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2012 MLB Team Preview: Cincinnati Reds

Posted by on 21 March 2012, 9:08 pm

Coming into 2011, the Cincinnati Reds were coming off a 91-game winning season and were the NL CentralChampions.

Cincinnati Reds logo.

Yes, the 2010 Reds finish came as a surprise but no one thought their luck would run out like it did in 2011.

Last year the Reds finished in third place in the NL Central with a 79-83 record, 17 games behind the first place St. Louis Cardinals. One difference between 2010 is that the Reds were 8-7 compared to 6-12 in 2011 interleague play; and teams they had feasted, like the Pirates and Mets that helped them win the division in 2010 crushed them in 2011.

Overall the 2011 Reds looked nothing like the team who led the NL in homers, batting average, RBIs, hits and runs just a season before.

The team’s numbers dropped in almost every stat but they did hit 183 homers in 2011, which is just five less than 2010. The rotation’s ERA barely moved going from 4.01 to 4.16 and their strikeout total scarcely fell from 1130 to 1114. So, at least the team still has power in their bats and it would seem that the pitching is fixable.

Now the question is are the Reds good enough to bring baseball glory back to Cincinnati in October 2012?

Let’s take a peak….

THE POSITIVES:

Improved weaknesses…At first I was stunned when the news broke that the Reds had traded for Padres pitcher Mat Latos because of the amount of talent the Reds surrendered, three of their top 10 prospects and Edinson Volquez. Latos joins a pitching rotation that features emerging-ace Johnny Cueto who went 9-5, 2.31 in 24 starts last season, Bronson Arroyo, Mike Leake, and Homer Bailey. Latos is a 24-year old righty, who threw 194 innings with 185 strikeouts in 2011. Latos has kept opposing hitters to a .226 batting average and posted a 3.37 ERA in his three-year career. In hindsight the trade now looks like a rather smart deal considering the free agent market and the potential for Latos to become consistently dominate.

The bullpen also got a needed boost by signing closer Ryan Madson to a one-year, $8.5 million deal, and trading for a rock-solid left-handed reliever Sean Marshall. Madson save 32 games for the Phillies in 2011 and will be looking to make an impression in 2012 so he can secure a bigger contract; and Marshal pitched 75 innings, posted a 2.26 ERA with 79 strikeouts for the Cubs last season.

THE NEGATIVES: Continue reading ‘2012 MLB Team Preview: Cincinnati Reds’ »

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2012 MLB Team Preview: Chicago Cubs

Posted by on 12 March 2012, 5:36 pm

Old-school Chicago Cubs Logo

The Chicago Cubs were in dire need for a big change, as they hit rock bottom in 2011.

The Cubs couldn’t score runs, had the most errors in baseball with 134 in total and finished the season 71-91. Everything bad that happened did and looking at the bigger picture maybe this was the best thing that could have happened in Chicago because ownership stopped trying to fix things on the field and realized things needed to be changed starting with the front-office structure.

So, is this the season that the Cubs get back on track or will things crash and burn again in Wrigley Field?

Let’s take a peak….

THE POSITIVES:

The Cubs ownership realized that they needed to shake this club and remold it from the top. And that is what they did when they hired former Red Sox’s GM Theo Epstein to be the team’s president of baseball operations and if anyone in baseball can fix a broken team it is Epstein. Epstein brought over Jed Hoyar to serve as the team’s GM, as like Epstein is an analytical-minded thinker and he knows the importance of scouting. Hoyar did a tremendous job revamping the Padres farm system and should thrive in Chicago.

Epstein also hired Dale Sveum to be the team’s skipper. Sveum is the perfect fit for a team that needs to get back to the fundamentals, while maintaining a positive and respectful atmosphere. Word on the street is that Sveum is already making a huge difference down in Spring Training camp, and that must music to Cubs fans ears.

In the grand scheme of things, one-way to look at 2012 is that things couldn’t get any worse than 2011.

THE NEGATIVES: Continue reading ‘2012 MLB Team Preview: Chicago Cubs’ »

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2012 MLB Team Preview: St. Louis Cardinals

Posted by on 4 March 2012, 10:35 pm
St. Louis Cardinals

St. Louis Cardinals

To keep with tradition, I will start my 2012 MLB team by team previews with the defending 2011 World Series Champions, the St. Louis Cardinals.

