Random Reds Rumblings

[missionhockey21]

I haven't even heard/watch some of these games and I know it's having an impact on myself. But truthfully, I think I would feel the same way no matter who the manager was (albeit not as bad obviously), this is a rare situation to any Reds fan and I know I am demanding perfection from no matter who is calling the shots. In other words, I am trying to put a positive spin on what we all know to be the truth that we are stuck with Narron whether we like it or not.

Seriously though, Narron would gain so much cred with me if he said that Freel was the real deal and deserved to be starting on a consistent basis.

[CincyRedsFan30]

I don't know if he'll get there, but Freel is on pace for 12 HR on the year now!

He now has a .303 average, .392 OBP and .464 SLG for an OPS of .856!

It is simply criminal not to play him EVERY game right now. If he cools down some, maybe give him a day off or something, but he needs to play ALL of the time right now. I hope Narron can see that.

To show how good he's been, just look at Griffey's SLG percentage of .491. That is the one part of Griffey's repetoire that has made him anything less than awful this season as a whole.(Overall OPS down to .784 now)

Yet Griffey has hit 3rd all year and Freel has been up and down off the bench. It's really ridiculous.

Play Freel...he's for real!

[missionhockey21]

Even if he never earned four bases with one swing, his value is just being blindley overlooked. If I was Freel, I would find in insulting to be labeled as a "utility player." The Reds have the PERFECT leadoff hitter yet they ignore finding him a spot in the lineup. Which would be so damn easy given his position versatility, how much more easy could it get? I think that's why I am so frustrated, I could understand if we had better options or if Freel was very limited in the fielding department, but there is no roadblock other than the team's stubborn attitude towards him. And really, has their been a player more representative of Cincy than Freel in years?

If Freel was a 15 homer hitter, he would get serious cash on the FA market. But instead the Reds have him locked up on the cheap for two years (IIRC) and are seeing how much he can take before deciding the next uniform he'll be wearing is not a Reds one.

[missionhockey21]

"He just wasn't as consistent as we would like," Narron said. "I know it's not the ideal situation for him [when he] hasn't pitched in 16 days. But, being the fifth starter, that's what you have to do. You have to perform under less than ideal circumstances."

Sounds like someone bought himself another start due to scheduling. Great.

[missionhockey21]

Two more quotes and I am off to bed.

"He's outstanding," Reds manager Jerry Narron said. "Not surprised. ... He does whatever we ask and he does it real well."

Jerry, ask Freel to start, I am sure he can do it pretty well.

"I enjoy watching him everyday," said Reds closer Eddie Guardado, who came on in the ninth to earn his fifth save in five chances for Cincinnati. "That's one guy that can play the game the right way. And you got to enjoy that as a fan [and] a teammate."

I see the Narron mantra gets to players quick.

But seriously, Freel would be the posterboy of that saying if they would just give him more chances. The Jack of All Trades who can do a bit of everything and outside of power (despite his flashes) do most of it at a top level of play.

[CincyRedsFan30]

You are totally right about Freel. It's not like he can only play 2B and they have young Phillips there who deserves to play more. He can play ALL over and keep other guys fresh. Narron is obessed with doing that, but he often rests one of those GOOD players AND another GOOD player in Freel. It just doesn't make sense.

And that quote from Narron is pretty sad. I hope Krivsky makes the right move and DFA tomorrow or on the off-day Monday.

Maybe Krivsky will announce a trade on Monday for a starter which will allow him to be dumped?

We really need to fill that slot in the rotation. We have Harang and Arroyo and Elizardo who has actually been fairly consistently decent other than last night and then we have Milton and Mays. Having BOTH of them back there just won't cut it. Having JUST Milton there would help a lot. He has at least had some decent starts and if Narron would learn to pull him earlier on(he tends to get killed the third time through the order) he might be able to at least post some 3 ER in 6 IP type outings. We must replace Mays though, whether through trade or even with someone like Germano from AAA.

[CincyRedsFan30]

Two more quotes and I am off to bed.


Jerry, ask Freel to start, I am sure he can do it pretty well.


I see the Narron mantra gets to players quick.

But seriously, Freel would be the posterboy of that saying if they would just give him more chances. The Jack of All Trades who can do a bit of everything and outside of power (despite his flashes) do most of it at a top level of play.

Wow, thanks for those quotes before heading to bed. That Guardado quote is a bit scary. I remember one of the other players being quoted a couple days ago saying the "play the game the right way" line too. It's starting to get scary.

Narron must be brainwashing them all in the clubhouse.

[missionhockey21]

Anyone else too pissed off to talk about this game or the Reds in general like myself?

[Slyder]

Anyone else too pissed off to talk about this game or the Reds in general like myself?

Besides the typical Narron can't judge pitching, Narron is a moron, why in the hell is Ed E not playing STILL?, etc? Yep.

[CincyRedsFan30]

Yeah, I am certainly too upset based on what I've heard about this one. Our clown manager continues to not trot out our best team and make the right moves when our margin for error is already small as it is. If he keeps it up, he's going to single-handedly knock us out of the playoff race.

I am going to discuss a couple of particular points about the game/team situation in general in a little bit...

[missionhockey21]

We could of really put a big scare on the Cardinals if we took advantage of the chances we had to do something these past few days, or hell, played the right players. That's a pretty big series for the Brewers to take after dealing their big vet bat in Lee.

[missionhockey21]

I hope Wally's alright. It's not like him not to respond to PM's. I would of really enjoyed seeing his insight on these deals considering he's made some pretty bold predictions on guys like Arroyo and Hatteberg.

[missionhockey21]

It's not surprising that Ryan Wagner was AWFUL tonight.

Washington	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Wagner	1.2	2	3	3	2	0	0	16.20

I love how some still want to think of him as this dominating, future closer. Obviously I am not judging him based on one night but performance and just general showing of his stuff tells you that this is a pitcher worlds away from the one that was rushed onto the MLB scene.

[redsrbetter]

Helps me to further believe that I will not miss him too much. I lost faith in him earlier this season.

[missionhockey21]

I really don't understand why we didn't let Franklin go longer considering he is really a starter. But this is Narron.