Cincinnati Reds Archive

  • Kimbrel, Johnson Look Dominant
    April 29, 2012

    Here’s a look at the top five fantasy relief pitchers as we’re close to the end of the first month of the regular season.

    1.  Jim Johnson, Orioles:

    Part of Johnson’s success has been that the Orioles are playing much better than anticipated, but kudos for Johnson for converting the opportunities he’s been given.  Though Johnson isn’t much of a strikeout threat, he’s been perfect this season and he should be a high value guy if you were able to get him.  If you get the right price, though, Johnson is the kind of guy you might want to consider selling.

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  • Cinci’s Young Staff Shows Promise
    May 14, 2011

    The Cincinnati Reds won the division in 2010 mostly due to their potent offensive attack, headlined by sluggers like reigning National league MVP Joey Votto, Brandon Philips and Drew Stubbs.  However, their long-term success could be based more on their young pitching staff and the major potential that group has shown.  “Edinson Volquez has shown flashes of being a potential No. 1 starter; Johnny Cueto already is a solid No. 2; Bronson Arroyo just wins 15 games and pitches 200 innings every year; Travis Wood has pinpoint control; Homer Bailey has the raw stuff to potentially become a No. 1; and Mike Leake and Sam LeCure are solid back-of-the-rotation arms,” writes ESPN’s Jim Bowden.  ”With one of baseball’s best defensive teams behind this young, strong rotation, the Reds are built to be a World Series-contending team over the next several seasons.”

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  • MLB Power Rankings
    April 11, 2011

    ESPN has released its first in-season MLB Power Rankings list, and it’s topped by the 2010 American League champion Texas Rangers.  No team in baseball boasts a more impressive run differential than the Rangers’ 58-26 mark, thanks in no small part to a potentially breaking-out Matt Harrison (14 IP, 1.29 ERA),” writes Joey Matschulat of Baseball Time In Arlington.  I must admit, I’m awfully surprised at the Rangers hot start.  I thought them to be somewhat of a flash-in-the-pan team last season, especially after losing Cliff Lee in the offseason.  I still think their pitching will ultimately be their undoing, but I’m getting less confident about that by the day.

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  • When Does Spring Training Matter?
    March 16, 2011

    The debate over whether preseason matters is one that runs rampant as each league’s season gets going.  In the NFL, the best players in the league barely even play in the games.  ESPN’s Buster Olney currently has an interesting article up discussing for whom spring training matters this year and for whom is does not.  Olney notes that for the Arizona Diamondbacks, the spring matters a lot.  “Arizona is 5-16 this spring, and in most years, the staff members wouldn’t care,” Olney writes.  ”But the Diamondbacks are coming off a terrible year in which their general manager (Josh Byrnes) and manager (A.J. Hinch) were fired, and manager Kirk Gibson has been drilling the team relentlessly.”

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