The Cincinnati Reds' Core Relievers Need Relief

Dusty Baker has always been criticized for overusing his starting pitching. Critics point to Kerry Wood and Mark Prior as exhibits A and B. Then there is the whole fiasco with Aaron Harang in May of '08.

I always thought he got a raw deal on that label. Wood's delivery made him destined to screw up his arm, and Prior was simply a one-and-a-half-year wonder. Harang seems fine mechanically; he just hasn't been able to avoid the home run ball.

Homer Bailey has recently been placed on the DL, and the critics are starting to blame Baker again. But his shoulder injury has nothing to do with Dusty, and Bailey looks to be ready to go in 15 days. Bailey himself got angry with the media when they tried connecting those dots.

The real problem for Baker and the Reds: his over-reliance on the back end of the bullpen. Sure, seemingly every game has come down to the final few innings. Sure, the Reds boast one of the best setup men in the league. But Arthur Rhodes, Nick Masset, and Francisco Cordero are all on pace to set personal records for appearances.

The 40-year-old Rhodes, who just pitched in his 800th career game, is on pace to pitch in a career-high 74 games. It's hard not to use a guy with a 0.47 ERA and 0.62 WHIP. The problem is that he is ancient in baseball years and needs more rest if the Reds plan on using him in September.

The 28-year-old Masset hasn't pitched well of late, blowing two games in the past week. Yet he is still a reliable setup man that can provide key outs in the eighth inning of a tight game. Giving up an Opening Day grand slam to the Cardinals' Yadier Molina has left Masset's 7.29 ERA as bloated as a Goodyear blimp.

He is projected to pitch in a whopping 88 games. That is 14 more than his career high of last year. He has closer velocity, but injuries are certainly a concern if he keeps this rate up.

Cordero, the $12M, 11-year veteran, has not been his usual dominant self this season. The 35-year-old "Co Co" has already blown three saves—he blew a total of four saves last year.

Is it because of his workload? His current career high in appearances is 77. This year Dusty has him on a pace for 90 games! That's waaay too many. Sure, he's on pace to have 54 saves, but there is no way his arm doesn't fall off before that. In a five-game stretch last week, he pitched in four of them.

Why hasn't Baker used the overpaid Mike Lincoln more? He's only pitched three times since May 8. His ERA is a fat 5.87, but that is the result of two rough outings. Give him the ball a bit more to relieve the relievers.

What about Carlos Fisher? Pitching only twice since May 7, he hasn't had a chance to deflate his 9.39 ERA. He has been better of late and is another fine candidate for a bigger part of the winning formula. After starting off the year on the DL, Fisher is 100 percent, young (27), and hungry for a bigger role. Why not give him a shot?

But the biggest head scratcher of the bunch is the lack of use of Micah Owings. I assume Baker views him as the long reliever, but why not utilize him more often? On pace for only 77 innings, the former starter threw 119.2 innings last year—including a stint on the DL. Clearly this guy has plenty of juice in his arm still. A perfect 3-0, and he averages a strikeout per inning so far.

The 27-year-old righty has a 3.43 ERA and is also a legitimate threat at the plate. Dusty always tiptoes around the pitcher's spot in the batting owner, and Owings is an easy solution. Why can't he be relied upon more often?

Baker has a bad rap for screwing up starting pitchers' arms. Yet the real problem may be the lack of rest for the meat of the bullpen. Rhodes and Cordero are getting to the twilight of their careers and are being worked harder than ever. The results have shown lately in the multiple blown leads over the past week.

The time is now to ease up on them and give some of the others a larger role. If not, Baker could have a new title: reliever wrecker.

Epic Collapse Dampens Cincinnati Reds Winning Vibes

Ouch.

The tires are flat just a few days after the Reds bandwagon was getting full.

After holding a commanding 9-1 lead, the Reds end up losing 10-9 in stomach punching fashion to the Atlanta Braves.

The Reds jumped out to a eight run lead in the second inning and everything seemed juuuust fine. Rookie Mike Leake had his seventh quality start in eight appearances, going six innings giving up five hits and three runs (one earned).

Mike Lincoln breezed through two innings before manager Dusty Baker inexplicably left him in for the ninth. At 9-3, it didn't seem like a big deal.

After getting into massive trouble Nick Masset was brought in for damage control in a 9-5 game. He walked a batter then was the victim of a Miguel Cairo error and was relieved by the 40-year old veteran Arthur Rhodes. He promptly struck out the Braves best hitter Jason Heyward (the guy that beat the Reds on Wednesday).