The 2012 Cardinals will look a lot different from last year’s team, as the two biggest faces of the franchise are no longer there.

POSITIVES:

The Cardinals won the World Series without ace Adam Wainwright who got hurt last Spring Training and was out for the season after needing Tommy John surgery.

Getting a pitcher back, who in 2010 posted a 20-11 record, with a 2.42 ERA, striking out 213, with five complete games and two shutouts in just over 230 innings pitched is surely a HUGE boost.

Wainwright is one of the best pitchers in baseball, and at 30 years old is just entering what is considered to be his prime years.

Wainwright and Chris Carpenter were one of the best one-two pitching combos in all of baseball before the injury and I expect them to be that again.

NEGATIVES:

It seriously still boggles my mind that the Cardinals let baseball’s best player, Albert Pujols, walk after winning the World Series.

Pujols was the face of the Cardinals, a leader and wanted to finish his career in St. Louis but the Cardinals didn’t want to pay the market price for a player of Pujols caliber.

I have spoken to some Cardinal fans and the sheer disappointment in losing Pujols. One even when as far as to say: “I would give back the 2011 WS to have Pujols for life.”

That seems a tad extreme, but Pujols was that kind of player.

So, does losing Pujols cripple the Cardinals heading in to 2012?

Well, the Cards will certainly look different, as Pujols’s star power is irreparable and so is his bat.

Luckily for St. Louis fans, the NL Central has lost a lot of its competitive edge across the board but is that enough to make up for losing Albert’s bat?

The Cardinals did sign Carlos Beltran but don’t hold your breath that he will ever be what he was back in 2004 or 2006, blame the Mets for overpaying him for his real worth. Beltran has been going downhill for a few too many seasons to expect a resurge at age 35.

Also, the Cardinals are without the other most familiar face skipper Tony LaRussa who retired after last season.

LaRussa was a mastermind in the postseason by mixing up of a so-so bullpen into a championship caliber group.

Hopefully the players can adjust without the man who has led them the last 16-seasons, but also remember that pitching coach Dave Duncan is taking a leave of absence for 2012 season to be with his ailing wife so that is another familiar face that will not be around.

PLAYER(s)/GAME-CHANGERS TO WATCH: Continue reading ‘2012 MLB Team Preview: St. Louis Cardinals’ »

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Maybe New York Yankees Alex Rodriquez respects Ryan Braun herpes

Posted by on 27 February 2012, 5:02 am
Ryan Braun

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Let me be clear by stating that Alex Rodriguez has never said anything about Ryan Braun’s failed drug test having to do with him taking medicine for herpes.

Of course A-rod wouldn’t because he knows better, as Derek Jeter would have failed way before Braun… right?

Kidding again. But now to the point, as this Braun saga is getting annoying but I wanted to weigh in my opinion.

So, there are three things that bothered me after I heard that Braun’s 50-game suspension got overturned last Thursday.

Quick Summary of the Braun Saga (for the readers who live in a cave):

Last Thursday the news broke that Milwaukee Brewers Ryan Braun had beat the system.

Braun’s urine tested positive for a banned substance last October, but he will not serve one day of the standard 50-game suspension given to first time offenders.

It marks the first time an arbitrator has ever reversed a player’s appeal of the embargo set by MLB for a drug testing violation.

Braun’s legal eagles had the 50-game suspension overturned due to a loophole found in MLB’s Drug Treatment and Prevention Program Policies.

His lawyers made the case that the samples were wrongly handled by the authorized CDT Sports Collector, aka the test’s collector, which insinuates that there was possible tampering.

In the MLB Collection Procedures and Testing Protocols, the policy states that the sample is supposed to get to FedEx as soon as possible. Read policy HERE, page 18.

In Braun’s case the collector said that FedEx was already closed so he kept the sample in his fridge overnight and sent it out when FedEx reopened.

And that is the grey area that has won Braun his freedom from suspension, but what about his test results?

1) Braun you talk too much:

Braun finally addressed the matter for the first time last Friday, which was one-day post-verdict, at the Brewers Spring Training facility in Arizona.

To me Braun’s words sounded scripted and angry. He went on and on as if he was persecuted and unjustly framed due to a “fatally flawed” testing system.

He disclosed that the test’s collector did not follow the guidelines set under MLB’s Collection Procedure; there was no mention to whether Braun did or didn’t juice, or if the test was tampered with. He beat the system, but why does this seem to only happen in MLB?

