Reds Insider: Reds' lineup today vs. Phillies

Tuesday, March 25, 2008

Reds' lineup today vs. Phillies

Reporter John Erardi checks in from Dunedin with the Reds' lineup today against the Phillies:

Corey Patterson (CF)
Ryan Freel (RF)
Brandon Phillips (2B)
Adam Dunn (LF)
Edwin Encarnacion (3B)
Joey Votto (1B)
Jeff Keppinger (SS)
Javier Valentin (C)
Edinson Volquez (P)

22 Comments:

at 1:57 PM

djinlittlerock said...

John, I'm excited about the young, electric arms we have in camp. Any idea if Bailey will make or go to Louisville? Also any word on cuts today?

Thanks,

DJ

at 2:27 PM

Hiney said...

Is it just me, or is listening to Jeff Brantley call play-by-play just nauseating? He's just fine when doing color, but when listening to play-by-play, it sounds like he's just kinda searching for the words for what's going on...

Maybe it's just me, I dunno.

at 3:10 PM

Matt McWax said...

Votto has been heating up, seeing the ball better. Another person that is warming up a bit is Valentin which is a good thing. He's confoundingly excellent on occasion but non-threatening at other times. He hit .500 in Sep '06 and hit over 1.000 ops for the middle of the year in '05. He alternated good and bad months in '07 with nothing distinguishing him other than a good risp average.

He turns on pitches well but will chase high heat and pop it up when he's out of wack. He has really good bat speed for a catcher but his aggressive style makes him streaky.

I only mention this because they will depend on him in April and if he can catch a little fire now, it will help the offense massively. His defense is adequate at best so let's hope he keeps hitting.

at 3:15 PM

hey hey redlegs said...

maybe its cuz he hasn't being doing it very long. i'd like to see you or anyone go on air and call a game. give the guy a chance to get some more experience remember he's only been doing it for a year.

at 3:16 PM

redsfan8557 said...

Volquez looks great today. Cant wait intill opening day

at 3:17 PM

Matt McWax said...

Brantley doing pbp is a bit like having Chad Moeller around so he can pinch hit. To me, pbp is challenging and Brantley needs to "break down" his own game to see why he's not very good at it, although the bar is high with the Brennamans around. Last year, I found myself wanting to coax the result of the play out of him when he's giving 5 sentences about what is happening leaving the last to tell you the simple outcome.

at 4:08 PM

Manda said...

Ryan--thats exactly how I always felt about Nuxhall...great on color, awful on play-by-play. Now that we have two other broadcasters (both Brennamans), why don't they try to limit (or do away with) any innings where it is JUST Brantley?

at 4:10 PM

Unknown said...

Another good outing by Volquez...

at 4:17 PM

Joe said...

Ryan, I think we are all too used to Marty's style. We are listening to the difference between a hall of famer and a relatively new and learning announcer. I love Jeff Brantley's sense of humor and knowledge of baseball. He will make a good 20 to 30 year partner for Thom B. However, he will never replace the Old Lefthander.

at 4:23 PM

Unknown said...

Which of the following scenarios would you Reds fans prefer:

Scenario 1: The Reds start out around .500. The Brewers or Cubs is running away with the division. Reds trade away Fogg, Dunn, Griffey, Hatteberg, Weathers, etc. for young prospects to add to the young nucleus that they already have and really push for 2009 and beyond. Young guys like Bailey, Bruce, Votto, and Roenick get full playing time. With the enthusiasm of youth and the the front runner(s) in the NL Central cooling off, the Reds start start to heat up and make a run late in the season.

Scenario 2: The Reds start out around .500 or better. They tread water as nobody else is really running away with the Central. They trade away young talents like Bailey, Votto, and Janish for veteran help (a la 2006 with Kearns and Lopez). They stay competitive the rest of the year but are still not a serious World Series contender for 2008.

To be honest, I am secretly hoping that the Reds start out slow. I would not want to see the Reds trade away any of their young players and replace them with veterans whom they can't sign beyond this year. With money to spend and the young players they have (as well as some more young prospects obtained via trading Dunn, Griffey et al.), the Reds could be challenging for the WS in '09 and beyond.

at 4:29 PM

Jon Bachmeyer said...

I'd say nauseating is a bit strong.

I like him.

at 5:27 PM

liz said...

RyanRico

I think it's you. I like listening to Jeff -- better than Thom.

at 5:37 PM

ST fan said...

Brantley does have a non-announcer's voice but at least he isn't grumping like sour Marty. Brantley is very smart. I hope he stays.

at 6:53 PM

Unknown said...