Then Dusty brought in closer Francisco Cordero to finish of Atlanta and those pesky Braves once and for all. Yet another questionable call if you ask me. Well, guess what happened? Pinch hitter Brooks Conrad hits a grand slam, and the Braves complete the epic comeback.

This one hurts bad. Really bad. Giving up a lead like that might stick with the club for awhile. It's a loss that could be looked at in September as one of the reason the Reds just didn't cut the mustard in '10. Losing two games in a row via the walk-off has given the Reds a taste of their own medicine.

The Cardinals have regained first place, and now the Reds are playing catch-up again. This isn't a "the sky is falling" article, but holy crap this is a tough one to swallow. The best thing the Reds can do now is completely erase it from their collective memories, and beat the living daylights out of the Cleveland Indians.

There are now legit concerns regarding the $12M closer, Francisco Cordero. He has blown three saves already, he only had four of last year! He is 35, and clearly not quite the pitcher he once was. He might be getting over worked by Dusty, but either way something aint right. Simply put, he is having trouble throwing strikes. Oh, and the set-up man Masset blew the game before.

As a strength for most of the year, the bullpen is now becoming a startling problem for the Reds.

It's not the end of the world, but this next week will be very telling about the resolve of this young Reds team. This is the time when veterans such as Scott Rolen and Orlando Cabrera need to lead by example, and make sure the team doesn't unravel. Sure it's still May but the Red Legs need to put a hurting on their Ohio rivals to regain the swagger they had built up over the past week.

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Cincinnati Reds Are Rolling The Right Way In May

The month of May has been good to the Cincinnati Reds. They have gone 7-4 through a Cardinals, Cubs, Mets and Pirates slate.

The hitting is coming around, currently ranked fifth in the N.L. with 158 runs scored. But the major turn-around as been courtesy of the starting pitching.

After a magical one-hit complete game shut-out by Johnny Cueto, Homer Bailey followed suit. He gave up a whopping five hits over a complete game shut-out. The legendary Dayton Daily News beat writer Hal McCoy sums it up best:

"Reds pitchers gave up one run over 27 innings. The Pirates third base coach was as lonely as a cop directing traffic in the Arctic Circle"

Bailey (1-2) needed only 90 pitches—73 for strikes—to close out the Reds' fifth straight win. He did not go to a three-ball count the whole game and only went to a two-ball count four times.

“That's the epitome of pitch conservation right there,” manager Dusty Baker said. “He followed Johnny Cueto’s lead right there. That’s the most well-pitched two days that I’ve seen in a long time.”

Cueto and Bailey become the first pair of Reds pitchers to fire back-to-back complete-game shutouts since Jose Rijo and Tom Browning accomplished the feat on June 9 & 10, 1989 at Los Angeles.

Bailey loves the Pirates—he has a 5-0 record lifetime against the AAAA club. Sure he got rocked against the Cubs last week, but he seems to have found out how to conserve his pitches better than in the past. He is still a work in progress, but the 23 year-old is finally learning from previous mistakes.

Couple the terrific past two days with a seemingly revived Aaron Harang, a steady Bronson Arroyo a phenom in the making in rookie Mike "who needs the minors" Leake, and the Reds suddenly have one of the best starting rotations in all of baseball.

Sure the ERA and wins, loss records aren't there. Yet after a rocky month of April the Reds hold 16 quality starts—sixth in the N.L.

Sure it's only May, there is plenty of games to be played (128 to be exact), but the season is over 20 percent complete.

Still too early to declare 2010 "the year", last season the club was 26-20 at one point. But this team has the right chemistry. No more aging stars with ego's too big for the clubhouse. No Corey Patterson's or Willy Taveras'. Just a lot of youngsters that are enjoying the ride that is being a Major League baseball player.

Reds media relations guru Jamie Ramsey blogged about how manager Dusty Baker took the team out to dinner Sunday night. Baker seems to genuinely like this team:

"He gave a heartfelt post-dinner speech to the guys in which he called the group "special" and told the guys to believe they can win this season. It was nice and the team responded to it. There was a nice energy in the room"

Dusty picked up the check for the whole team too!

On the offensive side, the veterans (Scott Rolen, Brandon Phillips, Orlando Cabrera, Johnny Gomes) are starting to put up numbers usually expected when looking at the back of their respectiveve baseball cards. Joey Votto is on his way to the All-Star game, and even Jay Bruce has righted the ship.

“He’s been much better,” Baker said. “We try to give him some theories and philosophies. We have talk to left-handers who can hit left-handers.”

Baker has had Bruce talk to Luis Gonzalez and Raul Ibanez.

Bruce’s splits are pretty even this year, quite the opposite of '09. He went into Wednesday hitting .250 off left-handers and .273 off right-handers. He has two homers off LHs and two off RHs, even though he had 49 more at-bats vs. righties.

