I think that in a year or two, one of these guys - Frazier, Dorn, Valaika, Cumberland, Stubbs - will be ready to replace Dunn. They won't hit as many home runs as Dunn, but they should have similar OPS. - 757690, July 22, 2008
Alonso will be playing 1B for the REDS and batting 4th one year from today. - Kingspoint, July 9, 2009
Last edited by mth123; 10-06-2013 at 10:55 AM.
All my posts are my opinion - just like yours are. If I forget to state it and you're too dense to see the obvious, look here!
This. This is why I have little optimism for 2014. 2015 and 2016 I am a lot more optimistic about - there are reinforcements coming, a new wave of players from possible star caliber (Winker, Ervin, Stephenson, Lorenzen) to solid fill in the gap types (YR, SMB, Barnhart, Rogers, Contreras).
This winter Walt has to replace one of the games best OBP guys, replace 200 innings of never miss a start reliable pitching, find some kind of decent depth for a health suspect starting rotation, fix a putrid bench, find another power bat and retool a catching platoon that no longer works (at least on the offensive side).
The budget likely won't allow a major jump, Arroyo's savings are plowed back in arb raises already, there is little to no help coming from the farm, any real prospects he moves will impact the following two seasons depending on who is acquired and for how long.
That means moving established players somewhere, possibly one or two of the "core" group - or - dumpster diving and band aiding the roster to try and bridge 2014 while pushing the youngsters.
Walt's pulled off some big moves before so the first option wouldn't surprise me but I really expect him to go the latter route. Cheap FAs that go unsigned elsewhere, dumpster diving, pushing BH into the lineup on opening day etc.
If they get lucky health wise and Ludwick returns strong they could make a strong run. Health breakdowns in the rotation, plus lack of quality depth, could mean a 2011 like summer however.
Before I go all dismal I am going to wait and see what December and January bring. Compared to personnel issues, who is going to manage and coach seems small potatoes.
99% of all numbers only tell 33% of the story so when looking at the numbers remember that numbers is plural...
boognish (10-07-2013),Revering4Blue (10-06-2013),Roy Tucker (10-06-2013)
IIRC, Eric Davis was subject to a lot of unfair criticism when he was with the Reds, and I couldn't help but believe that a lot of it was based on his race. That being said, I don't think racism among fans is a uniquely Cincinnati problem. Even though Romeo Crennel didn't bring it up, I remember hearing some Browns fans making some pretty embarrassing comments about him involving race. Pittsburgh was pretty bad with it when Kordell Stewart was QB for the Steelers. Trust me, they even had t-shirts. Of course the racism tends to be more noticeable when you have a minority player or coach who is subject to high expectations and fails to live up to them.
Dusty has referred to hate mail when he left his two previous manager stints. Should he have not brought it up? I have no problem with him bringing it up, but I think it should be viewed in a larger context that should be addressed by the league as a whole. The problem with the way it's being handled here is that it's too easy for people outside the situation to sweep it under the rug as "Dusty's sour grapes" or "it's Cincinnati's problem, not ours."
Wear gaudy colors, or avoid display. Lay a million eggs or give birth to one. The fittest shall survive, yet the unfit may live. Be like your ancestors or be different. We must repeat!
Last edited by Hubba; 10-06-2013 at 11:36 AM.
HUBBA A man who knows everything,just can't remember it all at one time.
WOY it is not safe for me to walk thru the black section of my town but a black person can walk thru my neighborhood safely, why is that. We have a walk area in our town that had to be shut down because of black on white crime. Check out the crime rate black on white vs white on black . Oh the hate.
I know that I will catch hell for daring to tell the truth. but that's ok.
Back to baseball.
HUBBA A man who knows everything,just can't remember it all at one time.
George Anderson (10-06-2013),kpresidente (10-06-2013)
Everything we hear is an opinion, not a fact. Everything we see is a perspective, not the truth.
Marcus Aurelius
dubc47834 (10-06-2013)
This thread has officially jumped the shark
Wear gaudy colors, or avoid display. Lay a million eggs or give birth to one. The fittest shall survive, yet the unfit may live. Be like your ancestors or be different. We must repeat!
I'm just not getting the negativity geared towards next year. I think the reds will be fine.
1. Baker is gone. Great organizer of people, poor on field manager. At the end it seemed he even lost the players. And his entire tenure has to be taken into account along with his history. The mans teams just don't win the big games. Sure you have to get there, but with this reds pitching staff I think even an average manger could do that.
2. The pitching staff. Our starting 5 are awesome. Yes arroyo may leave, but we get a draft pick more than likely to help replenish the farm that is far from depleted. Cingrani takes his place and I think the rotation will be ok especially with Stephenson in the wings and the possibility of a chapman starting experiment.
3. The lineup. Yes that's right. As of right now we have the same lineup that won 97 games in 2012 minus Stubbs and an aging Rolen. Hamilton, I think, brings more to the table than 2012 Stubbs. Frazier is ok and probably a backup. If Walt can find some help that'd enable Frazier or ludwick to go to the bench, that instantly strengthens the bench.
4. Walts head is in the chopping block IMO. Dusty tool the fall for 2013 when Walt could have taken a lot of the blame. I think this is the first real time with the reds he'll have his manager and be able to put his mark on the team. I look for him to make some moves.
5. Possible moves. I think Walt will bring in veteran leaders for the bench and starting lineup as well as some right handed pop. He does his best work for the reds in the offseason. I continue to see him doing this to maybe bring in a core guy for more than a year and a solid veteran or two to hold down the fort while our young farm system matures.
So the sky isn't falling, the earths core will not explode. The reds have top notch starters that will put them in the playoff picture and I think Walt will respond well to the pressure and bring in some upgrades for the offense. We will be ok.
Last edited by Old school 1983; 10-06-2013 at 12:17 PM.
Everything is perfect, but there is a lot of room for improvement. --- Shunryu Suzuki-roshi
When did RZ get a Stormfront subforum?
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