but I'm not sure why the Reds didn't make a stronger push to get Haren in the offseason. Granted, we do not know, nor are we likely to ever know, what the A's were asking for from the Reds (most reports had Billy Beane hot for Johnny Cueto, Joey Votto and Jay Bruce, just like the rest of baseball, which made the deal a no-go for the Reds). What's frustrating for Reds fans is that none of the prospects the Diamondbacks gave up seem to be as highly-regarded as the Reds' three, perhaps encouraging the thought that the Reds could have gotten Haren for some of their lower-level prospects instead. Given what Billy Beane wound up asking for in return for Joe Blanton (pretty much the same Cueto-Votto-Bruce-Drew Stubbs package he was rumored to be asking for Haren), this thought is likely misguided. If the organizational decision was to keep Cueto/Votto/Bruce instead of getting Haren, then the decision to hold off on Blanton (purely league average) for the same package was definitely a good one. Haren, though, isn't league-average, doesn't look to be a product of park effects, and his numbers are nearly as good as Johan's at a fraction of the cost. I would be much more gung-ho on the Reds contending this year if he were in the 2 slot, Bronson were 3, Cueto were 4, Volquez were 5 and Josh Fogg was someone else's problem.
Anyway, Haren is good, and the Reds might have some problems scoring runs Wednesday.
CIN: RHP Bronson Arroyo
2007: 9-15, 4.23 ERA
Career vs. ARI: 5 G, 3 GS, 0-2, 4.56 ERA
@ GABP: 33 GS, 12-7, 3.43 ERA
ARROYO OWNS...
2B Orlando Hudson (6-28, .214 BA, 1 2B, 3 RBI)
ARROYO IS OWNED BY...
1B Conor Jackson (4-7, .571 BA, RBI, 2 BB, 1381 OPS)
Bronson came back to Earth somewhat in 2007, struggling through a difficult campaign. He started strong but hit the wall after Narron pitched him til his arm fell off during a 3-game stretch in May (366 pitches over three starts, culminating in a 129-pitch complete game loss here at Petco May 16). Then in a stretch in June and July he went over the 100-pitch mark in nine of ten starts. The pattern of abuse ended somewhat under Mackanin, though he did throw 123 pitches against the Cubs 7/27. Hopefully Dusty recognizes that while Arroyo's motion makes him a bit more durable than some, his arm isn't completely made of rubber and with overwork, you'll get performances like 5/21 vs. Washington (2 IP, 6 H, 6 ER, 3 BB, 62 pitches after the SD start) and 8/1 at Washington (1 2/3 IP, 7 H, 7 ER, 2 BB, 58 pitches after the 9-games-in-10-over-100 stretch). The Nationals must think Bronson really sucks.
Anyway, Arroyo is a lot of fun to watch, with his giant yakker curveball (an absolute marvel to witness in person; I've never heard a reaction quite like that to a single pitch than the first time he busted that out at Petco in 2007) and otherwise-hittable looking stuff. He got considerable pub and some Cy Young hype in 2006 but the league seemed to catch up on him a little; that combined with overwork and perhaps a little more familiarity by NL hitters added up to a considerably worse season.
OFFENSIVE STRUGGLES HURT REDS IN LOSS
Cincinnati dealt with a nearly impossible-to-win situation Monday: scoring runs without runners on base. While they left more runners stranded than Arizona (5 runners to 4), none of the Reds' runners were left in scoring position, and it didn't even seem the Reds mustered a rally against Brandon Webb and the Arizona bullpen arms Chad Qualls, Tony Pena and Brandon Lyons. Indeed, as mentioned before, seemingly the only hard-hit balls were Brandon Phillips' triple to center and Javier Valentin's single off the right-field wall.
One thing that particularly struck me watching Monday's game was how many players were starting from whom you expect no power. The heart of the lineup is pretty good, with Griffey, Phillips, Dunn and Encarnacion all nice bats. Some would say Encarnacion is suspect until he puts an entire season together. You will hear no Dunn bashing around here. But Patterson doesn't strike any fear at the top, and Hatteberg and Valentin at the bottom can easily be pitched to (and in Valentin's case, if they plan on hitting him eighth, can easily be pitched around to get to the pitcher's spot).
