One of the biggest stories of the last few days was the Cincinnati Reds signing Hunter Greene, in the midst of his second season in the bigs, to a 6-year extension, on track to have him help round out the decade with the Reds. For Reds fans, it is a sigh of relief, as the team that has never been prone to keeping its big stars on the team is finally beginning to learn and keep things in line.
My response, even if this is a low-earning team that hasn't built all the way up to compete quite yet, is two very simple words: Lodolo next.
The Reds have a lot so far that's working, aside from the three-headed dragon of Greene, Lodolo and Ashcraft, which people figured would end up working anyhow this year even if the team didn't. Jonathan India, somehow one of the longer-tenured Reds they have there, has been off to a nice start, hitting .300 with 18 hits and 3 steals. T.J. Friedl is already winning over fans, hitting .305 with 9 RBIs, and Spencer Steer has been living up to expectations as well, hitting .320 with 2 homers already. You also have steady power hitters like Wil Myers and Jake Fraley who, while not perfect, are at least helping out at the plate. Myers especially was helpful in terrorizing the Phillies last week. Still not 100% forgiving him there.
The team isn't perfect. There's like four or five spots where people don't know what they're doing. Controversially, I might go so far as to say that, even before he gets back, I kinda think Joey Votto leaving might be a good thing for them, as they'll be able to bring somebody up that's young and move on from the 2010s teams. Votto has a year left in Cincy, and he might play the 'I'm not done yet' game like many legends do, but unless they're really thinking about letting him DH, they need new blood at 1st, and Jason Vosler clearly isn't gonna cut it. Neither is Jose Barrero at short, and I hope it doesn't take another year for them to come to that conclusion.
I also think that, while that triptych is excellent for the rotation, they really need to keep those last two filled. Overton might be an answer if he stays healthy, and Levi Stoudt might have more to him than just getting lit up by the Rays, but if we're just relying on people like Luis Cessa and Reiver Sanmartin, who really aren't great starting options, for the time being then you're kinda asking for it. I get it, Overton and Gutierrez are injured. Stoudt was a good idea, maybe see what happens against a team that isn't the Rays. Luke Weaver seems to be their next option, and while that has worked in the past...I really hope Weaver's stuff is better than it's been the last few years, because there's a reason why the D-Backs' rotation was always too full for him. And similarly, there's a reason why he didn't make the team out of camp.
As far as bad teams go, the Reds have a lot to them, and they only just fell to last after the Rays drubbing, as the Cardinals' slow first few weeks gave them a head start essentially. I expect them to improve somewhat, though with the Pirates actually looking pretty decent lately, and the Cubs' offense being as power-crazy as it is...maybe not enough to completely stay out of last.
Coming Tomorrow- The Mets are getting some results from a recent call-up right now, but I wonder if they ever look over to Seattle and wonder what would have happened if they didn't trade for Cano.
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