When you think about all the struggles they gone through
1. Early Latos struggles through April, May, June, where his ERA was near 5 1/2.
2. Leake being below average during the 2012 season with an ERA near 5.
3. Having an offense that ranks as one of the lowests in all of MLB in terms of AVG, OBP, hitting with men in scoring position
4. The Chapman "bumps" during the summer and fall
5. Losing arguably the best player in all of MLB in Joey Votto for 2 months.
6. Having Rolen gone for a few months
7. Having Johnny Cueto be mediocre during the month of September
8. Having a bench for the bulk of the season with batters like Miguel Ciaro and Wilson Valdez
9. Having a pitcher in Homer Bailey who has a ERA of 5+ at GABP and struggled MIGHTLY at home
10. Losing our "would be" closer to tommy john at the beginning of the season
11. Having leadoff issues throughout the WHOLE season
Obviously there's more to mention...
But still. This Reds team is just a few wins away from 100. Can you imagine that? How did they win SO many games, while having a offense that has been lukewarm throughout the entire year, and having a pitching staff aside from Cueto, and Latos, be up and down at times?
It just boggles my mind. I dare to think, what if Ryan Madson was healthy? What if Chapman entered the rotation in place of leake and was just flat out dominant? What if we had an offense that was actually good, and actually had someone who could get ON BASE at the lead off position?
If everything was all in place from the get go..do you guys actually think this team could rival the Big Red Machine for most wins in a year?
I'm leaning towards yes.
