Seeing Red: An OOTP 17 Cincinnati Reds Franchise

[B_Wrobel]

Wrobel and Price Announce 2016 Opening Day Roster

The meeting seemed to talk hours after spring training ended but Bryan Price and I were finally able to settle on an opening day roster. It took awhile as everyone knows how fiery and opinionated Bryan can be but we were able to reach an agreement on what we feel gives this team the best shot now and in the future. With that being said we both felt it was best to not rush any of prospects going forward, we want to be one hundred percent sure they are ready before we bring them up to the Major League roster as you will see with our Opening Day roster below. While this team is in a rebuild, the entire organization still expects Bryan to get the most out of our players if he plans to be here when things are finally turned around.

So without further ado, here are your 2016 Cincinnati Reds!

Cincinnati Reds 25 Man Roster
#	PITCHERS	POS	B/T	AGE	HT	WT	SALARY
26	Raisel Iglesias	SP	R/R	26			$2,500,000
48	Keyvius Sampson	SP	R/R	25			$507,500
31	Alfredo Simon	SP	R/R	34			$2,000,000
38	Josh Smith	SP	R/R	28			$507,500
58	Dan Straily	SP	R/R	27			$507,500
52	Tony Cingrani	RP	L/L	26			$507,500
54	Caleb Cotham	RP	R/R	28			$507,500
35	Dayan Diaz	RP	R/R	27			$507,500
25	Drew Hayes	RP	R/R	28			$507,500
60	J.J. Hoover	RP	R/R	28			$1,400,000
36	Blake Wood	RP	R/R	30			$507,500
70	Jumbo Diaz	CL	R/R	32			$507,500
#	CATCHERS	POS	B/T	AGE	HT	WT	SALARY
41	Ramon Cabrera	C	S/R	26			$507,500
39	Devin Mesoraco	C	R/R	27			$4,900,000
#	INFIELDERS	POS	B/T	AGE	HT	WT	SALARY
30	Brandon Allen	1B	L/R	30			$507,500
19	Joey Votto	1B	L/R	32			$20,000,000
4	Brandon Phillips	2B	R/R	34			$13,000,000
7	Eugenio Suarez	3B	R/R	24			$507,500
2	Zack Cozart	SS	R/R	30			$2,925,000
3	Ivan De Jesus Jr.	SS	R/R	28			$507,500
#	OUTFIELDERS	POS	B/T	AGE	HT	WT	SALARY
23	Adam Duvall	LF	R/R	27			$507,500
37	Donald Lutz	LF	L/R	27			$507,500
6	Billy Hamilton	CF	S/R	25			$507,500
40	Tyler Holt	CF	R/R	27			$507,500
32	Jay Bruce	RF	L/L	28			$12,500,000

Many in the Cincinnati media were surprised to see that a number of our young and promising prospects did not head north with the team out of Spring Training. It didn't come down to a money issue but more an organizational change. We don't want to bring guys up because of need but rather they are ready to contribute and do so in a big way. Guys like Robert Stephenson, Brandon Finnegan, Tucker Barnhart, and Scott Schebler are all fine young players. However, at this time we do not feel they are ready to contribute on an everyday basis. They will all start the season in Louisville to get every day at bats.

Now lets focus on who is here and what type of pitching rotation we are looking at this season. Raisel Iglesias will start on Opening Day against the Philadelphia Phillies followed by Alfredo Simon, Keyvius Sampson, Dan Straily, and Josh Smith. I don't expect a whole hell of a lot out of this group but I do expect Iglesias to earn a spot in this rotation for years to come. I don't see them as a top of the rotation guy but I really like he can hold down the back end of a rotation and put up some good numbers doing so. Outside of Iglesias we have a bunch of filler guys and place holders. Simon and Sampson may have a few good starts in them this season but I won't be counting on consistent performances from the rotation.

As for the bullpen, I think we have a decent shot to have an above average relief corps. The big guy (in more ways than one!) in the pen is Jumbo Diaz. He's flat out an anchor for our bullpen and we have very high expectations from him as our closer this season. Setting up Diaz will be Blake Wood and Tony Cingrani. They are both fine but nothing special and I'm fairly surprise Bryan went with those two guys as his setup men but I have given him full control to shape the rotation and lineups as he sees fit to start the season. In middle relief we have Dayan Diaz, Drew Hayes, J.J. Hoover, and Caleb Cotham. Two names that stick out there are Dayan and Drew. They both seem to have the strike out pitch needed to be effective relief pitchers but only time will tell on that. I think Diaz could eventually see his way into an important role in this bullpen.

As mentioned above, I have given Bryan Price full reign of the rotation and lineups of our major league roster. Below you will find his lineups he has chosen against righties and lefties.