The long-winded explanation triggered that feeling when you know someone is lying because they’re talking too much about why it is not their fault and in the end they come-off looking guiltier.

2) So ultimately Braun’s defensive team won citing incorrect protocol but what about his test results changed?

The answer is nothing.

Maybe you will find comfort in knowing that MLB Commissioner’s Office ‘vehemently disagrees’ by the outcome, but personally I find that a little hard to believe. Continue reading ‘Maybe New York Yankees Alex Rodriquez respects Ryan Braun herpes’ »

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New York Yankees: Finally Say Adios To Sergio Mitre

Posted by on 25 March 2011, 11:50 am
Sergio Mitre

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Ex-New York Yankees Sergio Mitre is a phrase I have been waiting to hear for two years.

Well, according to a tweet from ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick, this is now fact, as the Brewers are bringing the talents of Mitre to the city of Milwaukee.

What talents did the Brew Crew just acquire?

Not quite sure, but the Brewers are currently missing their two aces Zack Greinke and Shaun Marcum so presumably Mitre would be used as a filler.

The Sporting News reported that Marcum should be ready to go at the start of the season, but Greinke’s broken ribs are a few weeks away from returning.

So, Mitre will replace Greinke temporarily in April or be used as a long man, but who cares not soenthing Yankee fans need to worry about any longer. The Brewers will face the Reds, Phillies, Braves and Cubs in the month of April, which is tough bunch of NL hitting teams. Well, I guess the Brewers are hoping for a speedy recovery because if it is the Mitre Yankee fans grew to know he will get slammed by these hard hitting clubs.

This means the Yankees rotation is almost set with Sabathia, Burnett, Hughes, Nova and Colon/Garcia/Millwood. Garcia said he will take a bullpen job and he is a way better option then Mitre.

This move gets two thumbs up and a snap, as Mitre should have been let go way before this.

Hopefully skipper Joe Girardi will not be too heartbroken by the break-up, but I just hope Mitre doesn’t let the door hit him on the way out.

Six days and counting till the regular season….

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2011 MLB Team Preview: Cincinnati Reds

Posted by on 25 March 2011, 5:45 am

After a 14-year postseason drought, the Cincinnati Reds finally made it back to October after winning the NL Central in 2010.

Facing the Phillies in the NLDS proved too much for this young team, as they didn’t win one game but were so content just to be there.

This led to the popular question, were the Reds just lucky last year? Or are they a team for fans to really get excited about in 2011?

Let’s take a look at the Cincinnati Reds:

The Positives:

2011 was predicted as the year the Reds would be competitive in the NL Central, making last year a pleasant surprise. It looks as if virtually the same team is returning from 2010, but should be a little wiser after experiencing the post season.

The batting line-up is young and led by the 27-year-old, reigning NL MVP 1B Joey Votto, who posted a .324 batting average, with 37 home-runs, 113 RBIs and managed to steal 16 bases too.

Votto did get some help from 23-year-old Jay Bruce, 25 year-old Drew Stubbs and veteran Scott Rolan’s hot bats that neighbored him in the line-up. Bruce finished with 70 RBIs, 25 home-runs and posting a .281 batting average, while Stubbs had 22 home-runs, 77 RBIs, with a .255 batting average.

The bats are the Reds muscle but how strong rest on the shoulders of the three youngsters (Bruce, Votto and Stubbs). Bruce and Stubbs could break out in 2011, like Votto did last year at least that is the plan.

Not to leave out the Reds bullpen, which features the highly talked about Cuban phenom Aroldis Chapman. Chapman broke the MLB for fastest pitch clocking a 105+ mph fastball in 2010. Chapman could become a dominant closer and will definitely play that roll a few times in the upcoming season. Considering Chapman’s price tag, the Reds will try him out in the rotation but doubt it will be this season. For now he can shorten games and eat some innings for the starters.

The Negatives:

The Reds don’t have a true ace on their pitching staff to go out there every fifth day. The rotation’s success will depend on veteran, 34 year-old Bronson Arroyo and Edison Volquez, who is still recovering from 2009 Tommy John surgery.

Rounding out the bottom includes the undependable Johnny Cueto and an ineffective Homer Bailey.

GO figure that Cueto will start the season on the DL, missing the month of April due to shoulder soreness. That is never a good diagnosis.

