Red Reposter - Good Starts

Reds news and other such happenins and goings-on

We are a week-and-a-half into the season and your Redboys are in the catbird seat with a stout 4-2 record and two series wins. Beating the Feds two of three at home should be de rigeur, but taking two of three from the Phightins in Philly is no small feat. And they absolutely coulda had a sweep if Bryce Harper weren’t so darn big and strong. He’s 31 now and all grown up and he’s made himself into a right proper galoot (remember when he was a catcher?). But yeah, we knew the Reds would be fun, but they’ve also won more games than they’ve lost so far, which is kinda what we’re all goin for here.

This (albeit short) stretch of good form has been led by a handful of dudes off to impressive starts. Foremost among them is Spencer Steer. Skid has opened the season with both barrels blasting. He has ten hits, four of the extra-base variety, and eight RBIs, posting an OPS of 1.219. Will Benson is leading the league with four doubles (though he is striking out nearly half the time). Jake Fraley and Nick Martini have contributed even more prodigious left-handed power. Jonny India and Stuart Fairchild have made it very difficult for opposing teams to get them out.

I guess it’s kinda vogue to bag on Elly De La Cruz right now for how he’s been playing so far. He has struck out 12 times against just one walk and zero home runs. He has also committed some costly errors at shortstop. This is all empirically true, though he has also collected a hit in every game. I’m not sweating him at all. Don’t let your expectations ruin this for you.

Frankie Montas is the only starter to throw two games so far, and he has vindicated himself about as well as any of us could have hoped. He’s tossed 11²⁄₃ innings and given up just one run. He has been clinical and efficient and I’m confident I’ll have a neat nickname for him in no time. I always like “Dirtball” for a groundball pitcher like him, but he doesn’t really look it. Maybe Andrew Abbott can ratchet up that GB% and earn it. The bullpen has looked pretty rickety, but Justin Wilson and Fernando Cruz have been keeping the wagon on the road for the most part.

So what’s up with the news?

Jeimer Candelario looked like he might have hurt himself last night swinging the bat and he exited the game shortly after. David Bell said he hopes it’s just a hyperextended elbow, but we’ll hopefully learn more tomorrow. Jammer Candy hasn’t lit the world on fire in his brief time as a Red, but boy it sure would suck to lose yet another infielder to injury. Legitimate infield depth is just so many castles made of sand.

Jimbo Leatherbritches ranked teams by starting rotation and hit the universe with this hammer of gravitationally disorienting analysis:

The Reds’ rotation could be really good, really bad or somewhere in the middle, which is where I’m putting them.

He ranks ‘em 17.

Lookin’ around baseball a bit, I wanna see an honest insurgent presidential campaign this summer from Mookie Betts. If you hadn’t heard, the Los Angeles Dodgers of Croesusian Wealth forgot to buy themselves a shortstop this winter. Gavin Lux, who spent the entirety of last season on the IL, was supposed to be the guy, but he had a really rough spring. The Dodgers were kinda desperate, which is kinda hilarious, but don’t worry because they employ Mookie Betts, America’s Greatest Living American, who can also play shortstop if you really need him to. He currently leads the galaxy in every major statistical hitting category while transitioning to the most difficult defensive position. He can also bowl a 300 game and he dances like a prince.

#Mookie4President #Mookie4America #50for50