2014 Cincinnati Reds Thread

[cardinalbird5]

Re: 2014 Cincinnati Reds Thread

Please beat Pittsburgh!

[CaseIH]

Re: 2014 Cincinnati Reds Thread

Jocketty officially back on a multiyear deal. See you guys in 2020.

Jocketty has done some good things, so that shouldnt get overlooked, although I do put some blame on him, mainly last yr for not going out an getting us another bat at trade deadline. This yr was a wash with the key players being injured, so I dont blame him for not doing anything to improve the team at the deadline.

Walt's definitely got to step up and get some offense this winter, and fix the bullpen. If he thinks this team as is if healthy is good enough to win a Championship, he is sadly mistaken. So if he dont make some changes this winter, then I will definitely be upset. Walt has been a respected GM, so I will give him the benefit of doubt, but my faith in him is getting a little rocky,lol.

[CaseIH]

Re: 2014 Cincinnati Reds Thread

Please beat Pittsburgh!

I sure hope we can. Not a fan of the Pirates, I remember our battles with them years ago. Plus Mcutcheon is flakey to me, I cant stand him, nor do I like their manager. Not that Im a Cards fan, but now Chris Crypenter isnt with them and Larussa isnt the manager I can root for them sometimes,lol.

[SlimKibbles]

Re: 2014 Cincinnati Reds Thread

I was at the game last night. Lots of Bucs fans in the crowd. Usual result for Reds though: no offense. Actually they had a lot of hits but only one run to show for it. Thought Leake pitched well in his last start. Lineup was a mix of regulars and AAA guys. I'm really torn on what I want the Reds to do in the last couple of games. I don't like Pittsburgh sports teams at all but think it would be hilarious to see Cards fans have a meltdown if they were to somehow lose the division over these last two games. That obvious means the Bucs have to keep beating the Reds. I don't know. I got nothin'. The brats and beers I had at the game were good though.

[cardinalbird5]

Re: 2014 Cincinnati Reds Thread

Whooo go Reds! Get pumped up Reds' fans! Walk off GS!

[SlimKibbles]

Re: 2014 Cincinnati Reds Thread

Whooo go Reds! Get pumped up Reds' fans! Walk off GS!

I think ya got this wrapped up.

[cardinalbird5]

Re: 2014 Cincinnati Reds Thread

Cards blowwwwwwww

Good luck tomorrow Reds! Hope Cueto gets his 20th

[CaseIH]

Re: 2014 Cincinnati Reds Thread

Cards blowwwwwwww

Good luck tomorrow Reds! Hope Cueto gets his 20th

Thanks. Im hoping Cueto can get his 20th win too. Be fitting for Cueto to keep the Pirates from having any shot at winning the division after what happen last yr in the WC game to him against the Pirates.

Good luck in the Postseason.

[redsrule]

Re: 2014 Cincinnati Reds Thread

Negron deserves a chance to start every day next year. Or at least a chance to earn a starting job (be it at LF, SS or 2B). He has been very good since he came up and has shown power to both sides of the park and is pretty quick.

Going into the offseason, they really need to look about finding a potential replacement for Cozart and obviously one in LF. I think they need to at second as well, but with Phillips' contract and ego that won't happen.

I would try and trade Cueto this offseason. He had a cy young caliber year (obviously won't win it with how Kershaw was this year) and is going to want way too much for the Reds to realistically keep him. Add in the injury issues and his age (compared to Latos) I think they could get a good everyday player + prospect in return for him.

[CaseIH]

Re: 2014 Cincinnati Reds Thread

Negron deserves a chance to start every day next year. Or at least a chance to earn a starting job (be it at LF, SS or 2B). He has been very good since he came up and has shown power to both sides of the park and is pretty quick.

Going into the offseason, they really need to look about finding a potential replacement for Cozart and obviously one in LF. I think they need to at second as well, but with Phillips' contract and ego that won't happen.

I would try and trade Cueto this offseason. He had a cy young caliber year (obviously won't win it with how Kershaw was this year) and is going to want way too much for the Reds to realistically keep him. Add in the injury issues and his age (compared to Latos) I think they could get a good everyday player + prospect in return for him.

BP just needs to be healthy, and he will be productive. No doubt his skills are declining offensively especially with all the hand/wrist injuries he has sustained, but if healthy I think he can still be effective.

LF and ss are definitely the weak links to this team offensively, and I agree Negron should have a shot to compete for a starting job preferably at ss, as I would like to see us find a middle of the order type bat for LF. Although I think Mez and Frazier very well could give Votto protection if they continue to improve, as Im sure they will especially Mez.