Neither scenario works, Quan. If they trade Dunn, Griffey, Weathers, Fogg and Hatteberg at the deadline, no amount of "prospects" they get back will make this team a WS contender in 2009. Or 2010. Or 2011.

If they haven't dealt Bailey by now, chances are they won't, regardless of how the season plays out. Ditto for Votto, unless he just stinks up the diamond.

And I don't think you'll see another trade like the Lopez and Kearns deal anyway, not that it has worked out all that well for either side.

Say what you want about Jim Bowden, but he was dead-on in his comments after that deal when he said any time you can get two positional starters in exchange for middle relief pitchers, that's a good deal.

Well duh.

Shouldn't have made that mistake the first time. My guess is the Reds won't make it again.

at 7:37 PM

Rob Dicken said...

Quan obviously likes to watch teams like Florida and Pittsburgh play. I never did understand why people don't like to have any veterans or top tier guys on a team. Never did make any sense. The Billy Beane philosophy doesn't work. How many World Series' has been won under it? Ask yourself that question, then request that the Reds trade all of their veterans and top tier players.

No offense...but get real!

at 7:59 PM

BubbaFan said...

Andy Phillips didn't play today for the first time this spring training. Should we read anything into it, or are they just giving him a day off?

at 8:23 PM

Unknown said...

I disagree. Kearns and Lopez clearly have done nothing for Washington. They've been terrible since they left. They were likely viewed as expendible and lazy. If Bray has a good year for the Reds in 08, he alone was worth those two. He was, afterall, the 4th pick overall in his draft. There was another pitcher in that deal who has looked promising as well. If Majewski pitched like Majewski had until the trade, we'd be laughing about it. Also, Kearns and Lopez were due to go to arbitration. For their performances last year, that would have been a terrible mistake if they got raises.

at 9:41 PM

Longtime Reds Fan said...

Ok John,

If the Reds are not very sure about Fogg in the rotation. How about the going after Claudio Vargas. He is a strikeout pither and could fit in nicely in this rotation. Any word on a trade for a cather. This is the one true weakness on this team.

at 9:54 PM

Anonymous said...

I do not see much basis for anyone to still huff and puff about the Reds-Nationals deal involving Kearns and Lopez.

Lopez is about to be relegated to the bench or traded, and Kearns has been consistently mediocre in DC.

Bray is a good, young lefty; Darryl Thompson is a promising young pitcher, and Gary Majewski had an impressive track record as a reliever--and may yet get it back together.

With Jay Bruce and Stubbs in the pipeline, where were you-all planning to play Kearns had the Reds held onto him?

at 2:42 AM

Unknown said...

As a Reds fan, I obviously don't want to see them in perpetual rebuilding mode. However, realistically I do not see this team as a serious World Series contender. It would be a crying shame if they are treading water (just like in 2006) and start to trade away young players for veteran help. I think the Reds have a good young nucleus and I want to see them collect some more young players for the future. With guys like Dunn, Junior, and Weathers on the last year of their contracts, if the Reds could get some young talent for them at the trade deadline, why not? With those guys gone, the Reds will have approximately $30 million to play with in the offseason. That is a lot of veteran help in 2009 to go along with Cueto, Volquez, Bailey, Bruce, Votto, Roenick and the experience they would get with the veterans gone.

Colorado, Arizona, Florida (in 2003) are examples of teams who have done well with young players and not a lot of pricey veterans.

at 12:51 PM

Rob Dicken said...

Quan, I do not see a lot of pricey veterans on the Reds besides Dunn, Cordero, and Griff. Griff will be gone next year, so take him out of the equation alone and you get some decent breathing room.

In 2003, Ivan Rodriguez made $10 million for the Marlins alone. Translate that into four years later and you're looking at what Adam Dunn makes, sorry to say.

Despite constant belief, we don't have a lot of overpaid players and DON'T have a lot of veterans. We need to keep the veterans we will have after this year, or we we have lack of leadership and experience, and this Reds team needs that. Plus, Dusty Baker is big on veterans, so don't expect to see a lack of them anyway.

at 2:42 PM

reaganspad said...

Lopez and Kearns: Imagine where they would be on today's team. Kearns would be backing up Griffey in RF. When Bruce comes up, Kearns is backing up Griffey and Bruce.

Kearns had 74 RBI's last year in 587 AB's.
He had 67 RBI's in 387 AB's with the 04 Reds, and he is a career 265 hitter

Lopez, dispite his talent, would be behind Keppinger and would be cut when AGon returns. He sure wouldn't be pushing Phillips at 2nd or EE at 3rd.

Bray was the best player in that deal, even hurt

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Tuesday, March 25, 2008

Reds' lineup today vs. Phillies

22 Comments: