Big Leagues- The Reds came on strong last year and made their way into the playoffs. But, their youth and inexperience showed when they ran into Roy Halladay and the Phillies. This year all their top players are a year only and Aroldis Chapman will be in the big leagues all year. Jay Bruce, Joey Votto, and Brandon Phillips are a potent middle of the order, especially when Phillips is in one of his hot streaks. The Reds resigned Bronson Arroyo for their staff and they are hoping Edinson Volquez can stay healthy. Their rotation is full of young arms and if some of them progress they could be very dangerous. Aroldis Chapman does not have a define role, but he will dominate where ever he is. Look for this team to make the playoffs again on the back of NL MVP Joey Votto. If their season started today their opening day lineup would look like this.
Catcher- Ramon Hernardez
1st Base- Joey Votto
2nd Base- Brandon Phillips
Shortstop- Paul Janish/Edgar Renteria
3rd Base- Scott Rolen
Left Field- Johnny Gomes
Center Field- Drew Stubbs
Right Field- Jay Bruce
Pitching- Johnny Cueto, Edinson Volquez, Bronson Arroyo, Homer Bailey, Travis Wood, Mike Leake, Aroldis Chapman
Relief- Aroldis Chapman, Francisco Cordero, Nick Masset
Top 5 Prospects
1B Yonder Alonso- The Cuban was the 7th overall draft pick in the 2008 draft, and has already burned through the Reds minor league system. Alonso does not do anything exceptionally well, but he has no weak links in his game. Last season he batted .290 with 15 home runs and 36 doubles in 132 games. He has decent plate discipline with 56 walks and only 92 strikeouts. The only problem with Alonso is he is a natural first basemen, and Joey Votto is blocking him. Look for the Reds to start him in Triple A and get him some experience in the outfield and call on his bat later in the year.
C Devin Mesoraco- The Reds 1st round pick in 2007 really emerged last year going through 3 minor league levels. In 113 games Mesoraco batted .302 with 26 home runs and 25 doubles. He only struck out 80 times, so he is not a major swing and miss worry. Mesoraco is looked at as the Reds catcher of the future, and it's only a matter of time before Ramon Hernandez gives way.
2B-SS Billy Hamilton-After being a high schooler drafted in the 2nd round of the 2009 draft, Hamilton finally came into his own in 69 games in 2010. Hamilton batted .318 with 13 doubles, 10 triples, and 48 stolen bases in Rookie Ball. Hamilton showed that he has a future as a speed demon middle infielder. He's still young to fully project, and it'll take a few years before we see his name in the Majors.
C- Yasmani Grandal- The Reds drafted Grandal with the 12th overall pick in the 2010 draft out of the University of Miami. With the emergence of Mesoraco, this gives the Reds two top catching prospects for years to come. He was originally drafted by the Red Sox out of high school, but opted for his scholarship at Miami. He made a good decision getting a $2.99 million dollar signing bonus with the Reds
3B- Juan Francisco-Francisco showed a very solid year in Triple A in the first 77 games batting .286 with 18 home runs and 26 doubles before getting called up to be a bench player for the Reds. There he batted .273 in 59 plate appearances. Scott Rolen will be with the Reds for another year and it looks like Francisco will begin the season in Triple A for more seasoning.
Payroll and Direction
The Reds are a mid market team with a 75 million dollar payroll last year. They have a great mix of stars, role players, prospects and young pitchers. Unfortunately, for the ownership they will need to spend some money very soon. They resigned Jay Bruce already in the offseason but if Joey Votto has another season like his MVP 2010 season, he is going to want big money. With young prospects like Yonder Alonso, Devin Mesoraco, and Billy Hamilton they have replacements for aging players like Ramon Hernandez. The Reds have a bright future and last year's playoff run was them finally turning the corner.
No comments:
Post a Comment