Yes, the Reds have several injuries making their lineup different than they expected it at the start of the year, but I'm not convinced Alex Gonzales brings anything more offensively at short than Keppinger would over a full season (in fact, I suspect he'll give them less than a full year of Kep). Votto should be getting the ABs at first, regardless of Hatteberg's good spring numbers. David Ross brings a little more to the table offensively than Javy, but neither are great shakes.
I know they've only played one game, but this suspicion isn't based on Mondays' game. I'm afraid Krivsky took a team full of mashers, able to score runs at will with a horrible staff, and made a team of OK hitters and OK pitchers that will win about as many games.
HOLDING THEIR OWN
Despite Monday's loss, the Reds still have some reason for optimism in this season-opening homestand against the Western and Eastern Division champion Diamondbacks and Phillies. Last year Cincinnati played .500 baseball, 15-15 against division winners, somewhat impressive in a 70-92 season.
OH, AND ANOTHER THING...
With the win Monday Arizona evened their all-time record at Great American Ball Park. They are now 8-8 all time at GABP.
UPCOMING SCHEDULE:
4/3 Arizona 12:35
4/4 Philadelphia 7:10
4/5 Philadelphia 1:10
4/6 Philadelphia 1:15
4/7 Philadelphia 12:35
Game 1: Diamondbacks 4, Reds 2
Of all days, Opening Day has the most importance attached to the result, with maybe the least real meaning in the long run. It's just one out of 162, but it's hard to maintain that perspective, especially with an off-day Tuesday. These days are going to happen, especially with a guy like Brandon Webb on the mound. It doesn't get any easier Wednesday with Dan Haren taking the hill. Not to hedge my bets, but it would be best to take any sweeping opinions expressed below with a considerable grain of salt...
THE GREATEST PLAYER ASHLAND EVER PRODUCED...
Webb was maybe the worst guy for an overeager team to face in the opener. With so much late movement it's got to be pretty hard to lay off some of his pitches, especially that hard sinker. Between the fastball, sinker and change pitch identification has to be nearly impossible against him. Nearly everyone had bad swings and really the only hard contact came on Phillips' triple (which, honestly, may have been a single if not for the slick grass). Everyone had swings like this, but one by Corey Patterson early on particularly stuck out: the ball started as a high breaking ball, looked like it was sinking into the zone, then zagged inside on him just as he started his swing. He never had a chance, and neither did most of the Reds today.
ON DUSTY...
Much of my perspective on Dusty so far has been heavily colored by Redszone posters, half of whom seem to love him for the wrong reasons (he's crusty, he's forthcoming with the media, he likes guys who Play the Game the Right Way) and half of whom hate him for things that happened three years ago, and veiled mean-nothing statements in Spring Training (he likes Norris Hopper, he blew out Prior's arm, he is Satan incarnate). Therefore, I'm going to try to lay off Reds chatter with the exception of pure news sources in the near future. It just seems best.
ON KEPPINGER AND THE FUTURE (a.k.a. My Doctoral Dissertation)
How lost did Keppinger look in his at-bats against Webb? The most interesting thing that will happen because of Baker is, to me, seeing his reaction to struggles by younger/less established players. Keppinger has done nothing but hit on every level of the minors. If he doesn't play well through the weekend, will it be Castro time?
GOOD CALL
With Harang sitting on 99 pitches going into the seventh, it was nice to see Dusty pull him. It's the first game and there's no reason to push it, Burton's hanger crushed by Sanchez notwithstanding. The results earned by the bullpen after Harang was pulled don't make the decision to pull him on 99 pitches in six innings a bad choice, and I believe Burton will be fine in the long run. This may be me rationalizing his rough spring and HR allowed because he was fantastic in the second half last year and the Reds really need him to pitch well, but I'm a Reds fan.
Harang, by the way, was really solid, epecially if you exclude the third, a two-homer, 32-pitch marathon that pretty much singlehandedly kept him from earning the win and lasting more than six. It was interesting seeing the contrast between Harang and Webb, with Harang getting guys with hard stuff well-placed along with breaking balls, and Webb just being all late movement. Along with playing in a nationally-invisible team like the Reds, Harang doesn't do much that gets headlines; he doesn't throw 99, he doesn't have some unhittable slider or gimmick pitch, he's just solid as hell. He's one of those guys where you're shocked if he doesn't pitch well every time out.
HOW GOOD IS HUDSON?
