Weekend Wrap Up

 

Reds

Overall, a good trip to Pittsburgh. Winning 2 of 3 on the road against a division opponent with whom you are fighting for playoff position is always good. However, being up 4-0 in the final game with a chance to sweep, including a 4-2 lead with 2 outs in the 8^th, and not closing the deal hurts.

Good to See…

• The Reds beating the Pirates despite little production from their 3 biggest and most consistent weapons (Votto, BP, Choo)

• Cueto back and pitching like Cueto (8.0 IP, 1 H, 0 ER = Muy Bueno!)

• Cozart Hitting – the last 7 days he is batting .417, 4 R, 2 2B, and 2 RBI, raising his average to .246. He still should not be the 2 hitter, but the Reds need him to hit around .260 (which he can do). At .260 with his glove, he is a very solid SS.

• Frazier Hitting…at least a little. His average is up to .242, still not great, but much better than where he was. Like Cozart, the Reds don’t need him to hit .300, but .260-.275 is where they need him, and Frazier is capable of that. Also promising, is Frazier’s RBI numbers – he is now has 31 RBIs and is on pace for 88. That would be a solid year. P.S. I still would like to see Frazier hit #2 in the lineup, but Dusty is not answering my calls, emails, texts, or tweets.

• Latos Continuing to Deal – If not for 4 blown saves by his bullpen, Latos would be 9-0. Let that sink in for a minute.

• Sam Lecure – when a man with that type of quality facial hair steps on the mound it is a good thing….it also helps that the guy is lights out. The Moustache Magician!

 

Not Good to See…

• Jonathan Broxton – He has had some good moments this year, but he also is sporting a 4.63 ERA and 3 Blown Saves. That ain’t good for your setup man.

• Dusty Baker’s refusal to use his best weapon for more than 3 outs – The Reds kept Chapman in the closer role this year – a move I disagreed with and still do – but, a move I can get behind IF they use Chapman effectively, i.e. to close games – even if that means 1+ innings – after all, he was a starter (not sure if Dusty knows of this), so you would think he could go 1+ innings.  At least twice now this year, Dusty’s refusal to put Chapman in for a 4 out close has cost the Reds. Sunday was a prime example: Bottom of the 8^th, 2 outs, Broxton looks his normal hittable self, and the tying run is at the plate…who also happens to be a lefty (and Broxton a righty) – and we all know Dusty subscribes to a lefty has to pitch to a lefty right? Wrong! Not when that “Book Rule” goes against another “Book Rule” which states that a closer can only get 3 outs, no more, and no less. This despite the fact that Garrette Jones hits .276 with 6 HRs and 28 RBIs vs righties (like Broxton) and swings a whopping .143 with 0 HRs and 0 RBIs vs lefties (and Chapman happens to be the most dominate lefty in the game)…Dusty must not have had that stat available to him yesterday. The reason why I like Chapman as a starter is his ability to impact 150-200 innings per year. As a closer, he impacted just 71 innings last year, the same pace he is on for this year. To date, the Reds best arm (Chapman) has pitched 26.0 innings in 58 games – that, to me, is a waste of his arm. Sunday, the Reds blew a game which Chapman could have impacted as a closer, yet wasted him on the bench because the scoreboard said Bottom 8 instead of Bottom 9.

• BP Out of the Lineup – Doesn’t seem like it will be long term, but BP is an RBI machine, something that is very difficult to replace (thankfully Dusty didn’t put Izturis in BP’s 4 spot in the order!).

• Choo Against Left Handed Pitching – I love Choo, but it is becoming more and more apparent that sitting Choo against lefties might be the best betYou hate to see him sit, but take a look at his splits:

Against Righties

AVG	HR	RBI	OBP	SLG	OPS
.343	10	16	.495	.643	1.138

 

Against Lefties

AVG	HR	RBI	OBP	SLG	OPS
.154	0	4	.321	.185	.506