Nationals 7, Reds 3
The Reds aren't scoring runs. The starting rotation is a little patchwork and a lot of holes. They've lost five straight. And Phil Dumatrait's major league debut was a major flop.
Then, after the completion of the sweep by the Washington Nationals Thursday, a young member of the media from the nation's capital asked Pete Mackanin if he could take anything positive out of series.
I hope the kid never asks Lou Piniella a question like that. Mackanin was polite but he concluded with: "(Blank) no."
Thursday was the low point of Mackanin's stint. He's gotten the team to bounced back before, but it's going to be hard to do again.
posted by John Fay at 10:30 PM
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Post a Comment*John- Any word on the Reds being interested in released Indians RP Fernando Cabrera? Throws mid-90s, can't be worse than Coffey, only problem is unless the D-Rays get hot in the next 6 days they have first dibs on him, with the Reds(playing so bad I can't even say we anymore) being next in line. Always could throw somebody that could clear waivers at Cleveland for him though.
I'd pay to see anyone ask Pinella that after a similar streak...
Then again, I'd pay to have the Cincinnati media ask far tougher questions of Reds (mis)Management.
Mac needs to find the magic again before this gets further out of hand. Whatever he was doing just a week ago is having no effect. It's like the L-Dopa has worn off and the Awakening is over. While A-Gon did hit a 2-run blast tonight, I think it's really L-Dopey to have him starting and Keppinger on the bench, I hope that the off-night for Keppinger is just an isolated incident but really, what is wrong with the Reds ownership? What teams give so much rest to their starters? And Keppinger is in no way inferior to A-Gon.
If Grady Sizemore can run around all day and all night in Cleveland with nary a day off, why can't Keppinger and the rest of the BEST players on this team get put in a proper SLOT in the lineup where they will play, barring injury for 2 or 3 months straight at a time?
What is so hard to understand about that? You don't see ANY other team in the majors screw around with their starting lineup and starters even half as much as the Reds do, and it has to have both a negative morale impact and a physical impact too.
Nothing but years and years to come of fan misery in this town.
Thanks again, so very much, Castellini!
You can practically take a sub .500 2008 and sub .500 2009 to the bank now. D-word!
Years ago I was a reporter for a local radio station. I heard another reporter ask Lou Piniella a similar question. I thought Lou was coming over his desk! Piniella asked "if somebody yanks you into an alley and kicks the s--- out of you....do you find anything positive in that?
good stuff John!
Two weeks ago everyone was ready to give Pete a contract extension
Too funny
I'd rather have Bowden as GM than Krivsky. At least with Bowden at the helm, things were interesting & it was clear that he was attempting to put together a good team. One can't blame Bowden because Griffey tremendously underperformed when he came over here as a Red -- Bowden thought he was getting the Griffey from Seattle. The Griffey that the Reds have had for the past 7 years -- but for his contract -- would have been released a long time ago. Griffey should "retire" as a Mariner -- he has certainly done nothing to distinguish himself as a Red.
Don't the Nationals have a smaller payroll than the Reds? Without question, in my mind, Bowden is a better GM than anyone that the Reds have had since he was let go.
The collapse of the Reds this season is pretty awful ... particularly given the expectations going into the season ... but let's all remember, it's just a game ... when considered in the context of real anguish ... like the Minnesota bridge collapse, and resulting injuries and loss of life ... it doesn't seem nearly as painful. The Reds will turn this thing around ... unfortunately, it will not be this season.
Everyone knows the Reds need pitching. They better learn to develop it, because they don’t have the money to pay for it.
Few talk about their line-up, which has been pathetic. Against the Nationals they didn’t average 2 runs a game. I don’t know what the Reds will do off-season, but here is what they need.
1. Ryan Freel as a utility player not a starter. He is too valuable in a utility role and too fragile to play every day.
2. A right handed heavy hitter at first base.
3. A third baseman that can field his position and provide a little pop with his bat.
4. A catcher that is more productive at the plate.
5. A center fielder with speed who can lead-off
6. Josh Hamilton in left.
Walker
44 yrs. following this team and this is the most embarrassed I've been. Worst group of right-handed hitters ever. Wayne and Bob have their hands full to fix this mess.
The Reds have gone further down the drain. Let's hope that Dumatrait's start was just nerves, and that he will do much better against the Dodgers the next time out. As for Saturday, what are we going to do? Bailey is on the DL, Ramirez can't be called up until the eleventh, and Livingston has been bad enough, so we don't need him on short rest. Anyone else want to see what Cueto can do?
I'm pretty sure it's Adam Dunn's fault. Marty told me.
My company has had season tickets (4) for over twenty years. We never want to let them go because they are such good seats and we keep waiting for the great season we have been promised over and over. We are seriously thinking about giving them up for next year. I certainly don't want to go to any more games this year! It isn't fun anymore!
If you've been a fan for 44 years and you don't remember 1971 and 1982 as being worse than this, you're not much of a fan.
To say Bowden--the very architect of why this organization is in this place today--is a better GM than anyone not named Daffy Duck or Foghorn Leghorn is beyond accreditation of baseball common sense.
