Best feeling about the Reds since...

[Enrico Pallazzo]

Okay I know it's only March. Dunn won't keep hitting .400, Belisle won't keep throwing shutouts, and Hamilton won't keep walking on water.

At the same time I haven't felt this good or excited going into a Reds season since Griffey came over. Consider the following.

1. For the first time since the days of Rijo and Browning the Reds have a legitimate 1-2 punch at the top of the rotation. The back end is still unstable, but considering the retreads and "There's a Drive" candidates they've run out there since the mid 90s there's at least some optimism in the rotation.

2. Defense up the middle. Gonzo-Phillips DP combo. Griffey shifting to right. Finally some logic on the lineup card.

3. EE-potential breakout year?

4. Some intriguing July-August possibilities: Everyday Eddie coming back, Votto potentially coming up (no way both Hatteburg AND Conine stay healthy all year). Not to mention...

5. Homer. Looming as that late-July callup that blows everybody away for the last two months and becomes the X-factor for the postseason a la K-Rod in 2002 or Jaret Wright in 97. Personally I think this is the best scenario for him, even better than starting out in the rotation.

6. Hamilton's comeback. A feel good story all year. Potential for anything. (And by anything I mean from starting in centerfield by April, to hitting .350, to solid pinch hitter/bench guy, to .170 hitter cut after three weeks, to arrested with the entire Bengals starting defense after re-enacting half of Natural Born Killers. I mean nothing this guy does this season will surprise me. The sky's the limit. And yes, I'm pulling harder than anyone. He's my first "I must check the box score every day to see how he did" guy since the heydays of Eric Davis.)

7. Dick Pole, pitching coach. I mean you can't put a price on that kind of fun. My jersey's on order.

8. The pen. We're talking about who we're going to send down this year instead of who we should go out and get. When the hell was the last time that happened?

9. Krivsky. After what he pulled off last year, I trust him. Then again after the DanO years they could have hired my old alcoholic roomie Craw and I would have felt in better hands. Still it feels like they're on the right path.

10. This is very, very important. The Cards went 82-80 last season and won the division. Little improvement in the offseason. Houston's rotation has taken some big hits. God knows how the Cubs will react to all the signings, they're like a fantasy team put together by a drunken frat boy. And the Pirates and Brewers are still the Pirates and Brewers. My point is this baby is wide open this season. Anybody could wind up getting hot and stealing this thing. I'm giddy.

Okay this post went way longer than I wanted, but I can't help it. I'm psyched. As Red would say...

I hope Arroyo and Harang can go the distance, I hope to see my friend Griffey with something still in the tank, I hope to make to GABP and hear the crowd roar. I hope the pennant is a red as it has been in my dreams... I hope

Play Ball!

[Dracodave]

I agree with everything but the Pirates and Brewers.

I think one of those two teams turns it up a notch. I actually *gulp* like pittsburgh.. not even to bid on them to win the division but enough to actually think they've gotten better.

[jesusfan]

WOO! Im Pumped!

[Enrico Pallazzo]

Originally Posted by Dracodave

I agree with everything but the Pirates and Brewers.

I think one of those two teams turns it up a notch. I actually *gulp* like pittsburgh.. not even to bid on them to win the division but enough to actually think they've gotten better.

I used to think that way too, but it seems like we hear that every year about those two teams and every year they finish with almost the same records as before. It's uncanny. And you can always count on something wacky to push them back down like a Ben Sheets injury or Oliver Perez suddenly buying Jose Lima's arm.

Bottom line I refuse to pick either one of them until they do SOMETHING.

[Will M]

The Reds might not be the best team in baseball but they do have a chance to make the playoffs. The cream of the division ( Cards and Astros ) are weaker than they have been in years.

The management of the Reds is trying to build a winner. We haven't really had that in decades.

The Reds have some top notch players and some exciting youngsters.
This season should be fun.

[redsfanmia]

The thing that I am most excited about is that the warden is now running the asylum. Krivsky and Narron seem to be in charge and are molding the team in their image. I know both guys are not the most liked men on this board but you have to respect that Krivsky has a plan and is going about executing it and Narron is on board. The Griffey to right move is a classic sign of who is in charge. If Bowden was still here where do you think Griffey would play?

[Red White]

Originally Posted by Enrico Pallazzo

10. This is very, very important. The Cards went 82-80 last season and won the division.

I'll nitpick. The Cardinals were 83-78 last year.

[IamWallaman]

We certainly do seem to be working with a little less "junk" and little more "mediocre" this year. That's a step forward.

[bounty37h]

I get the same feeling every year, and try to convince myself every year that its a genuine possibility. That said, i have a very good feeling about this year, somethign fun and special is in the deck for us!!!!

[hebroncougar]

The Reds had that same legitimate 1-2 punch in their rotation last year, and what did it get us? Sure there is reason for optimism, but I for one think the Brewers are going to be a ton better than last year. My question is........have the Reds done enough in the offseason, and where are the saves at the back end of the bullpen going to come from?

[Degenerate39]

Originally Posted by hebroncougar

and where are the saves at the back end of the bullpen going to come from?

I hope it will be Bray