The Reds Report

Some numbers to remember while you deal with the fact that the Cincinnati Reds are on the verge of securing the National League Central title: 8, 29 and 4.

The number 8 represents the number of games that the Reds are ahead of the second-place St. Louis Cardinals. Meanwhile, 29 represents the number of games remaining on the team’s schedule as they attempt to hold off the Redbirds and the number 4 is their current win streak as they soar towards the National League playoffs.

The funny thing about this year’s version of the Cincinnati Reds is that the squad isn’t that much different than the team from last year. Below is the 2009 version of the Reds:

• Bronson Arroyo
• Homer Bailey
• Jared Burton
• Francisco Cordero
• Johnny Cueto
• Carlos Fisher
• Aaron Harang
• Daniel Ray Herrera
• Justin Lehr
• Mike Lincoln
• Matt Maloney
• Robert Manuel
• Nick Masset
• Micah Owings
• Ramon Ramirez
• Arthur Rhodes
• Josh Roenicke
• Pedro Viola
• Edinson Volquez
• David Weathers
• Kip Wells
• Ryan Hanigan
• Ramon Hernandez
• Corky Miller
• Craig Tatum
• Kevin Barker
• Edwin Encarnacion
• Juan Francisco
• Alex Gonzalez
• Jerry Hairston
• Paul Janish
• Brandon Phillips
• Danny Richar
• Scott Rolen
• Adam Rosales
• Drew Sutton
• Joey Votto
• Wladimir Balentien
• Jay Bruce
• Chris Dickerson
• Jonny Gomes
• Darnell McDonald
• Laynce Nix
• Drew Stubbs
• Willie Taveras
• Wilkin Castillo

As you’ve probably noticed, a good percentage of the above players are no longer with Cincinnati. Which leads us to the person who made this playoff run possible: Former St. Louis Cardinals general manager Walt Jocketty.

Reds owner Bob Castellini automatically made himself popular with the team’s fanbase by managing to wrangle Jocketty from St. Louis. And as you’ve noticed, he has worked some major magic on the ballclub.

Jocketty has managed to do the following:

• Sign Orlando Cabrera. While Cincinnati did lose shortstop Alex Gonzalez to the Toronto Blue Jays, they made up for that by signing the former Oakland A’s shortstop. Cabrera hasn’t really lived up to the hype, although to be fair, injuries had something to do with it. Plus the fact that no one expected Gonzalez to thrive in Toronto after leaving the Reds. But Paul Janish has more than made up for Cabrera’s absence.
• Offer manager Dusty Baker a contract extension well before his current contract expires. It is no accident that Baker is the right leader for this squad, and Jocketty recognizes that fact.
• Sign Miguel Cairo. The veteran has been money as a super-sub and also filling in for Votto, Cabrera and Rolen this season. Every major league team would thrive with a Cairo on their roster.
• Signed Jim Edmonds. The jury’s out on this signing as he has been injured, as of late. The productivity hasn’t exactly been there. Perhaps the final games remaining will clarify – and jusitfy – the signing of the former Cardinals outfielder.

The pitching of the 2010 version of the Reds, while shaky early on, is finally beginning to pay dividends, save for the recent wildness of Edinson Volquez. Should Harang remain healthy and pitch relatively well and the bullpen fight off the urge to implode, Cincinnati may very well have a long run in the MLB playoffs.

Which leads us to the offense. I don’t know if it is something in the drinking water in the Queen City, but the Reds have simply exploded on offense. We already know what Votto has done this season (Triple Crown, anyone?), Rolen has rebounded from a subpar 2009, Brandon Phillips has had an above-average 2010 thus far and perhaps the piece of the puzzle that may dictate hoe far Cincinnati goes in the playoffs: Jay Bruce.

Bruce has been hot as of late, batting in the leadoff spot. Most folks would think that he needs to bat a little lower in the lineup. And perhaps there is validity there.

But the fact remains that he wasn’t doing very well battting either fifth or sixth in the batting order. Not to mention that the leadoff spot has been the team’s Achilles heel. So Baker inserts Bruce there … and VOILA!! Bruce is putting up numbers that were expected of him batting lower in the lineup.