Vs. RHP
1. CF Billy Hamilton
2. 2B Brandon Phillips
3. 1B Joey Votto
4. RF Jay Bruce
5. LF Adam Duvall
6. 3B Eugenio Suarez
7. C Ramon Cabrera
8. SS Zack Cozart

Vs. LHP
1. CF Billy Hamilton
2. 2B Brandon Phillips
3. 1B Joey Votto
4. LF Adam Duvall
5. RF Jay Bruce
6. 3B Eugenio Suarez
7. C Ramon Cabrera
8. SS Zack Cozart

I can't say that I agree with Mr. Price on either of these lineups. The main disagreement we had was who the starting catcher would be. I thought Devin should go everyday but he disagreed with me. Price has four years left on his deal so I will give him some wiggle room but I do need to see things working or we will have sit down very quickly this season.

This team should be able to score some runs this season with the likes of Joey Votto, Brandon Phillips, Eugenio Suarez, Billy Hamilton, and Jay Bruce. Votto needs to continue to be a leader and really be at the top of his game as he is making 20 million dollars on a team that probably won't sniff the playoffs without a great job from Bryan Price this season. The games should be at least fun for our fans to attend as our team will score a lot and I can nearly guarantee we will give up just as much if not more on most nights!

Up next will be game one of the season. The tone of this dynasty will be forever changing. I'm not sure I will post write ups for every game but if not I will at least post box scores. I will do side features on our prospects, draft, trades, etc. as we go. Can't wait to dig and I hope some of you jump on for the ride!

[B_Wrobel]

Reds Down Phillies, 3-1 on Opening Day

Philadelphia Phillies at Cincinnati Reds
Apr 4, 2016	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Philadelphia (0-0)	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	1	6	1
Cincinnati (0-0)	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	3	6	0
W: J.J. Hoover (1-0) L: Aaron Nola (0-1) S: Jumbo Diaz (1)

Scoring Summary
SCORING DETAILS			PHI	CIN
CIN	1st	2-Out RBI Double by Jay Bruce	0	1
CIN	2nd	Wild Pitch by Aaron Nola Scores Zack Cozart	0	2
PHI	6th	2-Out Solo Home Run by Maikel Franco	1	2
CIN	8th	Lead Off Home Run by Jay Bruce	1	3

Philadelphia Phillies
HITTERS	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	HR	AVG
Will Venable	3	0	0	0	1	1	0	.000
Cesar Hernandez	4	0	2	0	0	0	0	.500
Maikel Franco	4	1	2	1	0	1	1	.500
Darin Ruff	4	0	0	0	0	2	0	.000
Freddy Galvis	4	0	0	0	0	2	0	.000
Tyler Goeddel	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000
Peter Bourjos	3	0	0	0	1	2	0	.000
Cameron Rupp	3	0	1	0	1	0	0	.333
Aaron Nola	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	1.000
Dailer Hinojosa	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000
Ryan Howard	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000
Odubel Herrera	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	.000
BATTING: 2B: C. Rupp (1, 9th Inning off J. Diaz) C. Hernandez (1, 1st Inning off R. Iglesias) HR: M. Franco (1, 6th Inning off J. Hoover)
FIELDING: E: C. Hernandez (1)

Cincinnati Reds
HITTERS	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	HR	AVG
Billy Hamtilon	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000
Brandon Allen	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	.000
Donald Lutz	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000
Brandon Phillips	4	0	1	0	0	1	0	.250
Joey Votto	4	1	1	0	0	1	0	.250
Jay Bruce	3	1	2	2	1	1	0	.667
Adam Duvall	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000
Eugenio Suarez	3	0	0	0	1	1	0	.000
Ramon Cabrera	2	0	0	0	1	0	0	.000
Zack Cozart	2	1	0	0	1	0	0	.000
Raisel Iglesias	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	1.000
Ivan De Jesus Jr.	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000
Devin Mesoraco	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	1.000
BATTING: 2B: Bruce (1, 1st Inning off Nola) Mesoraco (1, 7th Inning off Gomez) HR: Bruce (1, 8th Inning off Hernandez)
BASERUNNING: CS: Suarez (1)

Philadelphia Phillies
PITCHERS	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Aaron Nola	3.0	3	2	2	1	4	0	6.00
Dailer Hinojosa	2.2	1	0	0	3	0	0	0.00
Bobby LaFromboise	0.1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.00
Jeanmar Gomez	0.1	1	0	0	0	1	0	0.00
David Hernandez	1.2	1	1	1	0	1	1	5.40