If you didn't watch this game, please check out the condensed game on MLB at the very least. He made plays in the field that were jaw-dropping, including a basket catch in center and a ball he nearly nailed Harang on that I can't believe he even got to in shallow center. He is fantastic and I'm tired of Orlando Hudson hyperbole (today was only Game 1 of the series, we have to save some for Wednesday and Thursday), so just check out the highlights somehow... or just trust me.
OH EDWIN...
You could see that throw in the first coming before it even left his hand. Something in his body language wasn't right the entire time he was getting that ball out of his glove and out of his throwing hand.. I don't know if he was having issues gripping a wet ball, as Grande and Welsh guessed, or if he was thinking about it too much because he had plenty of time, but that error stat they showed on the telecast was scary. Edwin was seriously jerked around by Narron, I really hope Dusty just lets him play, because he's a very good player. I'm just worried that, like Keppinger, we'll be seeing Edwin on the bench and Freel down at third come next week.
THINGS I'M GLAD ABOUT ON OPENING DAY
It's Opening Day.
George Grande's shirt in that interview with Dusty from Spring Training.
George Grande in general; he's so bad, he's aging like fine wine.
FarmersOnly.com advertisements are back.
It's Opening Day.
Cordero didn't get bombed or anything.
Weathers looked good.
Extra Innings subscription.
It's Opening Day.
161 games left.
Baseball season is back.
I can predict Marty's reaction to things, therefore basically living the Marty Experience, without even listening to Marty.
Really, there's lots of stuff, so I'll just sum it up for Reds fans everywhere by saying...
It's Opening Day.
THE GREATEST PLAYER ASHLAND EVER PRODUCED...
Webb was maybe the worst guy for an overeager team to face in the opener. With so much late movement it's got to be pretty hard to lay off some of his pitches, especially that hard sinker. Between the fastball, sinker and change pitch identification has to be nearly impossible against him. Nearly everyone had bad swings and really the only hard contact came on Phillips' triple (which, honestly, may have been a single if not for the slick grass). Everyone had swings like this, but one by Corey Patterson early on particularly stuck out: the ball started as a high breaking ball, looked like it was sinking into the zone, then zagged inside on him just as he started his swing. He never had a chance, and neither did most of the Reds today.
ON DUSTY...
Much of my perspective on Dusty so far has been heavily colored by Redszone posters, half of whom seem to love him for the wrong reasons (he's crusty, he's forthcoming with the media, he likes guys who Play the Game the Right Way) and half of whom hate him for things that happened three years ago, and veiled mean-nothing statements in Spring Training (he likes Norris Hopper, he blew out Prior's arm, he is Satan incarnate). Therefore, I'm going to try to lay off Reds chatter with the exception of pure news sources in the near future. It just seems best.
ON KEPPINGER AND THE FUTURE (a.k.a. My Doctoral Dissertation)
How lost did Keppinger look in his at-bats against Webb? The most interesting thing that will happen because of Baker is, to me, seeing his reaction to struggles by younger/less established players. Keppinger has done nothing but hit on every level of the minors. If he doesn't play well through the weekend, will it be Castro time?
GOOD CALL
With Harang sitting on 99 pitches going into the seventh, it was nice to see Dusty pull him. It's the first game and there's no reason to push it, Burton's hanger crushed by Sanchez notwithstanding. The results earned by the bullpen after Harang was pulled don't make the decision to pull him on 99 pitches in six innings a bad choice, and I believe Burton will be fine in the long run. This may be me rationalizing his rough spring and HR allowed because he was fantastic in the second half last year and the Reds really need him to pitch well, but I'm a Reds fan.
Harang, by the way, was really solid, epecially if you exclude the third, a two-homer, 32-pitch marathon that pretty much singlehandedly kept him from earning the win and lasting more than six. It was interesting seeing the contrast between Harang and Webb, with Harang getting guys with hard stuff well-placed along with breaking balls, and Webb just being all late movement. Along with playing in a nationally-invisible team like the Reds, Harang doesn't do much that gets headlines; he doesn't throw 99, he doesn't have some unhittable slider or gimmick pitch, he's just solid as hell. He's one of those guys where you're shocked if he doesn't pitch well every time out.
HOW GOOD IS HUDSON?