And to even contemplate why Gonzo plays over Keppinger is yet another in a seasonlong of daily and exhausting rants of intemperance by Justin, who was long, long advanced in winning the 2007 Reds Blogging Dope of the Year.
Congratulations!
I dont see how you can blame Mackanin for this recent downturn, just like you couldn't run out and give him an extension when they came out of the all-star break running...this is a bad baseball team-it wasnt Narrons fault and it sure isnt Mackanins either
I wouldn't necessarily call it a "major" flop, a flop it definitely was, but I wasn't expecting his A-game on his very first Major League appearance. Can you imagine the butterflies?? Now, if he has the same stats next start, then it's a major flop.
Two weeks ago, when everyone wanted to bring Mac back, the Reds were playing and looking like a "new" team.
Suddenly, the Narron Reds are back.
Sorry but Mac gets the credit when things are good, and the blame when things are bad, unless the Reds are merely losing (but playing well).
Losing stinks but there's a big difference between losing and playing hard and smart, and losing and beating yourself and playing stupidly.
Pinella is a great manager. Mac appeared to be far different than Narron but with the stupid lineups the needless off-days for young healthy SUPERIOR PLAYERS (Keppinger Keppinger Keppinger), and the ridiculously poor morale that has RETURNED, he's no better than Winnie the Pooh I (Narron) and unless he throws some Pinella like tantrums, he should go.
Of all the teams in baseball, it's the Reds who should be breaking out into fist fights. If I were on the Reds, I'd want to get the hell off this team because under Krivsky and Castellini the Reds are going nowhere special and doing nothing but dialing in losing season after losing season.
By the way, any improvement in Dumatrait's nerves will be offset by the quality upgrade--the Dodgers have a better team than the Nats and should knock Dumatrait out early too.
19 games under .500 and heading for a season close of 30 or more games under .500!
To quote Borat: Niiiiiiace!
Speaking of Sacha Baron Cohen, is he available to pitch for the Reds tomorrow?
Tampa Bay is 25 games under .500. I'm pretty sure that if the Reds played Tampa Bay in a seven game series, one each month for the next five years, the Reds would win 1 or w of those series, TB would win the rest. If the Reds played in the American League East, I'm sure they'd already be 35-40 games under .500 by now.
If the Reds played 162 games against Washington, for some reason they'd probably finish 10 and 152, maybe Lopez and Kearns have something to do with it?
Anyone notice how Lopez only has 9 errors in 466 chances this year? Defensive upgrade by getting rid of Lopez and replacing him with the "amazing" fielder A-Gon (15 errors in only 357 chances)?
Niiiiiiiiiiace!
Imagine that, the Reds have 6 guys in their lineup with a poor on base percentage and we're wondering why they can't put a rally together. Then we're trying to trade one of the 3 guys who does get on base. Great baseball minds in this town, fans included. Seems like John Erardi is the only one who has been paying enough attention to point this out.
If you're not getting on base, you're making outs. If you're making outs, you're killing rally possibilities.
You only get 27 outs per game, find players who don't waste them.
Start with Moneyball.
If Mac pitches Burton in a blowout instead of Ramirez or Santos, he has a Saturday fill-in for Harang.
Does it really surprise anyone that Harang is having issues after going 10 innings and 120 pitches in back-to-back outings?
Let's not throw a rookie pitcher under the bus based on one outing. If you did that with every player's debut, Jay Bruce would still be in single-A because they would have sent him back down the day after his AA debut.
It's interesting to read Reds' fans talking about Jim Bowden in a positive way. I am a devout Nats' fan (I go way back to the original Senators) and think that - overall - he's done a good job.
With a payroll well under $40 million, Jimbo has done a fine job with his on-the-field decisions. With the team's payroll expected to almost double heading into next season (thanks to the new stadium), I think - from our perspective anyway - things are looking up in D.C.
As to your rookie pitcher last night, you need only look to John Lannan's first start last week against the Phillies (4 runs in 4 innings, 2 hit batters and ejected in the 5th) to realize that a pitcher's first start doesn't indicate very much.
I don't understand the Reds' poor play this year; player for player, they seem far better than the Nationals.
Good luck from a Nats' fan.
To Justin Hernandez
Sorry fellow but you need to come to terms with the reality of the situation...IT already has gotten outta control fellow.
The Reds stink
There was no "magic"with Pete..Anytime a new manager comes on board in midseason there usually is a bump for a short period of time
This entire organization needs an overhaul,, from top to bottom
Aside from Harang, Phillips, Hamilton and maybe Keppinger...get rid of all the players and start fresh
Castellini should buy the marlins players for about 30 million and add a pitcher or 2 we would have a winner
http://dcbb.blogspot.com/2007/08/pointless-speculation-from-bloggerbeat.html
Nats fans talking some smack about the John and the Reds in general. Notice that all four Nats fans appear to have posted comments about the Dunn deal.
How about we trade the Marlins straight up, Castellini and cash for nothing!
Niiiiiiiiace!!
Thanks for a place to vent, John. All out of my system.
Hopes of a better finish are gone.
Checking back in Sept to see if Bruce & Votto give us reason to look fwd to 2008.
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