He is second on the team with 16 walks and seems to not fall for the garbage in the dirt as much over the past few weeks.

So all is well in Red Leg land, but a larger question still remains. Can this team compete with the division leading St. Louis Cardinals? Beating the Pirates is one thing, but getting Albert Pujols out consistently is a whole different beast.

Nobody likes to throw the term "must win series" out in May, but the Reds need to take two of three to let themselves know it's not just a one team race in the N.L. Central. The Reds sit only one game out of first, but it feels like the gap is much wider. This weekend the Reds can prove that's not the case.

Brandon Phillips Will Never Be the Leader the Cincinnati Reds Need

Brandon Phillips is a good player, one of the best players for the Cincinnati Reds. Yet he continually disappoints fans with his lack of hustle.

Case in point: Tuesday night against the New York Mets.

Phillips laces a pitch off the left- center field wall that ended up taking a weird bounce. Had he been hustling, Phillips would have easily cruised into third with a triple. Instead he admired his hit and managed to only make it to second.

Joey Votto followed Phillips with a deep drive to left-center. Had Phillips been on third he would have been able to trot home on sacrifice fly. Not a big deal? The Mets beat the Reds by one run.

“He’s been talked to about this,” Reds manager Dusty Baker said. “We’ve talked to Brandon quite often".

Phillips is one of the Reds best players. He plays outstanding defense at second base, and has a Golden Glove to show for it. He has been a career .274 hitter for the Reds and is very durable, having battled various finger and wrist injuries throughout his Redlegs tenure. He's the only Red to play every inning this year.

But he is not the leader the Reds need.

He has claimed in the past of his desire to be the "face of the franchise", and how he wants to play the rest of his career in Cincinnati. Sure, he busts out that huge grin for the annual Reds van PR campaign. He does his part in the community to ensure the Reds maintain a positive image with it's fans.

Unfortunately, he simply doesn't lead by example on the field.

"I guess he’s better than he used to be. We’re trying to get him to the point where he can be a big difference maker every day. He certainly has the skill and ability,” said Baker.

Better than he used to be?? Last year he was called out in a series against the Royals for missing a sign. He was also criticized for lack of hustle on another deep hit that could have been a double or triple. Instead, Phillips got a single out of it.

There is no need to admire the ball you hit Brandon, that's what replays on the scoreboard and game tape are for. The Reds are bad enough on offense as it is (.238 team average), they need every base they can get.

Joey Votto and Scott Rolen hit back-to-back home runs in the eighth inning of the Mets game, and both players practically sprinted around the bases. Was this a direct signal from the true leaders of the team to Phillips?

Baker has always been a "player's manager," and it really does show with the way he handles Phillips. A day after the gaffe he was once again in the starting lineup, business as usual.

“What’s tough as a manager is when you’ve got an A-student who’s getting Bs,” Baker said.

Time to put Phillips in detention for a few games until he learns his lesson. But will he even get the message?

History says no.

Fans Hate The Cincinnati Reds More Than The New York Yankees?

The latest article by the Wall Street Journal puzzles me to say the least.

According to the report , the Cincinnati Reds are the third most hated team in baseball with a 1.5 ranking.

An Internet algorithm built by Nielsen Co . analyzes how people feel about certain things, and the nation apparently hates the Reds. The system uses various keywords to find out whether people have positive, negative or neutral reactions to different brands and products.

The most hated team oddly enough was the Cleveland Indians (.9). What's up with all the Ohio hate? The Boston Red Sox (1.1) were second, a much more believable ranking.

My thoughts on how this could happen are directly at the self hatred for the two Ohio teams. Reds and Indians fans are extremely hard on their respective teams. The losing adds up and you would have to scour the web to find a lot of positive message board comments and blog posts praising the two franchises.

For some reason the brand logo isn't well liked either. What's wrong with a big "C"? I happen to like Mr. Red, why hate him Rosie and Mr. Redlegs? The jerseys are as plain as it gets.

It's not like there a ton of players on the team to hate. Joey Votto, Jay Bruce, Brandon Phillips,

There is no way the Reds would finsih third in a straight-up poll of fans on most hated teams. The Yankees (1.8) only finished fifth in the rankings! Clearly that isn't the case—the Yanks have been coined "The Evil Empire!"

This study might go on to prove something that fans already know, the team sucks and we are going to type, read, and talk about how much they suck. It's depressing to think about, but it's true—fans are fed up with the constant rebuilding, retooling, and reloading.

We the fans want to win NOW. I don't care about how awesome the prospects in AAA are. How good is my team right now?