Bailey is 24-years old ex-phenom, who has not come close to his lavish days in the minors. Bailey from the past is what everyone is still hoping to see, but his 4.46 ERA, 109 hits over 109 innings has to improve. Bailey did strike out 100 batters, but walking 40 hitters counteracts the one positive.

The team’s hope is that youngsters Travis Wood and Mike Leake continue to improve on 2010 performances. These two had roles in getting to the Reds to the playoffs. Sans Cueto, both Leake and Wood will start the season in the rotation, which gives the two a nice little battle to keep a spot. My guess is Wood will remain in the rotation all season; Leake stays until Cueto gets healthy.

Bottom line is this rotation is not ideal because Arroyo is getting up there. It is doubtful he can win 17 games and throw 200+ innings again in 2011. Volquez was an ace in 2008, but getting back there is tough and only time will tell. Volquez was named the Opening Day starter earlier this week.

Somehow skipper Dusty Baker, who has been known to destroy pitcher’s arms (i.e. destroyer of ‘Chicago Heat’ of Prior and Wood) has to make this work without losing any arms to injury. He did it last season, maybe he learned from past mistakes. Continue reading ‘2011 MLB Team Preview: Cincinnati Reds’ »

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2011 MLB Team Preview: Milwaukee Brewers

Posted by on 18 March 2011, 10:34 am

Whether things are good or bad in Milwaukee, the Brewers have a devout and loyal fanbase that shows-up.

Heading into 2011, the Brewers look the best they have in years but the fans are used to getting excited but know that their team is famous for being the kings of almost.

Could 2011 be the year of the Brew Crew?

Maybe, let’s take a look at the Brewers heading into the season:

The Positives:

The Brewers had a great off-season, fixing up an ineffective pitching staff to match their potent offense by adding two ace arms in Zach Greinke and Shaun Marcum.

The Brewers 1-4 starters are good enough to rival the Phillies for best in the NL.

Offensively remaining one of the most feared line-ups in the games with Prince Fielder, Ryan Braun, Corey Hart and Rickie Weeks. Weeks and Fielder can hit the open market at the end of 2011, so regardless if they stay or go their numbers will determine their paycheck, so expect big years from both. Ryan and Braun need to get on base a lot because these to can steal 20+ bases in 2011.

Look for an MVP season form Braun, who is in my top five list of possible players to win the award in 2011. Braun will be hitting clean up in a potent line-up and with the team being in the hunt for October and the above factors my bet is the team will produce, which Braun will benefit from.

New manager Ron Roenicke was a coach with the Angels for the last 10 seasons. The Brewers are hoping he follows in his old ex-Angel colleagues’, Joe Maddon and Bud Black’s footsteps. Roenicke will surely bring the Angels base-stealing mentality as that is inevitable after being under Mike Scioscia for so long. Hey it does work and the Brewers have the players to be a threat, so let’s see if he can bring some energy back to the Brew Crew.

The Negatives:

The pressure is on in Milwaukee, as all the off-season moves have depleted the team’s farm system.

Add that to Fielder and Weeks both in contract season’s makes 2011 a do or die situation in Milwaukee.

The improvements could be short lived if the team misses the playoffs. This is no secret and inevitably will weigh on the players shoulders and Milwaukee’s loyal fanbase will make sure they don’t forget it.

Neither will new skipper Roenicke, as he has made it clear that he has one set of rules for every player and that the team is always playing as a contender, with the World Series in mind.

As positive as Roenicke has been as the Brewers are showing some life again in Spring Training…could he be to overwhelming for a group who is used to never living up to expectations?

It is too early to tell, but it is the last six weeks that Roenicke’s effectiveness will be judged.

Players To Watch:

2B Rickie Weeks is what makes this Brewers offense so deadly. Weeks is in his prime at age 27 and just watching him play is enough to realize that he is a superstar. Problem is Weeks cannot stay healthy long enough to transform into a household name, but he did manage to start to display consistency in 2010. Last season, Weeks’ bat posted 29 home-runs, 32 doubles, 83 RBIs, 175 hits and four triples. He needs to lower his strikeout numbers, as Weeks he had 184 in 2010. The Brewers rewarded Weeks with a four-year, $38.5 million dollar contract with a fifth year option in this off-season, so he is being paid like a star. Continue reading ‘2011 MLB Team Preview: Milwaukee Brewers’ »

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