The Official 2023 Cincinnati Reds Thread

So wait a minute...you get bothered by people who are hired BY THE TEAM, doesn't rip them daily like most social media??? Do you really think an employee can call their bosses cheap @holes???? I mean what do you expect? Now we were certainly spoiled by the Brennamans's and Jeff Brantley has a little lattitude but for the most part you rarely hear much negative from the team paid announcers.
They’re not Reds employees, to the best of anyone’s knowledge. But their constant rose-colored view of everything Reds-related suggests they’d love to get on the Reds’ payroll someday.

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Rockies 2B Brendan Rodgers is expected to miss the season with a dislocated/damaged shoulder. So the Rockies signed Mike Moustakas yesterday and plan to play him at 2B this season.

There’s your comic relief for the afternoon.

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So wait a minute...you get bothered by people who are hired BY THE TEAM, doesn't rip them daily like most social media??? Do you really think an employee can call their bosses cheap @holes???? I mean what do you expect? Now we were certainly spoiled by the Brennamans's and Jeff Brantley has a little lattitude but for the most part you rarely hear much negative from the team paid announcers.
Seriously, read and comprehend before responding IN UPPER CASE.

These guys AEW mentioned are not hired by the team, and they are not announcers. Get a clue.
 
They’re not Reds employees, to the best of anyone’s knowledge. But their constant rose-colored view of everything Reds-related suggests they’d love to get on the Reds’ payroll someday.

It’s true, it’s true. Trust me …
Or maybe they look at things half full instead of empty? You should try it.
 
Seriously, read and comprehend before responding IN UPPER CASE.

These guys AEW mentioned are not hired by the team, and they are not announcers. Get a clue.
So when a team doesn't win, the fan base is required to be cranky and grouchy? Part of being a fan is living though the tough times as well as the good time. Joey Votto is going to never win a playoff series as a Red, yet he's going to go down as one of the franchise's best players ever, and I've thoroughly enjoyed it.
 
So when a team doesn't win, the fan base is required to be cranky and grouchy? Part of being a fan is living though the tough times as well as the good time. Joey Votto is going to never win a playoff series as a Red, yet he's going to go down as one of the franchise's best players ever, and I've thoroughly enjoyed it.
And he should not see any significant playing time this year.
 
So when a team doesn't win, the fan base is required to be cranky and grouchy? Part of being a fan is living though the tough times as well as the good time. Joey Votto is going to never win a playoff series as a Red, yet he's going to go down as one of the franchise's best players ever, and I've thoroughly enjoyed it.
I like seafood.

This response to your post makes just as much sense as your response to my post. Completely unrelated.
 
Or maybe they look at things half full instead of empty? You should try it.
I try to be level-headed and fair in discussing the team. I give praise where warranted but also point out deficiencies and concerns.

I’m optimistic about the future of the young talent, but I’m not going to be delusional about it or go overboard until we see these guys succeed in the majors.

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I try to be level-headed and fair in discussing the team. I give praise where warranted but also point out deficiencies and concerns.

I’m optimistic about the future of the young talent, but I’m not going to be delusional about it or go overboard until we see these guys succeed in the majors.

It’s true, it’s true. Trust me …
I would say this is pretty accurate. You have about as many good takes on here as I do. ;)

What you call delusional others may call optimism. I mean at some point, with all these prospects, SOME will have to hit. And there is no doubt that Hunter Greene and Nick Lodolo will be significant starters in this league. It reminds me of the days with Cueto, Arroyo, Bailey, Bronson, Latos and Leake. You just felt that within a week, we would get more good starts than bad ones.
 
Encarnacion-Strand is off to a great start this spring. Is he having an Aquino moment? Maybe. But he looks more like a natural hitter than Aquino. If this continues this spring, he needs a roster spot and lots of ABs this year.
 
Encarnacion-Strand is off to a great start this spring. Is he having an Aquino moment? Maybe. But he looks more like a natural hitter than Aquino. If this continues this spring, he needs a roster spot and lots of ABs this year.
Agreed. He seems legit and I hope he makes the roster. I wonder whether they’ll keep him down in AAA until mid-April to manipulate his service time. My math could be off, but I think bringing him up April 14 or later would keep him short of hitting the 172 days needed for a full year of service in 2023.

He seems like a true power bat, which they badly need after Suarez, Winker and Castellanos exited the team. And, at least to start, he would essentially take Votto’s spot on the roster.

Once Votto joins the team, if they keep CES on the roster, I wonder if that blows up the three-catcher idea. Because then you’d have five guys for C, 1B and DH, with 8 spots left to cover the outfield and other 3 infield spots.

If they stick with the 3 catchers at that point, that means someone between Benson, Friedl and Senzel has to get sent down or traded (Senzel). The other 4 infield spots would be India, Steer, and probably Barrero and Newman.

Of course, injuries and underperformance might thin the herd vs. the team having to make any hard decisions.