Cincinnati Reds
PITCHERS	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Raisel Iglesias	4.0	2	0	0	1	2	0	0.00
J.J. Hoover	2.2	1	1	1	2	3	1	3.38
Tony Cingrani	0.2	0	0	0	0	1	0	0.00
Blake Wood	0.2	2	0	0	0	1	0	0.00
Jumbo Diaz	1.0	1	0	0	0	2	0	0.00

[B_Wrobel]

Marco Gonzales Claimed Off Waivers from Cardinals

In a surprising move the Reds have claimed injured pitcher, Marco Gonzales, off of waivers from the St. Louis Cardinals. Marco, who is currently out for the next 7 weeks with a shoulder injury was deemed worth a shot by the Reds scouting director and myself. We see a guy who if the rehab goes well could compete for a number 3 spot in the rotation down the line. He probably wouldn't be available to help the big league club until August at the earliest.

A quick scouting report on Marco shows he has above average stuff, OK movement, and great command with all of his pitches. After his rehab is over we expect Marco to rehab in AAA with Memphis but that's a long ways down the road. For now we will have our trainers working with him around the clock to do our best and getting him to his potential we saw from him. A realistic outlook on Marco would be the beginning of next season before he makes a Major League impact.

Ratings:
Stuff: 50/55
Movement: 50/55
Control: 55/65

Pitches:
Fastball: 50/50
Sinker: 45/50
Curveball: 40/50
Changeup: 60/70

Going to be very interesting if we can get him some valuable time at AAA after his rehab stint is over. We are excited that this kids best pitch is his changeup as that can only help him long term. At the age of 24, I don't expect him to get all the way to his ceiling but I still think he could be a solid back end pitcher for us, maybe better if his development continues.

[B_Wrobel]

Bruce; Simon Lead Reds Past Phillies

Philadelphia Phillies at Cincinnati Reds
Apr 6, 2016	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Philadelphia (0-1)	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	2	6	2
Cincinnati (1-0)	0	2	0	0	2	2	0	0	X	6	10	0
W: Alfredo Simon (1-0) L: Vincent Velasquez (0-1)

Scoring Summary
SCORING DETAILS			PHI	CIN
PHI	1st	RBI Double by Freddy Galvis	1	0
CIN	2nd	RBI Single by Alfredo Simon	1	1
CIN	2nd	RBI Double by Billy Hamilton	1	2
CIN	5th	2-Run Home Run by Jay Bruce	1	4
CIN	6th	RBI Single by Billy Hamilton	1	5
CIN	6th	Error by Freddy Galvis Scores Brandon Phillips	1	6
PHI	7th	RBI Groundout by Cedric Hunter	2	6

Philadelphia Phillies
HITTERS	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	HR	AVG
RF Will Venable	4	0	0	0	1	1	0	.000
2B Cesar Hernandez	4	1	2	0	0	1	0	.500
3B Maikel Franco	4	0	0	0	0	1	0	.250
1B Darin Ruf	2	0	1	1	0	1	0	.167
SS Freddy Galvis	4	0	1	1	0	1	0	.125
LF Tyler Goeddel	2	0	0	0	1	0	0	.000
Odubel Herrera	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000
CF Peter Bourjos	4	0	0	0	0	2	0	.000
C Cameron Rupp	4	1	2	0	0	1	0	.429
P Vincent Velasquez	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000
Cedric Hunter	2	0	0	1	0	0	0	.000
BATTING: 2B: F. Galvis (1, 1st Inning) 3B: C. Rupp (1, 7th Inning)
BASERUNNING: CS: T. Goeddel (1)
FIELDING: DP: 1 (Hernandez-Galvis-Ru) E: C. Rupp (1), F. Falvis (1)

Cincinnati Reds
HITTERS	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	HR	AVG
CF Billy Hamilton	4	0	2	2	1	0	0	.286
2B Ivan De Jesus Jr.	5	1	2	0	0	1	0	.333
1B Joey Votto	2	0	0	0	2	1	0	.167
RF Jay Bruce	4	1	1	2	0	2	0	.429
LF Adam Duvall	4	1	1	0	0	2	0	.125
3B Eugenio Suarez	4	0	1	0	0	1	0	.143
C Ramon Cabrera	4	1	1	0	0	1	0	.167
SS Zack Cozart	4	1	1	0	0	2	0	.167
P Alfredo Simon	2	0	1	1	0	0	0	.500
Brandon Phillips	0	1	0	0	1	0	0	.250
Donald Lutz	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000
BATTING: 2B: Z. Cozart (1, 6th Inning) B. Hamilton (1, 2nd Inning) I. De Jesus Jr (1, 1st Inning) 3B: I. De Jesus Jr. (1, 5th Inning) HR: J. Bruce (2, 5th Inning)
FIELDING: DP: 1 (Cabrera-De Jesus Jr.)