My guess is if any of the starters are traded it will be Latos rather than Cueto. Reds like to keep their home grown players, so I look for them to keep Cueto, and shop Latos. I actually dont think we will trade any starter, especially not either Cueto or Latos since they are the 2 best we have. If I was a betting man Id say they keep the rotation intact figuring if everyone is healthy we have enough offense to be a contender. Not sure if I agree with that, as with the bullpen as bad as it is and the offense even when everyone is healthy hasnt been very good in the past, although with the improvement with Mez and Frazier it could be, as we really havent got a true look at this team with everyone healthy now that Mez and Frazier have put it together.

You would think if Votto,BP, and Bruce are all healthy and producing to the back of their baseball cards, to go with Mez,Frazier and Billy this offense could be good even with Blowzart playing ss, and Dudstick in LF. Problem is when you have one of the productive players go down with injury it really puts us behind the 8 ball. I think we can live Blowzart at ss considering he plays good D, if we can find a producitve LF'er. I do hope Negron gets a chance at winning the ss job, cause Negron hits better than Cozart, and Negron D is very good as well, and Id say Negron might actually have a stronger arm than Cozart does, as Coazrts arm strength isnt a + for him.

[jasontoddwhitt]

Re: 2014 Cincinnati Reds Thread

Loved Johnny C sticking it to the Pirates after their idiotic fans started that stupid "Cue-to" chant.

Any other year, he would be the front runner for the Cy Young (but there's that Kershaw dude out in LA).

[SlimKibbles]

Re: 2014 Cincinnati Reds Thread

Loved Johnny C sticking it to the Pirates after their idiotic fans started that stupid "Cue-to" chant.

Any other year, he would be the front runner for the Cy Young (but there's that Kershaw dude out in LA).

Johnny Beisbol Day essentially. He had a fantastic season and it was fitting way to end it. First 20-game winner since Danny Jackson in '88 and first RHP 20-game winner since Sammy Ellis in '65. Great day down at the ballpark.

On a humorous note, read C Trent's timeline on Twitter. One Cards fan thinks the Reds should be fined a six figure amount because Price let Cueto bat for himself in the 8th inning of a tie game to keep him with a chance to get the W. The integrity of the pennant race should have been preserved, according to this guy. Someone is apparently upset the Cards struggled down the stretch and nearly lost the division crown.

[PhantomPain]

Re: 2014 Cincinnati Reds Thread

BP just needs to be healthy, and he will be productive. No doubt his skills are declining offensively especially with all the hand/wrist injuries he has sustained, but if healthy I think he can still be effective.

LF and ss are definitely the weak links to this team offensively, and I agree Negron should have a shot to compete for a starting job preferably at ss, as I would like to see us find a middle of the order type bat for LF. Although I think Mez and Frazier very well could give Votto protection if they continue to improve, as Im sure they will especially Mez.

My guess is if any of the starters are traded it will be Latos rather than Cueto. Reds like to keep their home grown players, so I look for them to keep Cueto, and shop Latos. I actually dont think we will trade any starter, especially not either Cueto or Latos since they are the 2 best we have. If I was a betting man Id say they keep the rotation intact figuring if everyone is healthy we have enough offense to be a contender. Not sure if I agree with that, as with the bullpen as bad as it is and the offense even when everyone is healthy hasnt been very good in the past, although with the improvement with Mez and Frazier it could be, as we really havent got a true look at this team with everyone healthy now that Mez and Frazier have put it together.

You would think if Votto,BP, and Bruce are all healthy and producing to the back of their baseball cards, to go with Mez,Frazier and Billy this offense could be good even with Blowzart playing ss, and Dudstick in LF. Problem is when you have one of the productive players go down with injury it really puts us behind the 8 ball. I think we can live Blowzart at ss considering he plays good D, if we can find a producitve LF'er. I do hope Negron gets a chance at winning the ss job, cause Negron hits better than Cozart, and Negron D is very good as well, and Id say Negron might actually have a stronger arm than Cozart does, as Coazrts arm strength isnt a + for him.

I would love for the starting pitching rotation to stay in place but there is absolutely NO WAY the Reds can afford to keep them all after next year. And if that is the case, which it is, then the front office would be bigger morons than I thought not trading someone in the off season to get a good return. A team will be willing to give up a better player if the pitcher they are getting is good and not just a 3 month rental.

As for Cozart and everyone's hatred of the chap, I disagree about trading him or replacing him UNLESS there is an absolute clear case of someone being all around better. He is one of the best defensive shortstops in the game and that is a very important position to be good at defensively. I agree he can't hit, but as someone else pointed out earlier, if he can get back to .250-.260 with his defense, there isn't going to be much better out there. And if there was, I doubt we could afford them. And even if he is a career .220 hitter, if he is playing gold glove defense and is the only one that hits that low out of the everyday players, then I think you can deal with it. The problem gets to be when there is him, Dudwick, Bruce and half the team batting that horribly that it becomes an issue.