Speaking of leadoff, what was supposed to be the answer – Drew Stubbs – hasnt panned out at all. But you cannot question the potantial of Stubbs as he has pop in his bat with speed to burn. The judicious usage of Stubbs by Baker has worked so far – knock on wood.

I actually would have been happy as a pig in slop if the Reds had been in second and gaining ground on the Cardinals. But as luck would have it, St. Louis is collapsing like a souffle while the Reds continue to win.

Assuming that everything goes according to plan, I expect that Jocketty will get a ton of support for the MLB Executive of the Year. cincinnati has had the talent for the past few years; it just took the smarts of Jocketty combined wth the managerial prowess of Baker to get this squad to their lofty perch in the NL Central.

So if you haven’t done so already, get your Cincinnati Reds playoff tickets. With tickets on hand, you will get the golden opportunity to witness history.

This is one of those certainties in baseball where it isn’t a matter of if the Reds enter the playoffs, but how far will they go. With the current state of this team, they may shock and surprise the baseball world.

And that’s part of the definition of destiny.

Here is the current health status of the Cincinnati Reds, as of September 2:

• RF Jay Bruce (sore right side) was a late scratch Aug. 31, and he did not play Sept. 1. He is day-to-day.
• 2B Brandon Phillips (bruised right wrist) left the Aug. 25 game after being hit by a pitch. He did not start Aug. 27-Sept. 1, though he appeared as a pinch runner several times. There’s a chance he could return to the lineup Sept. 3.
• OF Laynce Nix (sprained left ankle) went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to Aug. 26.
• SS Orlando Cabrera (strained left oblique) went on the 15-day disabled list Aug. 3. He began a rehab assignment at Class A Dayton on Sept. 1, and he could be activated during the first weekend of September.
• RHP Mike Leake (sore right shoulder) went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to Aug. 25. The Reds don’t consider the injury serious, and they expect that Leake will be fine with rest.
• OF Jim Edmonds (strained right oblique) went on the 15-day disabled list Aug. 24. He might return by mid-September.
• RHP Mike Lincoln (strained right side muscle) went on the 15-day disabled list June 1, and he was transferred to the 60-day DL on July 17.
• RHP Jose Arredondo (Tommy John surgery in January 2010) was called up from the minors and placed on the 60-day disabled list July 23.
• RHP Russ Springer (strained left hip) went on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to Aug. 5, and he was transferred to the 60-day DL on Aug. 31. He had season-ending surgery Aug. 23.

Source: The Sports Xchange

While there are roughly around 30 games left for the Cincinnati Reds to wrap up their first division title in what seems like forever (they’re up by 7 over the St. Louis Cardinals), there is one bit of unfinished business that involves these two clubs.

It is a subject that is rarely discussed in baseball circles, both within and outside Major League Baseball. You’re wondering what that subject is? It is the Holy Grail that batters have tried – and failed – to obtain: the Triple Crown.

And coincidentally or not, there are two players (one with the Reds and one with the Cardinals) who are fighting tooth and nail to obtain that crown jewel: Albert Pujols and our very own Joey Votto.

As of September 1, Votto’s bating average is .327, while Pujols’ is standing at .316. In addition, Pujols has clubbed 35 home runs while Votto has 32. Meanwhile, Votto has two more RBI than Pujols (97-95). So as you can see, this two-man race is rather tight.

Andrew Kahn of The Sports Journalists presents the pros and cons for both Votto and Pujols, including the Reds’ and Cardinals’ remaining schedules being a factor, and thinks that both players will be fighting for the Triple Crown until the end of the season.

It goes without saying that Pujols is if anything, he is consistent. He typically is good for a .330 average, 40+ HR and around 125 RBI or so annually. Votto, only 26 years old, has yet to really put together a track record like Pujols has. Yet it cannot be questioned that Votto is having a breakout season.

If Votto expects to achieve the Triple Crown, it would benefit him to do well in upcoming series against the Cardinals and San Diego Padres (both with very good pitching staffs).