Philadelphia Phillies
PITCHERS	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Vincent Velasquez	5.0	7	4	4	1	7	1	7.20
Dailer Hinojosa	0.2	2	2	1	1	0	0	2.70
Bobby LaFromboise	1.1	1	0	0	1	3	0	0.00
James Russell	1.0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0.00

Cincinnati Reds
PITCHERS	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Alfredo Simon	5.1	5	1	1	3	3	0	1.69
Dayan Diaz	0.2	0	0	0	0	1	0	0.00
J.J. Hoover	1.0	1	1	1	0	0	0	4.91
Blake Wood	1.0	0	0	0	1	1	0	0.00
Tony Cingrani	1.0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0.00

[B_Wrobel]

Sampson; Morton Duel as Benches Clear

Philadelphia Phillies at Cincinnati Reds
Apr 7, 2016	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Philadelphia (0-2)	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	1	2	4	0
Cincinnati (2-0)	0	0	1	1	0	0	0	1	0	3	7	0
W: Keyvius Sampson (1-0) L: Charlie Morton (0-1) S: Jumbo Diaz (2)

Scoring Summary
SCORING DETAILS			PHI	CIN
CIN	3	2-Out RBI Single by Joey Votto	0	1
CIN	4	RBI Groundout by Zack Cozart	0	2
PHI	6	Leadoff Home Run by Cameron Rupp	1	2
CIN	8	2-Out Solo Home Run by Eugenio Suarez	1	3
PHI	9	1-Out Solo Home Run by Darin Ruf	2	3

Philadelphia Phillies
HITTERS	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	HR	AVG
RF Will Venable	2	0	1	0	2	1	0	.111
2B Cesar Hernandez	4	0	0	0	0	1	0	.333
3B Maikel Franco	3	0	0	0	1	0	0	.182
1B Darin Ruf	4	1	1	1	0	3	1	.200
SS Freddy Galvis	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	.083
LF Tyler Goeddel	3	0	1	0	0	0	0	.111
PH Odubel Herrera	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000
CF Peter Bourjos	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000
C Cameron Rupp	2	1	1	1	1	0	1	.444
P Charlie Morton	2	0	0	0	0	2	0	.000
BATTING: HR: C. Rupp (1, 6th Inning) D. Ruf (1, 9th Inning) SAC: C. Hunter
BASERUNNING: CS: T. Goeddel (2)

Cincinnati Reds
HITTERS	AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	HR	AVG
CF Billy Hamilton	3	0	1	0	1	0	0	.300
2B Brandon Phillips	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	.125
1B Joey Votto	3	0	1	1	1	2	0	.222
RF Jay Bruce	4	0	0	0	0	1	0	.273
3B Eugenio Suarez	4	2	2	1	0	1	1	.273
LF Ivan De Jesus Jr.	2	0	0	0	1	0	0	.250
C Devin Mesoraco	4	0	2	0	0	0	0	.600
SS Zack Cozart	3	1	1	1	0	0	0	.222
P Keyvius Sampson	2	0	0	0	0	2	0	.000
PH Adam Duvall	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	.111
BATTING: HR: E. Suarez (1, 8th Inning)
BASERUNNING: CS: B. Hamilton (1)

Philadelphia Phillies
PITCHERS	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Charlie Morton	6.0	5	2	2	3	5	0	3.00
David Hernandez	1.2	2	1	1	0	2	1	5.40
Daniel Stump	0.1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.00

Cincinnati Reds
PITCHERS	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Keyvius Sampson	7.0	3	1	1	3	6	1	1.29
Tony Cingrani	0.2	0	0	0	1	1	0	0.00
Blake Wood	0.1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.00
Jumbo Diaz	1.0	1	1	1	0	0	1	4.50

[B_Wrobel]

De Jesus Jr. Suspended Following Brawl

Ivan De Jesus Jr. has been suspended 2 games following his involvement in a benches clearing brawl against David Hernandez and the Philadelphia Phillies. It's very unfortunate as Ivan was reacting to what he felt was an intentional hit by pitch. The batter prior to Ivan was a solo home run hit by Eugenio Suarez, we don't believe it's a coincidence that the next pitch drilled him in ribs.

While I do not support a brawl, I do support our guys standing up for themselves. Ivan was hit with a pitch that was clearly intentional and he went after David Hernandez. He will serve his 2 game suspension and that will be that. The suspension will cost him the first 2 games of the series against division rival, Pittsburgh.

The Reds improved to 3-0 on the season by sweeping Philadelphia behind a beautiful pitching performance by Keyvius Sampson. Dan Straily is the probable starter for tonight, so hopefully we get a 3rd straight quality from our starter.