I can only hope that Bruce and Votto are 100% healthy next season and return to being productive members of the team. With the emergence of Mez and Frazier this team would have enough offense to contend if Bruce/Votto are performing. I think Hamilton has a lot to learn but the one thing he has shown in his short career (minors) is that he learns. Every year he has played it usually was the first year that wasn't great and year 2 would see a significant upgrade in hitting. He is already one of the best defensive center fielders in the game so hopefully he can improve offensively. Learn to take a considerable amount more walks, less strikeouts, more hits and definitely understanding pitchers/catchers/situations for steal attempts. I think his future is bright though.

Bullpen needs some serious help but that shouldn't cost an arm and a leg to fix. Hoover was horrible this year but he has been great the couple/few years prior. I think you give him a chance to get rested up over the winter and see what he can do at the beginning of next year. I wouldn't get rid of him yet mainly because he was very good before this year. He is still very young and can rebound I believe.

Trading Latos should definitely get a nice return but Cueto would be better. Hopefully they test the market to see if/what they can get for either. I don't know if we can afford Cueto after next year though. I like Cueto the best and he is obviously our best pitcher, but if you can get a BIG bat for left field for him, it might just make sense to do so. But if the difference in return is marginal between him and Latos, I would say trade Latos. Still young but also too emotional and again, Cueto is better. While Cueto has had some injuries, it was mainly 2011 and 2013 that he had to deal with them and miss any significant time. All other years in the league he has made no less than 30 starts every year including 34 this year.

BP is still valuable and my guess is, if he can stay healthy next year, he will do whatever he has to do to prove the detractors wrong. With that said, if somehow the Reds find themselves in a position to trade him and he is willing, they have to do it.

Other than Mez, Frazier and Hamilton, I listen to any and all offers on the table. Every single other player on the 25 man roster can be traded as far as I'm concerned including Chappy. I like Chappy but if he can bring in a good return on a player, and it makes sense, I think you take it. I have doubts they will do this mainly because Chappy puts butts in the seats and that can't be taken for granted.

All in all, I have absolutely no faith in the front office right now. I understand at this past deadline not to trade someone to upgrade the team this year because the season was clearly lost. But if they trade a starting pitcher this winter, then I will find them DUMB not to have done it during the trade deadline this year because then teams would have had 18 months with the pitcher and therefore a return would higher. They should have taken advantage of that IMO. I think upgrading the bullpen shouldn't be too hard. Most of those guys have a shelf life of about 3-5 years and pitchers come and go all the time. Just need to be smart about it. Let's see if they can be. I wouldn't be hurt if they traded Bruce just not sure they will get anything for him coming off this horrible year. Therefore I am, as a fan of course, willing to give him another half a year to see if he can start trending back to his .260/30+/90+ type of line. Votto I have serious doubts he will ever be the guy he was before the injury but I certainly hope so. Even if he only hits 20 hr's a year, but still bats around .310+ and knocks in 85+ rbi's then I think he will be good enough. Still overpaid but better than what we have been getting from him.

Finally Mez and Frazier need to continue on their path of improving. If so, they can be menacing to a lot of teams in the middle of the order. We'll see how this team pans out over the winter. If they go into next season without making any major deals, I am not sure I will pay attention anymore. It is just too draining for me.

[redsrule]

Re: 2014 Cincinnati Reds Thread

The Reds are going to have 4 starters next year (assuming Simon stays in the rotation) eligible for free agency after year is up with Latos, Cueto, Leake and Simon. Latos and Cueto are going to get huge deals. Leake is probably going to get an Arroyo type deal. The Reds CAN NOT afford to let them all walk. Latos' trade value is really low right now due to all the injuries he has had this year. Cueto is coming off of his best year and we would probably get the most for him.

Trade Cueto for a starting LF and a good prospect or two, try and resign Latos and Leake to below market deals.

Phillips is a good defensive second baseman. However his speed and power are all but gone and he's still owed almost $40 million from the Reds.

I agree with Phantom that other than Mesoraco, Frazier and Hamilton I would entertain offers for every single guy on the roster. If they can get a good return for Chapman I would do it in a heartbeat as well. He's a fun guy to watch, but other than his strikeouts he's not the shutdown closer people expect.

[SlimKibbles]

Re: 2014 Cincinnati Reds Thread

Stanton. I want Stanton.