If you didn't watch this game, please check out the condensed game on MLB at the very least. He made plays in the field that were jaw-dropping, including a basket catch in center and a ball he nearly nailed Harang on that I can't believe he even got to in shallow center. He is fantastic and I'm tired of Orlando Hudson hyperbole (today was only Game 1 of the series, we have to save some for Wednesday and Thursday), so just check out the highlights somehow... or just trust me.
OH EDWIN...
You could see that throw in the first coming before it even left his hand. Something in his body language wasn't right the entire time he was getting that ball out of his glove and out of his throwing hand.. I don't know if he was having issues gripping a wet ball, as Grande and Welsh guessed, or if he was thinking about it too much because he had plenty of time, but that error stat they showed on the telecast was scary. Edwin was seriously jerked around by Narron, I really hope Dusty just lets him play, because he's a very good player. I'm just worried that, like Keppinger, we'll be seeing Edwin on the bench and Freel down at third come next week.
THINGS I'M GLAD ABOUT ON OPENING DAY
It's Opening Day.
George Grande's shirt in that interview with Dusty from Spring Training.
George Grande in general; he's so bad, he's aging like fine wine.
FarmersOnly.com advertisements are back.
It's Opening Day.
Cordero didn't get bombed or anything.
Weathers looked good.
Extra Innings subscription.
It's Opening Day.
161 games left.
Baseball season is back.
I can predict Marty's reaction to things, therefore basically living the Marty Experience, without even listening to Marty.
Really, there's lots of stuff, so I'll just sum it up for Reds fans everywhere by saying...
It's Opening Day.
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Opening Day Lineup
The starting lineup for Opening Day, per Trent/everyone:
Patterson, CF
Keppinger, SS
Griffey, RF
Phillips, 2B
Dunn, LF
Encarnacion, 3B
Hatteberg, 1B
Valentin, C
Harang, RHP
No Votto... let the handwringing commence!
Patterson, CF
Keppinger, SS
Griffey, RF
Phillips, 2B
Dunn, LF
Encarnacion, 3B
Hatteberg, 1B
Valentin, C
Harang, RHP
No Votto... let the handwringing commence!
Game 1: Arizona Diamondbacks at Cincinnati Reds
March 31, 2008
2:10 PM EST
Great American Ball Park, Cincinnati, OH
Two of the National League's top arms face off at Great American to open the 2008 reguar season as the Reds face the Diamondbacks Monday afternoon.
Probable Starters
ARI: RHP Brandon Webb
2007: 18-10, 3.01 ERA
Career vs. CIN: 8 GS, 4-2, 2.83 ERA incl. CG SO 5/26/06 @CIN
@ GABP: 4 GS, 1-1, 2.96 ERA
WEBB OWNS...
1B Scott Hatteberg (2-11, .182 BA, 1 RBI)
RF Ken Griffey Jr. (0-9, 2 SO, 2 BB)
WEBB IS OWNED BY...
SS Alex Gonzalez (4-13, .308 BA, 2 RBI) - On the disabled list
LF Adam Dunn (6-26, .261 BA, 2 2B, HR, 6 RBI, .478 SLG)
In his whole career, Webb has only really been "owned" by Todd Helton and Brad Hawpe; J.T. Snow has some excellent numbers as well. No one on this Reds team seems to have done all that well against him.
The 2006 NL Cy Young Award winner turned in another stellar campaign in 2007, further solidifying his standing as one of the league's elite starters. Despite the acquisition of the rock-solid Dan Haren in the offseason, Webb again gets the nod on Opening Day for the defending NL West champions. Webb is likely to have a sizable cheering section Monday; he hails from the heart of Reds country in Ashland, KY.
Webb's spring numbers (5 GS, 8.50 ERA in 18 innings) were less than great, but Arizona is unlikely to be worried about their ace headed into the 2008 campaign.
CIN: RHP Aaron Harang
2007: 16-6, 3.73 ERA
Career vs. ARI: 6 GS, 2-2, 1.74 ERA
@ GABP: 69 GS, 24-21, 4.12 ERA
HARANG OWNS...
LF Eric Byrnes (1-10, .100 BA, 3 SO)
HARANG IS OWNED BY...
C Chris Snyder (4-5, .800 BA, 2B, RBI)
Because Arizona is such a young team, it's difficult to find hitters with many at-bats against the Reds' ace.
2007 marked the third consecutive year Reds fans have bemoaned the lack of attention paid to Aaron Harang. He's been one of the NL's most consistent workhorses and a bonafide ace since 2005, yet he just garnered his first-ever Cy Young votes last year, finishing fourth. A (hopefully) better team should garner Harang much more national attention than he's ever received before.