With the recent expansion of team rosters, it will make the job of winning the Crown that much more difficult as pitchers brought up have an advantage. A good example is what Aroldis Chapman did during the Brewers-Reds game on Tuesday: One inning with a strikeout.

Pujols will benefit the rest of the way, to a degree, as in September, the Cardinals face Pittsburgh, Houston and the Chicago Cubs. But they also face Cincinnati this Friday for a 3-game series and the Padres between the 16th and 19th of this month.

As it were, this race is too tough to call with all the many variables that come into play. Because of that, while Pujols and Votto will have outstanding seasons when all has been said and done, I do not see a Triple Crown winner being announced this year.

Close, but no cigar. It just wasn’t meant to be.

The Reds needed to make roster moves Tuesday to clear space for Aroldis Chapman and right-hander Aaron Harang, who came off the disabled list to start against the Brewers. They placed outfielder Laynce Nix on the 15-day disabled list, retroactive to Aug. 26, and optioned right-hander Edinson Volquez to Class A Dayton, according to Mark Schmetzer of Reds.com.

Nix has been sidelined since Aug. 25 with a sprained ankle. Volquez had developed some command problems while trying to come back from Tommy John surgery and been moved from the rotation to the bullpen. He hadn’t pitched since Aug. 23, when he logged just two outs while giving up five hits and five runs in an 11-2 loss at San Francisco.

Volquez, a 2008 All-Star in his first season with the Reds after being acquired from Texas for outfielder Josh Hamilton, is scheduled to start for the Dragons on Wednesday, and manager Dusty Baker is hoping he will show enough improvement to start for the Reds on Sept. 6 at Colorado.

“[Pitching coach Bryan Price] made some mechanical changes, and we’d rather have him experiment down there rather than up here,” Baker said. “The guy’s a quality starter, if he can get his stuff together.”

Left-handed pitcher Aroldis Chapman, who’s turned heads all over the Triple-A International League by routinely reaching triple figures on radar gun readouts with his out-of-this-world fastball, is expected to be called up from Louisville before Cincinnati’s game Tuesday against Milwaukee.

“We’re going to bring him up tomorrow so he could be eligible for the playoffs,” general manager Walt Jocketty said.

The move would automatically make Chapman eligible for postseason play. Generally, players must be on a team’s 25-man active roster by Aug. 31 to be eligible for the playoffs, which is one reason the Reds plan to activate right-hander Aaron Harang in time to start Tuesday against the Brewers.

Chapman was expected to be among the players called up by the Reds when active rosters can be expanded beyond 25 players on Sept. 1, but if they wanted him to be eligible for postseason play, they would have had to make a special roster move.

According to assistant general manager Bob Miller, there are certain scenarios under which a player could join the team after Aug. 31 and still be eligible for postseason play. One is if he is named to replace a player who’s on the 60-day disabled list. The Reds have two such players: pitchers Jose Arredondo and Mike Lincoln.

“He could be part of the pool [of players], but we decided to bring him up early,” Jocketty said.

Chapman, 22, is 9-6 with eight saves and a 3.57 ERA in 39 games, including 13 starts. He has racked up 125 strikeouts with 52 walks and held opposing batters to a .218 batting average in 95 2/3 innings.

When you’re a wild pitcher, usually the manager or pitching coachmay pull you aside and see what can be done to correct said wildness.

Apparently they’ve gone a step further in Cincinnati as Reds starting pitcher Edinson Volquez, in an effort to stem his control and mechanical problems, will be relegated to the team’s bullpen.

As a result, another pitcher – presumably Travis Wood – will take Volquez’s start this Sunday.

Since Volquez’s return from Tommy John surgery, he has went 3-2 with a  6.17 ERA in eight starts, walking 27 batters in just 35 innings. Interstingly enough, he will need to resolve those issues relatively soon as rosters expand in September and manager Dusty Baker will need have a “set-in-stone-roster” by then.