It’s true, it’s true. Trust me …
 
Agreed. He seems legit and I hope he makes the roster. I wonder whether they’ll keep him down in AAA until mid-April to manipulate his service time. My math could be off, but I think bringing him up April 14 or later would keep him short of hitting the 172 days needed for a full year of service in 2023.

He seems like a true power bat, which they badly need after Suarez, Winker and Castellanos exited the team. And, at least to start, he would essentially take Votto’s spot on the roster.

Once Votto joins the team, if they keep CES on the roster, I wonder if that blows up the three-catcher idea. Because then you’d have five guys for C, 1B and DH, with 8 spots left to cover the outfield and other 3 infield spots.

If they stick with the 3 catchers at that point, that means someone between Benson, Friedl and Senzel has to get sent down or traded (Senzel). The other 4 infield spots would be India, Steer, and probably Barrero and Newman.

Of course, injuries and underperformance might thin the herd vs. the team having to make any hard decisions.

It’s true, it’s true. Trust me …
The more guys we have performing good, even if it's spring training is a good thing. I'm fine with having to make many difficult decisions. I believe CES has not played above AA ball, so I'd say minimally, start him in Louisville. The jump to the majors is pretty big. Plus I feel we'll have enough at the major league level to get started. So first base for 2023 will involved Votto, Stephenson, Wil Myers and possibly CES or others as the year goes on.
 
Reds fans are going to need to be very patient with these kids. The knee jerk reaction is to bring up a bunch of guys who never played AA ball and let them fail. Doesn't work that way very often. I think we saw Billy Hamilton was rushed up to fill the centerfield spot and he never progressed as a hitter. And it may have been he just never was going to be a hitter and he never got on base enough to have a full effect for the team.
 
Reds fans are going to need to be very patient with these kids. The knee jerk reaction is to bring up a bunch of guys who never played AA ball and let them fail. Doesn't work that way very often. I think we saw Billy Hamilton was rushed up to fill the centerfield spot and he never progressed as a hitter. And it may have been he just never was going to be a hitter and he never got on base enough to have a full effect for the team.
Please don't compare these young stars to Billy Hamilton LOL
 
Bally does not want to lose my $19.99 per month. Got news for them - they are losing it right after hockey season anyway.
 
Interesting snippet from Ourand’s article about Bally Sports:

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Please don't compare these young stars to Billy Hamilton LOL
Billy Hamilton was alot better than people give him credit for. On a team with good pitching and a solid middle of the lineup, he would had been excellent as an elite centerfielder and a #8 hitter.
 
Billy Hamilton was alot better than people give him credit for. On a team with good pitching and a solid middle of the lineup, he would had been excellent as an elite centerfielder and a #8 hitter.
Career OBP of .292 with no power. On a team with a solid lineup he would be a late inning defensive replacement and pinch runner. Reds need their young guys to be much better than Billy.
 
Center field has been an absolute black hole for the Reds for the better part of 15 years, ever since Josh Hamilton in 2007. Drew Stubbs had a solid one-off season in 2010, but it’s been miserable other than that outlier.

Corey Patterson, Willy Taveras, two strikeout-filled years from Subbs in 2011 and 2012, and then a full decade so far wasted on Billy Hamilton and Nick Senzel, starting in 2013.

Given the logjam at shortstop and the reports that Barrero and McLain are more top-notch defenders there than Elly De La Cruz, I’d seriously consider moving De La Cruz to CF in AA or AAA to start the season and see how he takes to it. He’s a speedster, so he should be able to cover a ton of ground out there. (And it would be fitting since he’s wearing Eric Davis’ #44 and has the same body type.)

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Obviously plans will have to adjust based on future performance and to-be-determined acquisitions over the next couple of years, but in the spirit of sorting out the shortstops, I’d tentatively be planning a 2025 Reds alignment like this:

DH CES
1B Tyler Stephenson
2B Edwin Arroyo
SS Matt McLain
3B Noelvi Marte
LF Jonathan India/Jake Fraley
CF Elly De La Cruz
RF Cam Collier
C Acquire a veteran

Steer and Barrero would be the bench utility/infield guys.

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Rockies 2B Brendan Rodgers is expected to miss the season with a dislocated/damaged shoulder. So the Rockies signed Mike Moustakas yesterday and plan to play him at 2B this season.

There’s your comic relief for the afternoon.

It’s true, it’s true. Trust me …
With no shift rules? Good luck. He covers the ground he's standing on.
 

Take it with a grain of salt, but sounds like Bally might terminate its contract with the Reds once it reaches bankruptcy court, thus leading to MLB streaming the Reds’ games for free … for now. See article attached.

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Awesome! Wasted opportunities.

A very Reds thing to do.
I mean sure, from a theoretical point of view you are right. Reds are not a playoff team this year and should be using all the ABs for the young guys.

But being practical you have to let Votto get ABs 4-6 days a week because you have fans that want to see him. He's a HOF guy after all. Now if he is god-awful in April/May you can start sitting him more. But you have to at least give the appearance that you are trying your best to win and satisfy that fans that want to see him play.
 
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