In contrast to Webb, Harang had an excellent spring (5 GS, 2.86 ERA in 22 innings) and looked to be in midseason form in his last tuneup. Here's hoping for a nice start to 2008 for Harang.
THE DUSTY QUESTION
Much has been made of the Reds' hiring of Dusty Baker in the offseason, both positive and negative. Progressive (smart) thinkers and youth-minded fans say he's held down young talent, pointing to Joey Votto not starting the opener, Jay Bruce's demotion in favor of Corey Patterson and Homer Bailey's demotion in favor of Josh Fogg taking the fourth rotation slot. Old-fashioned fans love Baker's new attitude and point out he's won everywhere he's been. Doubtless both sides likely have a point (sure Dusty didn't play young talent in San Francisco or Chicago... but what young talent did he have?). How Dusty's managerial style has changed, and how it will apply to this roster, is one of the most intriguing questions of the upcoming season.
THE QUESTION MARK...
Another perennial question mark for the Reds is, of course, the pitching. Harang and Bronson Arroyo anchor the rotation, but below them are three huge question marks. Rookie RHP Johnny Cueto looked dazzling in several spring starts and very much like a rookie in others. Edinson Volquez holds down the fifth spot. The acquisition from Texas should be feeling some heat coming into the season, as fan favorite Josh Hamilton waved goodbye in the process. If he gets off to a quick start in Texas (nearly a certainty barring injury) and Volquez struggles, the hook could be quick for him, and the rotation alternatives are not good. Josh Fogg is mentioned last here because he likely is the second most sure thing other than Harang in this rotation; the only issue is that he is sure to not give much (six innings, three or four runs, and out). I'm not sure if it's more frustrating for a pitcher to be kind of bad every start, or turn in one great start and one awful start alternating all year (Kyle Lohse) but we'll find out this year.
The major addition in the bullpen is Francisco Cordero. Reds brass is praying his success last year wasn't a result of pitching in Miller Park as his splits suggest, because he's only going to pitch there a handful of times this year. The theory behind getting a big-arm closer, then moving all the other arms down a spot (David Weathers to setup, Jared Burton to the 7th inning, etc.) is a solid one. The Reds blew a lot of games late last year and here's hoping it doesn't continue.
LUCKY BREAKS?
Arizona confounded numbers-minded baseball fans everywhere in winning the NL West last year, winning 90 games despite being outscored by 20 runs on the season. The D-Backs outperformed their expected W-L by 11 games in doing so, and were 32-20 in one-run games.
One could argue this was the result of doing things the right way, getting some breaks and being good at preventing runs. One could also argue the season was largely luck, and given the same talent they likely would have finished fourth. In a stacked NL West Arizona didn't stand pat, obtaining Dan Haren from Oakland for five prospects in the offseason. Regardless, it will be very interesting to see if the trends from last year continue for Arizona.
OH, AND ANOTHER THING...
2008 marks the first time in nine years the Reds have faced an NL West opponent on Opening Day. On April 5, 1999, Dusty Baker's Giants beat the Reds, 11-8.
2:10 PM EST
Great American Ball Park, Cincinnati, OH
Two of the National League's top arms face off at Great American to open the 2008 reguar season as the Reds face the Diamondbacks Monday afternoon.
Probable Starters
ARI: RHP Brandon Webb
2007: 18-10, 3.01 ERA
Career vs. CIN: 8 GS, 4-2, 2.83 ERA incl. CG SO 5/26/06 @CIN
@ GABP: 4 GS, 1-1, 2.96 ERA
WEBB OWNS...
1B Scott Hatteberg (2-11, .182 BA, 1 RBI)
RF Ken Griffey Jr. (0-9, 2 SO, 2 BB)
WEBB IS OWNED BY...
SS Alex Gonzalez (4-13, .308 BA, 2 RBI) - On the disabled list
LF Adam Dunn (6-26, .261 BA, 2 2B, HR, 6 RBI, .478 SLG)
In his whole career, Webb has only really been "owned" by Todd Helton and Brad Hawpe; J.T. Snow has some excellent numbers as well. No one on this Reds team seems to have done all that well against him.
