By: Coop
What am I tired of? The Reds. I know there is still plenty of season to go, and are only 4 games back and can win the division, still. But, I can promise you that the Reds will not win the NL Central in 2011 with the players they have now. Let's go across the team, and I will tell you if they are good enough for my liking.
Let's start with pitching.
Bronson Arroyo: This season Bronson is 7-7 and has an ERA of 5.49. He could still win about 15 games this year, but the thing is, he has a lot of losses as well. He has battled through illness, and has never missed a start, but he is going to have to miss some this season. The Reds should put Bronson on the 15-day for fatigue. He can get his much-needed rest, and hopefully come back as a better pitcher. We can bring up Dontrelle Willis to replace him, he is having a great year in AAA.
Edinson Volquez: This guy has great stuff, but does not know how to use it. He can be very good, and very bad. He is not nearly consistent enough. The Reds should send Volquez back down to AAA so he can work on what he needs to, then bring up Travis Wood to replace him. Wood has improved his game since he was sent down, and is back to the Travis Wood we all know and love.
Johnny Cueto: Cueto is the best pitcher the Reds have, I have no negative things to say about him. I mean the guy is 5-3 and has a 1.77 ERA. Had he not of started the season on the DL, he would be the an All-Star.
Mike Leake: Leake is 8-4 and has an ERA of 4.03. That is good. He has a lot of quality starts and every time you hand him the ball you know he is gonna give you a legit chance of winning the ball game.
Homer Bailey: Homer is 3-3 and has an ERA of 3.64. He started the season on the DL and ever since he has been healthy, he has been good. He does get injured a lot, but as long as he stays healthy I think we can be a great pitcher for Cincinnati.
Bullpen: The pen has Arredondo, Bray, Chapman, Cordero, LeCure, Masset, and Ondrusek. Arredondo could be a little more less-wild, as could Chapman, just improve a little on location and they will be fine. I will admit that every time Masset comes in to pitch I get nervous, but he usually gets the job done. Ondrusek is great, have no complaints, LeCure is a great long man, hopefully we don't have to use him too much though. Bray should be an All-Star in my opinion, he is one of the best lefty relievers in the game. Cordero has only blown 2 saves, and could really be an All-Star this season. Overall, the bullpen is in good shape.
Now let's move on to position players. We'll start with the catchers.
Ramon Hernandez: Ramon has a .307 average, 8 homers, and has knocked in 20. I can't really complain about his hitting at all. I would like to see him throw more runners out though.
Ryan Hanigan: He is hitting .248, has 3 homers, and 19 RBI. Pretty decent, but I would like to see that average higher. I would like him to have at least a .260 batting average.
Now to the infield.
Joey Votto: Okay so how could anyone have any complaints about the reigning NL MVP, Joey Votto? We'll I have some. He is hitting .318, had 12 homers, and 52 RBI's. His average is fine, as is his RBI's, but 12 homers, come on. He is on pace for 24 homers this year, last year he hit 37. As my friend said "he set the bar too high if he can't hit that many every season". I agree. He is not getting much to hit, but he does eventually, and he just tries to hit singles. He needs to be aggressive and try and go yard every once-in-a-while. I know he doesn't consider himself a home run hitter, but we need him to be.
Brandon Phillips: In my opinion DatDudeBP is the most exciting player to watch. He scores a lot of runs, has a good average, a good amount of home runs and RBI's, and has the best defense in the world. I have no complaints about him.
Paul Janish: This is where it gets bad. Janish is batting only .227 and has 19 RBI's, and no home runs. Last year Paul hit 5 long ones. He makes too many errors and does not know how to hit. The Reds need to send him and some minor leaguers to New York in exchange for Jose Reyes. Reyes would be a great fit for the Reds. Jose plays in Citi Field, a huge ballpark, and hits a lot of triples there. Those triples would be home runs in Cincinnati. He has a high average, great speed, great defense, great everything. The Reds must get Jose Reyes. Or, they could send Janish to Louisville and bring up Zach Cozart. Cozy is tearing it up in AAA, and could be a very good MLB shortstop. They need to bring him up before they get Reyes. If he is good enough, don't get Reyes, if not, get him.
Edgar Renteria: He is hitting .231, had 18 RBI's, and 1 home run. That is okay since he has not got much playing time. Too little if you ask me. He is better than Janish. We could really trade him if we wanted, but we don't really need to.
Scott Rolen: Scott is batting .256, had 3 homers, and 32 RBI. I would like to see him hit more home runs, but we should defiantly keep him. He is a leader, a good hitter, and a great defensive player.
Miguel Cairo: "The Super-Sub" has been great with the Reds the last 2 seasons. He is batting .286, had 3 homers, and 15 RBI. Pretty good for a guy who rarely starts.
Now let's go to the outfield.
Jonny Gomes: Gomes needs to be benched for a while so he can clear his mind. He needs to be a bit more consistent. He is only batting .222, does have 11 homers and 31 RBI. I like his home run total, but I would like him to get more RBI's and have a higher average. I expected him to be hitting .280, have 15 homers, and 45 RBI's at the All-Star Break. Fred Lewis or someone else I will mention when I talk about Drew Stubbs can start in left.
Fred Lewis: Freddy Lew has been good, he has a very hot bat, a good singles hitter, and can bat just about anywhere in the lineup. I like him a lot.
Drew Stubbs: Let me start out by saying Drew Stubbs needs to be sent down to AAA. He is hitting .250, has 11 homers, and 32 RBI's. A good amount of homers and RBI's, but that average is not that great. He should be a stud. He strikes-out way too much. He is not getting the job done. To make a point, he needs to be sent down to AAA. In the mean time, we can bring up Yonder Alonso to play in the OF. He can play in left, then Heisey can start in center.
Jay Bruce: Bruce has a lot of homers and RBI's, but I would like him to be more consistent. He is working on it though, and if he hits 18 homers in the 2nd half, and finishes the season with 36 homers and 102 RBI's, I will be very happy.
Okay, so that should do it. If the Reds do what I think they should, I think they could win the division.
No comments:
Post a Comment