So right Doc. Every spring hope blooms eternal and then in July reality smacks us in the face! They are my Reds though so I know I'll do a version of "Groundhog Day" again😐. I was struggling this morn and the song of the day shocked me out of it! Maybe pipe that into the locker room?
The Red's have been a version of Groundhog Day since D Bell was hired. Slow starts, long losing streaks at some point(s) during the season, poor fundamentals, etc. I like Bell, but it isn't working, never has. The time for change is here, but the front office and ownership is every bit to blame as well, time for change all the way around.
Some teams demand results, some (aka the Reds) hope for them. Karl seems to be bragging about the fish that got away, and he almost caught. Kinda like saying the other GMs are just better than I am. Is he delusional enough to think the Reds fans will be happy that we tried to make some big trades? Yanks grab Jazz, whose had 4 dingers in 4 days. How would he do at GABP?
On another note, what do you think of the Elam Ending in TBT games, it's awesome!
Very good rant. Yes, I’m tired, too, and I’m perpetually a Club optimist. The Reds powers-that-be, IMHO, suffer from two things:
1) A “Pete Rose Way” mentality - akin to the Beltway Mentality in D.C. they believe their own BS “inside the beltway” and think they are thisclose to having it all. They ain’t.
2) They forget that baseball in Cincinnati is part of our genetics. What might fool a fan in, say, Denver isn’t going to cut it here. IYKYK & we KNOW. They can stop insulting our collective intelligence any season now.
I know, I’m a broken record. Castellini is the real villain here. Bought club for $225M, Forbes says the Club is worth $1.1 Billion today. Sell the club Bob, take your $800Mil profit and find an owner with far deeper pockets than you so we can stop the “small market” bullshit we get fed every year. Nick Krall and David Bell insult our intelligence every time they open their mouth. Absent Castellini doing that you can write this same obituary for the Reds every year he remains the owner. The guy may be able to sell vegetables but he sure can’t run a successful major league ball club.
Well, gosh, Doc, we need to give these earthshattering trades a chance, don't we? I mean, jumping down the collective Reds throat before Nicky's wheeling and dealings have had a chance to bear fruit seems presumptuous. I fully expect Ty France to hit .400 with 10 dingers and 35 ribeyes. The kid from UC, Joey Whathisname, is gonna bloom into greatness any minute now. Previous history points that way, right? The Single A kid we got for Sims, well, that's a steal. You always want to get a deeply buried A level nobody for a proven MLBer, right? Brilliant work, Nicky boy.
I woulda stuck Sims into Montas' place in the rotation and said " Gimme 5 good innings now and then, and you're my Montas 2.0." I'm beng serious. But, no. Krall idiotically dumps major league talent for a Single A nobody, brings in a bunch of .200 hitters in lukewarm trades, and picks up a below average reliever. All dog-doo moves. Then he dares to compliment himself in the media and brags, as usual, about all his just-missed deals. The guy is a straight-up, yes-man buffoon, no question. If we keep putting up with him, and the idiots that own the team, without complaint, then that's what we'll keep getting.
Bell have already proven his ineptness over and over again. Same with ownership and Krall. If we want a winner here,we gotta demand one. Pressure the media. Fly banners over the stadium. Boycott. Castellin is old and senile. He is no longer tenable at owning a team. He and his son need to go. Change has to start at the very top to fix the Reds.
Enough with the riffs, the raffs, and the rants. I am now leaning into a timeless and therapeutic chant (“All we are saying is give Krall a chance”). Rinse, repeat, and sway.
I agree with a lot of the comments about the FO complacency and even some of the criticism leveled at DBell (especially regarding the lack of fundamentals!!!)
But can I offer a little bit of a wider perspective? Last year we all entered the season expecting 65 wins. A 12 game win streak helped to propel them into relevance and perhaps gave us a false positive.
Let’s assume that, in place of going on a 12 game heater, they went a still very good 8-4 and instead of finishing 80-82 they finish out 76-86 which is the same record as MPWS. Had that happen, I think our expectations would have been a bit different going into this year.
I think that Hunter Greene’s body of work this year shows that he is learning to be a pitcher and not just a thrower. And hopefully that growth and development is a microcosm of the teams growth. So maybe…. just maybe….most of these guys are actually on track with their development.
You might need a ladder to fill it, but taller pole. Right now, you are giving the deer a meal at muzzle-level.
I'm happy to watch a fun team that could put it together. They might not, but I'll still watch. Except for the years I wouldn't watch MLB at all (15 years immediately following the '94 "work stoppage" bs), I remain a patient Reds fan. Go look at the stats from 1982-84. No OPS as high as 800. Those years were not as fun.
The Reds have been/are/will continue to be frustrating. They show flashes of hope with follow-ups of despair within games and series and throughout years/decades.
The Castellini’s are hucksters who can do bobble-head, cheap hot dog, and throwback nights, but lack the capacity (or desire) to formulate and manage a successful big league team. They are produce people who can’t produce. They, like many family-owned professional sports franchises, enjoy a comfortable revenue stream from league TV and gambling money. There is no financial incentive to excel.