The 2006 NL Cy Young Award winner turned in another stellar campaign in 2007, further solidifying his standing as one of the league's elite starters. Despite the acquisition of the rock-solid Dan Haren in the offseason, Webb again gets the nod on Opening Day for the defending NL West champions. Webb is likely to have a sizable cheering section Monday; he hails from the heart of Reds country in Ashland, KY.
Webb's spring numbers (5 GS, 8.50 ERA in 18 innings) were less than great, but Arizona is unlikely to be worried about their ace headed into the 2008 campaign.
CIN: RHP Aaron Harang
2007: 16-6, 3.73 ERA
Career vs. ARI: 6 GS, 2-2, 1.74 ERA
@ GABP: 69 GS, 24-21, 4.12 ERA
HARANG OWNS...
LF Eric Byrnes (1-10, .100 BA, 3 SO)
HARANG IS OWNED BY...
C Chris Snyder (4-5, .800 BA, 2B, RBI)
Because Arizona is such a young team, it's difficult to find hitters with many at-bats against the Reds' ace.
2007 marked the third consecutive year Reds fans have bemoaned the lack of attention paid to Aaron Harang. He's been one of the NL's most consistent workhorses and a bonafide ace since 2005, yet he just garnered his first-ever Cy Young votes last year, finishing fourth. A (hopefully) better team should garner Harang much more national attention than he's ever received before.
In contrast to Webb, Harang had an excellent spring (5 GS, 2.86 ERA in 22 innings) and looked to be in midseason form in his last tuneup. Here's hoping for a nice start to 2008 for Harang.
THE DUSTY QUESTION
Much has been made of the Reds' hiring of Dusty Baker in the offseason, both positive and negative. Progressive (smart) thinkers and youth-minded fans say he's held down young talent, pointing to Joey Votto not starting the opener, Jay Bruce's demotion in favor of Corey Patterson and Homer Bailey's demotion in favor of Josh Fogg taking the fourth rotation slot. Old-fashioned fans love Baker's new attitude and point out he's won everywhere he's been. Doubtless both sides likely have a point (sure Dusty didn't play young talent in San Francisco or Chicago... but what young talent did he have?). How Dusty's managerial style has changed, and how it will apply to this roster, is one of the most intriguing questions of the upcoming season.
THE QUESTION MARK...
Another perennial question mark for the Reds is, of course, the pitching. Harang and Bronson Arroyo anchor the rotation, but below them are three huge question marks. Rookie RHP Johnny Cueto looked dazzling in several spring starts and very much like a rookie in others. Edinson Volquez holds down the fifth spot. The acquisition from Texas should be feeling some heat coming into the season, as fan favorite Josh Hamilton waved goodbye in the process. If he gets off to a quick start in Texas (nearly a certainty barring injury) and Volquez struggles, the hook could be quick for him, and the rotation alternatives are not good. Josh Fogg is mentioned last here because he likely is the second most sure thing other than Harang in this rotation; the only issue is that he is sure to not give much (six innings, three or four runs, and out). I'm not sure if it's more frustrating for a pitcher to be kind of bad every start, or turn in one great start and one awful start alternating all year (Kyle Lohse) but we'll find out this year.
The major addition in the bullpen is Francisco Cordero. Reds brass is praying his success last year wasn't a result of pitching in Miller Park as his splits suggest, because he's only going to pitch there a handful of times this year. The theory behind getting a big-arm closer, then moving all the other arms down a spot (David Weathers to setup, Jared Burton to the 7th inning, etc.) is a solid one. The Reds blew a lot of games late last year and here's hoping it doesn't continue.
LUCKY BREAKS?
Arizona confounded numbers-minded baseball fans everywhere in winning the NL West last year, winning 90 games despite being outscored by 20 runs on the season. The D-Backs outperformed their expected W-L by 11 games in doing so, and were 32-20 in one-run games.
One could argue this was the result of doing things the right way, getting some breaks and being good at preventing runs. One could also argue the season was largely luck, and given the same talent they likely would have finished fourth. In a stacked NL West Arizona didn't stand pat, obtaining Dan Haren from Oakland for five prospects in the offseason. Regardless, it will be very interesting to see if the trends from last year continue for Arizona.
OH, AND ANOTHER THING...
2008 marks the first time in nine years the Reds have faced an NL West opponent on Opening Day. On April 5, 1999, Dusty Baker's Giants beat the Reds, 11-8.
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