As you all know, the Reds pitchers and catchers are going to report to Spring Training in 10 days. Then it's here. Baseball will be back and I'm excited as the next person I'm sure. The Reds have made quite a few moves this offseason. The addition of Edgar Renteria, Fred Lewis, Jeremy Hermida, along with the loss of Arthur Rhodes who went to the AL Champion Rangers. There are a lot of questions on the team, even though they don't seem like bad situations to have.
The biggest question mark is going to be the starting rotation. There are 3 guys vying for the last 2 spots. Homer Bailey, Travis Wood, Mike Leake, and you can throw in Sam LeCure and Matt Maloney as long shots. I think Homer Bailey is going to be the fourth starter, with a nice battle going between Wood and Leake for the fifth spot. In the end, I see Leake winning the spot. But, who knows we haven't even started spring training and both of these guys had good years last year.
The left field situation is touchy, Jonny Gomes was the primary guy last year. He had an outstanding first few months but as the season went on, he slowed down. Fred Lewis and Jeremy Hermida are both options in left. Lewis seems like a decent option to be the lead off man we have lacked. Hermida is almost an experiment in my eyes, we already have a lot of outfield depth with Heisey and Lewis. I see a platoon happening with Gomes and Lewis in left and if one guy is out playing the other, they will become the primary guy.
Shortstop doesn't seem very settled to me, the Reds claim Janish is going to the the starting guy. But, I see Renteria getting more playing time if he brings his bat to the yard. Janish has always had an outstanding glove, but lacks any pop in his bad. Renteria is going to be a leader on this team replacing Orlando Cabrera from last year. In the end, these guys are going to split time and Renteria may play second every now and then to give Phillips a break.
A realistic expectation for me out of the Reds, I expect them to win the division again. The Cards haven't made any huge moves, Berkman's best days are past him without a doubt. Greinke in Milwaukee was a bad trade for the Brew Crew in my mind. This guy had one great season and couldn't follow it up. I know KC gave him no help but did they get worse from two years ago to last year? The Cubs are banking on their older, high priced vets to play up to their contracts. The addition of Carlos Pena doesn't seem to be a huge gain for them. I like our chances of a repeat division title.
I'm also taking Green Bay in the big game tonight! Who ya'll got?
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