Our hope is that young, enthusiastic players like those currently with the club will change the culture of the organization, as Joe Burrow has, at least for now, done with The Brown Family Bengals. Otherwise, just enjoy the night out.
I was a little taken aback recently when I pulled up the Wild Card standings and noticed the Reds' runs scored/allowed differential. It's pretty good. The win/loss record doesn't match. Place the blame where you will. The Reds do have some good young talent and this Team has under-achieved. That should generate change, either a little or a lot.
One explanation is Bell's fixation on using Cruz and Sims in late inning, key situations. Cruz alone has 8 losses. There are several other better relievers so I don't understand why he keeps putting them in to blow leads and lose games. Cruz was good at the beginning of the season, but has over 5.00 ERA now.
One conclusion I've come to is tha Bell is extremely conservative and slow to change. He seems to prefer waiting out cold streaks out of some misguided loyalty to his players rather than taking action to change the situation and improve overall results. This is why he has managed the Reds into some really long losing streaks and why there is major frustration among fans at his slowness to respond to and fix obvious problems. He's too stubborn and has a weird, false sense of loyalty to players that he values over winning. That's not how winning managers manage.
I agree, the talent is there, yet something is missing. Dave Bell has had 6 years. That's more than a reasonable amt of time to show what he can do. I'd love to see what a guy like Joe Maddon would do with these guys. Players respond well to his off beat style. Or maybe Pat Kelly in Louisville. The Reds front office is stuck in neutral, The purse strings are too tight, and Krall's dullness as a wheeler-dealer has been mostly ineffective. Something has to give, or we'll be living Groundhog Day around here ad infinitum. Changes are a resonable expectation.
I agree that this team isn't really that bad, and that it does offer reasonable hope for the future. They have young, exciting, and talented players. But the now-expanded wildcard was just what the doctor ordered for owners like Bob. The bar of "success" has been significantly lowered, so now the Reds and other like-minded franchises are basically shooting for 86 wins or so, and when they fall just short of that and win say 82 games, they can claim they had a "successful season" and that they just "barely fell short". Moreover, there's less incentive to try and make any potential big splashes at the deadline because, if you think your roster can win 86-88 games, there's no reason to spend more $ to win 93-95 games. It's frustrating as a fan.
Once again at the trade deadline the Reds do the equivalent of kissing your sister.
So right Doc. Every spring hope blooms eternal and then in July reality smacks us in the face! They are my Reds though so I know I'll do a version of "Groundhog Day" again😐. I was struggling this morn and the song of the day shocked me out of it! Maybe pipe that into the locker room?
Are you saying that trading for multiple players who were DFA by other teams is not the recipe for building a championship team?
The Red's have been a version of Groundhog Day since D Bell was hired. Slow starts, long losing streaks at some point(s) during the season, poor fundamentals, etc. I like Bell, but it isn't working, never has. The time for change is here, but the front office and ownership is every bit to blame as well, time for change all the way around.
Some teams demand results, some (aka the Reds) hope for them. Karl seems to be bragging about the fish that got away, and he almost caught. Kinda like saying the other GMs are just better than I am. Is he delusional enough to think the Reds fans will be happy that we tried to make some big trades? Yanks grab Jazz, whose had 4 dingers in 4 days. How would he do at GABP?
On another note, what do you think of the Elam Ending in TBT games, it's awesome!
Very good rant. Yes, I’m tired, too, and I’m perpetually a Club optimist. The Reds powers-that-be, IMHO, suffer from two things:
1) A “Pete Rose Way” mentality - akin to the Beltway Mentality in D.C. they believe their own BS “inside the beltway” and think they are thisclose to having it all. They ain’t.
2) They forget that baseball in Cincinnati is part of our genetics. What might fool a fan in, say, Denver isn’t going to cut it here. IYKYK & we KNOW. They can stop insulting our collective intelligence any season now.
I know, I’m a broken record. Castellini is the real villain here. Bought club for $225M, Forbes says the Club is worth $1.1 Billion today. Sell the club Bob, take your $800Mil profit and find an owner with far deeper pockets than you so we can stop the “small market” bullshit we get fed every year. Nick Krall and David Bell insult our intelligence every time they open their mouth. Absent Castellini doing that you can write this same obituary for the Reds every year he remains the owner. The guy may be able to sell vegetables but he sure can’t run a successful major league ball club.
Any significant interest I had in the Reds left when Marty did. Because I'm a big fan of honesty.
Well, gosh, Doc, we need to give these earthshattering trades a chance, don't we? I mean, jumping down the collective Reds throat before Nicky's wheeling and dealings have had a chance to bear fruit seems presumptuous. I fully expect Ty France to hit .400 with 10 dingers and 35 ribeyes. The kid from UC, Joey Whathisname, is gonna bloom into greatness any minute now. Previous history points that way, right? The Single A kid we got for Sims, well, that's a steal. You always want to get a deeply buried A level nobody for a proven MLBer, right? Brilliant work, Nicky boy.
