5-13-07 Reds vs Dodgers - JN one ups himself

[Matt700wlw]

No you're not.

Conine has an OBP below .300 this year, and is hitting cleanup.

I should have put a smilie after my "nit-picking" comment.

[Degenerate39]

I'm not sure which to watch The Godfather or the Reds. I guess I'll have to switch back and forth.

[WMR]

I'm not sure which to watch The Godfather or the Reds. I guess I'll have to switch back and forth.

I wish Michael would take Krivsky and Narron for a boatride.

[WMR]

You can look at that way I guess. After a couple of weeks of Castro at-the-bat, fans (and Narron) will be clamoring for EE's return and possible more forgiving with his defensive shortcomings. (Hey...who knows?)

A shame these two morons have to see in living color what everyone else already knows.

[WMR]

Sending down EE is bad enough, but combining that with using Castro to give guys days off and this line-up is starting to look bad.

Obviously Freel would have been getting Castro's starts, but to me that is the reason why EE should be up right now. This team without EE has zero depth and cannot afford to bench regulars since Castro seems to find ways to work himself in the line-up.

Castro getting 2 starts in any series, let alone an entire season, makes it very difficult for me to believe that this team actually expects to contend.

I'm not one to complain about line-ups, but the last couple of days have made things very frustrating. A team that needs to start reeling off wins with contention getting further away starts Juan Castro over Adam Dunn.

Giving Castro any kind of regular at-bats guarantees that this season is over IMO.

Starting? We're there, baby.

Castro is the glue holding this ship together, didn't you get the memo?

[Big Klu]

I am not one to normally complain about lineup personnel/construction, but I would prefer that Keppinger start over Castro at 3B.

I am a fan of Conine, but he is clearly in a slump. I think he would benefit from moving down in the order.

My preferred lineup for today (substituting Keppinger for Castro, and assuming that Dunn still gets the day off):

Freel lf
Phillips 2b
Griffey rf
Hamilton cf
Gonzalez ss
Conine 1b
Keppinger 3b
Ross c
Livingston p

[WMR]

I am not one to normally complain about lineup personnel/construction, but I would prefer that Keppinger start over Castro at 3B.

Hehe, you're definitely a teacher, I can tell.

Very impressive patience.

[WMR]

I wonder if Castro's BA will top the Mendoza line the entire season? That'd be something.

[reds44]

I wonder if Castro's BA will top the Mendoza line the entire season? That'd be something.

.134 right now.

He's got a long way to go.

[flyer85]

.134 right now.

which just points out the absurdity of the ""EE to AAA" episode.

[Big Klu]

Hehe, you're definitely a teacher, I can tell.

Very impressive patience.

I just look at it this way: What Castro brings to the table is a good glove. There's nothing wrong with that, but he isn't a strong offensive player. Keppinger (though it may be too soon to tell for sure) appears to be a more versatile offensive utility infielder. He reminds me of a righty-hitting Jeff Branson (which I think we can agree would be an offensive upgrade over Castro).

[RichRed]

Where have I seen this? Oh thats right, the Dodgers use a consistent lineup and they consistently win.

Dodgers - 21 lineups in 37 games
Reds - 28 lineups in 37 games

Yet, I can't get a line I read by John Fay out of my mind: "Narron generally likes to have a fairly set lineup."

He didn't say in which alternate universe this takes place because it's not the one I'm living in.

[WMR]

which just points out the absurdity of the ""EE to AAA" episode.

He doesn't make errors and he catches every ball within a foot of him left or right, you can't put a price on that skillset.

[WMR]

I just look at it this way: What Castro brings to the table is a good glove. There's nothing wrong with that, but he isn't a strong offensive player. Keppinger (though it may be too soon to tell for sure) appears to be a more versatile offensive utility infielder. He reminds me of a righty-hitting Jeff Branson (which I think we can agree would be an offensive upgrade over Castro).

Castro is the worst offensive position player in MLB and is also worse than many pitchers.

His glove is WAY over-rated at this point in his career. Golden hands, concrete feet.

[flyer85]

Castro is the worst offensive position player in MLB and is also worse than many pitchers.

His glove is WAY over-rated at this point in his career. Golden hands, concrete feet.

... but he is scrappy and veteran