Players who will bloom under Price

[IslandRed]

I will be stunned if Chapman is not the closer. I have thought for some time that Aroldis himself has been the primary catalyst behind Chapman being the closer, not Dusty. That obviously has not changed.

I'm sure Price and his staff will discuss and consider the idea of moving Chapman to the rotation, but I believe that Chapman will resist, and ultimately will remain in the pen (or be traded, but that is an idea for another thread).

Second on the bolded part. I think the guy simply loves closing -- coming to the ballpark every day knowing he might pitch, the buzz when he comes into the game, making eyes and gloves pop with his max-effort fastball, the high of that final punch-out.

It's not necessarily too late to reverse course, but if he's not completely with the program, then the Reds have a tough call to make.

[reds44]

How is Bryan Price going to make Zack Cozart better at baseball?

[Wheelhouse]

I think Brandon Phillips would have a good chance to bloom if he stays.

The trade talk should shut his mouth and hopefully help him to understand what it means to be a team player.

Also, I think BP will do better under Price as he will hopefully be utilized in a better way.

Agreed, I think he will bloom. But I think Phillips has been a great team player in many ways, including moving around the lineup mid season. A lot of what other players don't like about him, IMO, is that he doesn't buy into the Us vs. Them view of players and fans, and sets the bar for fan outreach. He's always communicating with fans, caravan, autographs, etc. Many players feel they're above that. As far as "showing people up" I don't feel any malice behind Phillips' behavior whatsoever. He's having fun, and frankly, I do with him, and my dollar (and yours) is paying him to be out there, not the other players'. So I dig Brandon and hope he has a long career with the Reds.

[Wheelhouse]

How is Bryan Price going to make Zack Cozart better at baseball?

After months of struggle this year, Cozart was quoted as saying that his turnaround began when he realized (himself) that rather than pulling the ball, he should hit the ball where pitched. One would hope that under Price that kind of information might be given to him a little earlier. I'm sure Price will have a hitting coach who gets the message to players.

[klw]

How is Bryan Price going to make Zack Cozart better at baseball?

By practice, see 1:34

[Norm Chortleton]

Bryan Price will cure cancer and make dogs walk upright.

I'm getting tickets to the first Bark In The Park. I want to see that.

[Norm Chortleton]

As others have mentioned, I'm curious to see how Price handles the catching situation. There are a lot of quotes from him in the past few years praising Hanigan's game-calling and other defensive abilities.

Then there's the disturbing fact that Mes seemed to have a lot of trouble as a receiver the second half of the season. I think he actually whiffed on catching at least 5 pitches completely; including a game where he missed 2 that I thought were going to kill the plate ump.

[VR]

Players who will bloom under Price

Pete Rose and Tyler Flowers come to mind, but alas, neither are under contract.

[Raisor]

Like, imagine the threads if Price's first big decision is that Chapman is his closer.

I trust Price 100% with the pitching. As long as its his decision I'm fine if that's what he goes with.

[jimbo]

After months of struggle this year, Cozart was quoted as saying that his turnaround began when he realized (himself) that rather than pulling the ball, he should hit the ball where pitched. One would hope that under Price that kind of information might be given to him a little earlier. I'm sure Price will have a hitting coach who gets the message to players.

How do you know they didn't try and get him to do this? A lot of young MLB players have big egos who sometimes just have to figure out things on their own.

[malcontent]

By practice, see 1:34

Man, that was good.