I woulda stuck Sims into Montas' place in the rotation and said " Gimme 5 good innings now and then, and you're my Montas 2.0." I'm beng serious. But, no. Krall idiotically dumps major league talent for a Single A nobody, brings in a bunch of .200 hitters in lukewarm trades, and picks up a below average reliever. All dog-doo moves. Then he dares to compliment himself in the media and brags, as usual, about all his just-missed deals. The guy is a straight-up, yes-man buffoon, no question. If we keep putting up with him, and the idiots that own the team, without complaint, then that's what we'll keep getting.
Bell have already proven his ineptness over and over again. Same with ownership and Krall. If we want a winner here,we gotta demand one. Pressure the media. Fly banners over the stadium. Boycott. Castellin is old and senile. He is no longer tenable at owning a team. He and his son need to go. Change has to start at the very top to fix the Reds.
I’m glad to see I’m not the only one that doesn’t care for John screamer Sadak.he had Elly in the hall of fame a week after coming up.
Enough with the riffs, the raffs, and the rants. I am now leaning into a timeless and therapeutic chant (“All we are saying is give Krall a chance”). Rinse, repeat, and sway.
Here is an unpopular opinion….
I agree with a lot of the comments about the FO complacency and even some of the criticism leveled at DBell (especially regarding the lack of fundamentals!!!)
But can I offer a little bit of a wider perspective? Last year we all entered the season expecting 65 wins. A 12 game win streak helped to propel them into relevance and perhaps gave us a false positive.
Let’s assume that, in place of going on a 12 game heater, they went a still very good 8-4 and instead of finishing 80-82 they finish out 76-86 which is the same record as MPWS. Had that happen, I think our expectations would have been a bit different going into this year.
I think that Hunter Greene’s body of work this year shows that he is learning to be a pitcher and not just a thrower. And hopefully that growth and development is a microcosm of the teams growth. So maybe…. just maybe….most of these guys are actually on track with their development.
Well, I'll just take my wavering optimism and put it back in the box for now.
You might need a ladder to fill it, but taller pole. Right now, you are giving the deer a meal at muzzle-level.
I'm happy to watch a fun team that could put it together. They might not, but I'll still watch. Except for the years I wouldn't watch MLB at all (15 years immediately following the '94 "work stoppage" bs), I remain a patient Reds fan. Go look at the stats from 1982-84. No OPS as high as 800. Those years were not as fun.
The Reds have been/are/will continue to be frustrating. They show flashes of hope with follow-ups of despair within games and series and throughout years/decades.
The Castellini’s are hucksters who can do bobble-head, cheap hot dog, and throwback nights, but lack the capacity (or desire) to formulate and manage a successful big league team. They are produce people who can’t produce. They, like many family-owned professional sports franchises, enjoy a comfortable revenue stream from league TV and gambling money. There is no financial incentive to excel.
Our hope is that young, enthusiastic players like those currently with the club will change the culture of the organization, as Joe Burrow has, at least for now, done with The Brown Family Bengals. Otherwise, just enjoy the night out.
I was a little taken aback recently when I pulled up the Wild Card standings and noticed the Reds' runs scored/allowed differential. It's pretty good. The win/loss record doesn't match. Place the blame where you will. The Reds do have some good young talent and this Team has under-achieved. That should generate change, either a little or a lot.
One explanation is Bell's fixation on using Cruz and Sims in late inning, key situations. Cruz alone has 8 losses. There are several other better relievers so I don't understand why he keeps putting them in to blow leads and lose games. Cruz was good at the beginning of the season, but has over 5.00 ERA now.
Career hardly makes a case for being a close that's for sure
Games. W-L. ERA
124 4-11 4.43
One conclusion I've come to is tha Bell is extremely conservative and slow to change. He seems to prefer waiting out cold streaks out of some misguided loyalty to his players rather than taking action to change the situation and improve overall results. This is why he has managed the Reds into some really long losing streaks and why there is major frustration among fans at his slowness to respond to and fix obvious problems. He's too stubborn and has a weird, false sense of loyalty to players that he values over winning. That's not how winning managers manage.
I agree, the talent is there, yet something is missing. Dave Bell has had 6 years. That's more than a reasonable amt of time to show what he can do. I'd love to see what a guy like Joe Maddon would do with these guys. Players respond well to his off beat style. Or maybe Pat Kelly in Louisville. The Reds front office is stuck in neutral, The purse strings are too tight, and Krall's dullness as a wheeler-dealer has been mostly ineffective. Something has to give, or we'll be living Groundhog Day around here ad infinitum. Changes are a resonable expectation.
I agree that this team isn't really that bad, and that it does offer reasonable hope for the future. They have young, exciting, and talented players. But the now-expanded wildcard was just what the doctor ordered for owners like Bob. The bar of "success" has been significantly lowered, so now the Reds and other like-minded franchises are basically shooting for 86 wins or so, and when they fall just short of that and win say 82 games, they can claim they had a "successful season" and that they just "barely fell short". Moreover, there's less incentive to try and make any potential big splashes at the deadline because, if you think your roster can win 86-88 games, there's no reason to spend more $ to win 93-95 games. It's frustrating as a fan.