We're pretty good

[OnBaseMachine]

This is the most excited I've been about the Reds organization since, well, ever since I was old enough to understand what baseball was. I was born in 1987 and this is the most talent I can ever remember the Reds having in my lifetime. The 1999 Reds were talented - they had some nice young hitters but severely lacked young starting pitching. This current squad has plenty of young talent on both offensively and on the pitching side. The two Dominican kids, Cueto and Volquez, teamed with Harang and Arroyo are going to give us a great rotation for a long time. Throw in Homer Bailey and Matt Maloney and it could only get better. On offense Dunn, EdE, Keppinger, Phillips, and Votto are all under 28 years old or younger. Throw in the best prospect in baseball in Jay Bruce and the core is there for a long time. We also have some key bullpen arms ready to break into the majors with Josh Roenicke, Bill Bray, Carlos Fisher, and Pedro Viola. This is a very exciting time in Cincinnati.

[WMR]

I feel pretty good about the team, too, but I'll stifle it for now. I'm very impressed with the two kids, but I have been concerned about Arroyo and the 5th starting spot (whoever that may be), and the bullpen, though better, is nowhere near lights out.

The flaw in this whole feel good scenario is the offense. There will be nights (especially when the league figures out Edinson and Johnny) when we're going to need 7 runs to win. So far, only Kepp and maybe Phillips have shown they are in the zone. Maybe Griffey in the last two games, but we have to have production from Dunn, Encarnacion and first base to win consistantly. And for all the defense he provides, Corey Patterson will be an albatross before the season is over. Then there's Dusty pulling out players at will even when we're behind...

But enough worries for now. This is a better team than we've seen here in the last 7 years. I said 86 wins and I'll stick by it. And won't that be fun come October??

If Edinson and Cueto are hitting their spots, there won't be any "figuring them out." You can know what they're going to throw and it won't make a bit of difference.

[WVRedsFan]

I feel better about this team than I have in years.

I feel ridiculously excited about 2-3 years from now.

Same here. Another year or so of tweaking and we'll really be pumping our fists.

[BCubb2003]

We should be careful or we'll end up like Braves fans.

[Always Red]

I mostly like what I see so far, but it is way too early.

[GAC]

I was born in 1987 and this is the most talent I can ever remember the Reds having in my lifetime

I got jeans older then you!

If this youg pitching comes through, then we'll be competitive for the division crown. The bench is obviously stronger, and that is a huge plus.

Not so sure about the catching position though. And I'm gonna keep an eye on thiws bullpen. Didn't the BP come out of the gate on fire last year too?

[redsmetz]

Wow - my hats are off to so many of you. I understand fully, it's early and our exciting is best tempered, but I appreciate many of you who have been skeptical coming into the season expressing your appreciation for the club in this first week. I said a week or two ago, that, optimist that I am, that quite a lot will have to go right to be successful this season, but I do very much like the nucleus of this team and the talent that is on the horizon. I hope it plays out well - it will be a lot of fun.

[Cyclone792]

Wow - my hats are off to so many of you. I understand fully, it's early and our exciting is best tempered, but I appreciate many of you who have been skeptical coming into the season expressing your appreciation for the club in this first week. I said a week or two ago, that, optimist that I am, that quite a lot will have to go right to be successful this season, but I do very much like the nucleus of this team and the talent that is on the horizon. I hope it plays out well - it will be a lot of fun.

This is the best brand of Reds baseball I've seen since 1999-2000. This is also the most talented team, I believe, since the 1999-2000 teams. I picked them for 83 wins this season, and in in the back of my mind I was hoping it was a conservative estimate.

A whole bunch of things can happen in the next 156 games, but for the first time in nearly a decade there's some legitimate and realistic excitement about some positive things happening in those next 156 games.

[Highlifeman21]

I wouldn't have pegged you as a Hulkamaniac.

[Falls City Beer]

I wouldn't have pegged you as a Hulkamaniac.

It's the last time I watched wrestling in earnest--as an undergraduate. You'd have to be a cretin not to like the Hulkster.

[OldRightHander]

I was born in 1987 and this is the most talent I can ever remember the Reds having in my lifetime.

Thanks a lot there. I'm with GAC. I have clothes older than you as well, but nothing that still fits.

[IslandRed]

I think we can't help but be a little optimistic. Like probably the majority of this board, I'd heard all about Johnny Cueto and I'd heard all about Edinson Volquez, but... let's be honest, it was hard to fully buy into the hype, given the history of young Reds pitchers in the last 25, 30 years. And then to finally see them pitch, and holy smokes they ARE that good... well, it allows the mind to wander places it has resisted wandering for many years, even though realistically I know we're not there yet.

[savafan]

I get excited about the Reds every year, but I'm usually disappointed right out of the gate. So far, no disappointment.

I haven't been this excited though since 1990

[SunDeck]

I am optimistic about the Reds chances at being over .500 this year. That may sound a little reserved, but I think it is realistic to still put them in that neighborhood- a team that is building a solid foundation but that also has some issues to deal with, the main one in my opinion being at two key positions up the middle, catcher and CF. Three if you count SS, but I'm all right with Gonzo for a little while, even though I still want to see them develop a long term solution.

Notice, I have not said pitching and that is possibly the most significant difference between today and the last decade- the Reds have a very bright pitching future.

Anyway, my feeling over the last decade has been that the Reds were just a mess- no pitching prospects in the pipe, seemingly no one who knew how to draft or develop talent and little commitment from the ownership to putting a winning program together. But now that Castellini is in charge, and with both Krivsky and Jocketty there to make the baseball decisions, I think this club is headed in the right direction. It's been a long time since I felt it would be safe to say that.

It's certainly looking good right now, and even if the DD's falter a little, I still think this club is in pretty good shape.

[deltachi8]

I was born in 1987 and this is the most talent I can ever remember the Reds having in my lifetime.

Boy that 87 team was rough....


It's kinda fun to be optimistic for a change though...hopefully that same feeling is still around in July....or even next week.