Or maybe it has to do with the location of the teams. Both Ohio teams are in the top three in most hated while the Bay Area San Francisco Giants (4.5) and Oakland Athletics (4.2) were the most-liked teams on this scale.

Either way this study really perplexes me. If anybody can make some sense out of this...help me out.

Homer Bailey of the Cincinnati Reds Still Doesn't "Get It"

A perfect example of Reds starting pitcher Homer Bailey came Wednesday night against the Florida Marlins. The frustration fans have felt about this guy is back.

We all thought he had turned the corner. We all thought the former phenom finally "got it." We all thought the Reds had found a solid starter for the next 10 years.

Looks like we were wrong.

Sure, the season is still in its infancy, and the marathon is still in the first mile, but so far Bailey has shown he is still not there yet.

After the Reds won back-to-back extra-inning games against the Marlins, the bullpen needed some rest for game three of the series on Wednesday. The 'pen had pitched a combined 10 innings in two days, and there isn't a day off till Monday.

Bailey knew he needed to give his teammates a break—so he promptly labored through two innings and 47 pitches, giving up two runs in the process. It could've been more if it wasn't for some defensive brilliance by 3B Scott Rolen and SS Paul Janish.

His final line: 5.1 IP, 8 H, 5 ER, 4 BB, 3 K, 2 HR, 115 pitches with the Reds down 5-1.

It seems that he tries too hard to aim the ball. He rarely hit the spot where C Ramon Hernandez placed his glove. He would get behind in the count and try to force a fastball on the corner that would get smoked by a Marlin slugger.

He still thinks he can overpower major league hitters the same way he could in AAA. Sorry Homer—you're not that good.

Sure, he was 6-1 with a 1.71 ERA down the stretch last year. But nobody remembers that four of the wins were against the AAAA Pittsburgh Pirates—not to mention the fact of how little the games meant in the standings. I still wasn't convinced that he could pitch well when the games actually mattered.

Much had been made about a splitter he learned during a stint in AAA Louisville last year. Adding a fourth pitch was just what the doctor ordered. Well, Homer himself said that wasn't the case. He only uses it three to four pitches a game and the effectiveness is questionable.

Sure, he is only 23. He pitched okay in his first start (5 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 5 K, 106 pitches, plus a balk and two wild pitches).

On the season Bailey has given up 15 hits and five walks, hit two batters, and given up runs in eight of his 10.1 innings.

He is not being efficient with his pitches. He is not consistently throwing strikes. He is not doing the in-game adjustments Reds fans assumed he was ready to do on a regular basis.

It's not time to wave the white flag on Bailey yet—but the Reds don’t need to show much patience, not with Aroldis Chapman and Travis Wood ready, as well as Matt Maloney and Justin Lehr. Don't forget about Edinson Volquez either when he returns from Tommy John surgery in July.

If Bailey doesn't shape up in his next two starts...let Chapmania begin!

BTW: Reds and Astros are the only two teams without a win by a starting pitcher.

2010 Cincinnati Reds Season Preview

The 2010 baseball season is upon us and that means it's prediction time.

The consensus on the Cincinnati Reds is sleeper status. They have the potential to make a run with their abundance of young talent. On the other hand, a injury here or there and the Reds will be lucky to break the horrid streak of nine straight years finishing below .500.

The problem is there are too many questions.

What if Aroldis Chapman and his 100 mph fastball are called up in June and he takes the National League by storm?

What if Jay Bruce lives up to the sky-high expectations set for him as a 20-year-old rookie?

What if Aaron Harang bounces back from a disgusting 12-31 mark over the past two years?

What if Mike Leake makes fans forget about Chapman as he shows his critics why he's the first pitcher since the '80s to skip the minor leagues completely?

Veteran skipper and ex-big league player Dusty Baker leads the Reds. Plenty of fans in Cincinnati can't wait for the toothpick-toting, armband-wearing manger to be fired. He still carries the "kills young pitching" rep that unjustly followed him from the Chicago Cubs.

He does tinker with the lineup a bit much in regards to always trying to match righties and lefties, but other than that, he has not been the issue in his two years at the helm for the Reds. He hasn't killed any young arms and has done a magnificent job juggling the innings of the No. 3 ranked bullpen.

Francisco Cordero has been the key cog in allowing fans to relax with a one-run lead. He had 39 saves in 43 chances last year, was the only All-Star for the team, and he is the vocal Latino leader in the clubhouse. He is the veteran presence that keeps the likes of young guns Johnny Cueto and Edinson Volquez grounded and focused.

Combine Cordero with Nick Masset and Arthur Rhodes, and the seventh, eighth, and ninth are in good hands with a lead.

