He should be OBM....he just ran to cover 2nd base after that Keppinger double.
He should be OBM....he just ran to cover 2nd base after that Keppinger double.
Reds lose 8-5...only one game remaining. It's hard to believe how fast this season flew by.
This season did fly...
Of course it was a meaningless game--both teams out of the running, with the Reds being out long ago, but for crying out loud...
Listening to Walt in the booth, you had to believe he wasn't telling much. Earlier, he wasn't trading Dunn and Griffey, but did in the end. The man keeps it quiet and I have to believe that we'll see some changes.
Keppinger is simply a horrible fielder. I assume Wayne's generous contract to Gonzo means he will be the shortstop next year, but why not look around. Same goes for the unintelligent playing of Edwin Encarcinon. Why do you put up with that? Cheap?
This is a team with so many utility players--Keppinger, Freel, and Hairston. How many can we accumulate and never address the real issue--quality players at every position. We do not need three. Someone should go.
It appears they've settled on Hanigan as the new catcher, so why do we need both Bako and Valentin (who only pinch hits)? Come on.
And on the field, oh heck I give up. It's almost over and I'm sad. It's a long time until Spring Training and all we have to look forward to in the next five months is speculation. And snow (for some of us).
Humbug.
www.ris-news.com
"You only have to bat a thousand in two things; flying and heart transplants. Everything else you can go 4-for-5."
-Beano Cook
The Reds will probably lose tomorrow and finish on a five game losing streak, but they are still guaranteed a winning September. That's impressive when you consider that Dickerson and Phillips have missed most of the month, and Bruce missed a game or two and is still playing through soreness. I was fairly pleased with the way the team played in the last month.
Unbelievable the number of Cards' players that (far) exceeded all rational expectations: Skip Schumaker, Ryan Ludwick, Rick Ankiel (kinda), Aaron Miles, Felipe Lopez, Todd Wellemeyer, Kyle Lohse, Braden Looper (much better as a starter than last year). Hell, even Pujols has had by far and away his best season (an absurd 189 OPS+) this year.
If the same confluence of awesomeness happened for the Reds, we'd probably be about 6 games over .500 as well. I'll be honest, I had bet against the Cards heavily this year, and I got burned by it. I'm not sure how much you can really attribute to coaching or just flat out luck (everybody having a career year at the same time? Really?). At any rate, they won't make the playoffs either, and they'll have a much worse draft slot to show for it.
I look forward to next year. Perhaps they'll put up the same numbers they did this year. More likely, they won't.
Last edited by Screwball; 09-28-2008 at 02:57 AM.
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