It never occurred to me that Mike Leake was ever overused as a starting pitcher – now relief pitcher. I am not to suggest that overuse was a culprit, but Leake will have time to sit and let his throwing shoulder rest.

The Cincinnati Reds, mindful of the importance of Leake to the team, placed the rookie on the 15-day disabled list; it will not affect his standing on the postseason roster, assuming Cincinnati makes the playoffs.

According to Reds manager Dusty Baker:

“It’s better for him, and he still may be eligible for the playoffs.”

“He’s not throwing the ball where he wants to throw it, even though he has good velocity.”

“It’s something we’re apprehensive about.”

“We had to do something with him anyway. This way, we’ll get him on a strengthening program. He can focus on that and not on pitching. Now is the time to do it.”

Leake will be able to come off the DL on September 9; in the meantime, the Reds called up Juan Francisco from Louisville, presumably to take Laynce Nix’s spot on the roster while he recovers from a sprained ankle.

Nix is currently day-to-day.

Thursday was a day in which the Cincinnati Reds held their collective breaths as they were finding out if the injury to Brandon Phillips was severe enough to warrant a trip to the disabled list.

As it turns out, the team dodged a bullet as they discovered that a second set of X-rays found that Phillips’ bruised right hand is merely bruised. Assuming that the swelling subsides, he may be available to play this weekend.

Phillips incurred the injury during the wild 12-11 win over the San Francisco Giants when Giants reliever Santiago Casilla plunked Phillips’ hand with a 95 mph fastball. The Reds cannot afford to lose Phillips for any appreciable length of time as the team doesn’t really have a true leadoff hitter. Don’t be surprised if the team uses Drew Stubbs (yikes!) in the #1 spot for now.

Meanwhile, a second bullet was avoided when it was found that Laynce Nix avoided a trip to the DL with a sprained left ankle, which was incurred on Monday; the injury was highlighted on Wednesday when he couldn’t run out a grounder in his role as a pinch-hitter.

With the seven-game suspension of Cincinnati Reds starting pitcher Johnny Cueto over with along with a game already pitched, a question that comes to mind is whether Cueto will face the team that precipated his suspension in the first place.

The team in question? The St. Louis Cardinals. For those who lost track of Cueto’s suspension and how it came to pass, Cueto was suspended for his part in a bench-clearing brawl when the Reds hosted the Cardinals earlier this month at Great American Ball Park.

During the melee, Cueto was pinned against the backstop behind home plate; he would subsequently start kicking. As a result, one of Cueto;s kicks landed on St. Louis catcher Jason LaRue’s head, who remains on the team’s disabled list.

It appears – until further notice – that Reds manager Dusty Baker is non-committal in terms to Cueto’s pitching against the Cardinals as he told the Cincinnati Enquirer:

“I don’t know yet. He’s going to have to pitch against them some time. They say time heals all wounds. Maybe it doesn’t.”

Micah Owings, since being demoted by the Cincinnati Reds (although technically Owings is still property of the team), is sort of like that term “man without a nation.”

It is obvious that Cincinnati will eventually release him. Unfortunately for the team, there is very little interest in the 27-year old righthander. so what gives?

According to John Fay over at the Cincinnati Enquirer, Owings is drawing little interest probably due to the fact that he is arbitration-eligible next year and represented by Scott Boras.

Assuming the Reds let Owings go (and they probably will), it will be interesting to see if a team will sign him to a contract. the best case scenario for Owings is that he signs a minor-league contract and hopefully work his way up the ladeder until he lands on the major league roster of whicheber team signs him.

The thing that will make this especially difficult is that Owings has posted ERAs of 4.30, 5.93, 5.34 and 5.40 during his four-year career. So if he discovers that he isn’t garnering much interest, that right there is reason enough.

The only other alternative I can think of is that Owings goes Rick Ankiel and rediscover his batting stroke. Think about it.

In 184 at-bats, he’s batting .293 (Mike-Leake numbers) with 9 HR and 34 RBI (a HR every 20.4 AB – impressive for a pitcher). So it may be something he might want to think about.

But for now, Owings’ career is in limbo and some clarity should take place some time this week.