When talking about starting pitching, the biggest question is Harang. I detailed the possibilities here. Long story short, he is possible of anywhere from five to 15 wins—same goes for the amount of losses.

We all know what Bronson Arroyo brings: about a .500 record with a few gems and a few atomic bomb outings. He has never missed a start since high school and will more than likely continue the trend.

The 24-year-old Johnny Cueto was on fire in '09 till the Civil Rights game against the White Sox in mid-June.

He was sporting a 2.17 ERA up until that point. Then the wheels slowly fell off, culminating in allowing nine runs in 2/3 of an inning against the Phillies. Just like that, his ERA jumped to 3.45.

This is the year to see if he can maintain success over the grind of 162 games. He didn't pitch in winter ball and should be able to finally reach the 200-inning plateau after falling about 30 innings short the past two campaigns.

Homer Bailey is also 24. He is also badly needed for the Reds to be successful. Everyone knows about his dominating 6-1 finish to the season—but let's not forget that four of those were against the lowly Pirates.

So, he is still a wild card in my mind. Adding the split-fingered fastball is what most media credit his late season success to. In reality, he only threw the pitch an average of three or four times a game. The jury is still out.

And then there is the new college grad Mike Leake. Boy, oh boy, did he steal Chapman's thunder or what? The Reds No. 1 pick in last year's draft has been flawless to this point.

But I can't say he will be anything better than mediocre considering all the adjustments he will have to make. I know he dominated in the spring, but that's a whole different ballgame. No more minor league hitters getting their reps. No more star Major Leaguers caught off guard by the lack of tape viewed on a new pitcher.

I can see Chapman taking his spot right around June 1. Chapman will blaze through the National League and finish strong. Leake will be back late in the season after a few months of fine-tuning his pitching approach.

The lineup looks good on paper, but that doesn't mean a thing especially when there isn't a sure leadoff hitter.

OF Drew Stubbs and OF Chris Dickerson will swap all year in the leadoff role. Baker is hoping that one of them will emerge as the clear-cut choice. My money is on Stubbs due to his power, but don't count out the superb defense that Dickerson contributes on a nightly basis.

Newly acquired SS Orlando Cabrera quietly hit .171 in the Spring.

Cause for concern, or just another "ehh, it's only Spring training?"

We do know he has a superior glove but it remains to be seen if he can hit in that .275 range required by a good No. 2 guy. I have a bad feeling he won’t. The 35-year-old's bat speed has looked very slow.

1B Joey Votto, 2B Brandon Phillips, and 3B Scott Rolen are the three locks on the squad. You know what to expect by looking at the back of their baseball cards.

They will not be the reason the Reds continue their losing ways in 2010.

If anything, this is the year Votto becomes a household name with a 35 HR, 100-plus RBI, and .320 batting average season. Watch out for the aging Rolen on the injury front.

The other big question mark in '10 is OF Jay Bruce, as documented here. No way can the Reds survive with Bruce hitting in the .220s, but a .260 average with about 35 HR and a decent OPS will do wonders for this lineup. Remember the guy is only 22.

The bottom of the order will be filled with OF Johnny Gomes and OF Laynce Nix. Both have decent power, but need to cut down on the strikeouts. For a team tight on payroll like the Reds, this option will have to do.

Last but not least C Ramon Hernandez will bat eighth. He is a guy that will provide support for all the young pitchers while probably batting .265 in the process. For the Reds, that is all you can ask for from a catcher.

So what does it all mean? The overwhelming trend is that this team is young at key positions. Bruce, Bailey, Cueto, Stubbs, and Leake are all under the age of 24. This means the future is very bright in the Queen City. But this year? Not so much.

As the Reds continue their push to finally have a winning record, they ultimately will fall just a bit short. The depth on the bench is great in the pitching department and awful in the batting lineup. When journeyman Miguel Cairo makes the team after he had all but written himself off? Not a good sign. Paul Janish and Ryan Hannigan? Meh.

I am very intrigued with 3B/OF Juan Francisco. While he has an awful career K/BB rate, his raw power is exciting to watch. He hit .429 in 21 AB after a late September call-up so he has the potential to consistently get base knocks. Watch for him to force his way into the starting lineup by August.

Ultimately, the Reds record will be 79-83 and they will just fall short of breaking the nine-year losing streak.

G.M. Walt Jocketty is laying the bricks, but the concrete is still drying.

The weak bench will hurt when a key offensive injury occurs. Harang will be trade bait as the Reds look to unload the overpaid ($12.5M), one-time ace.

Hate to say it Reds fans, but "wait 'til next year."