Baseball is in The Air

[redsrbetter]

The sun is finally out in the cold city of Cheyenne Wyoming and I am pumped for baseball season. I heard birds chirping this morning for the first time in many months. I had the great smell of freshly cut grass breezing through the air as I was walking to the front door of my work center.

After thanking God for this beautiful day and for allowing me to see all the beauty that a warm spring day brings, all I could think about was that baseball season is upon us.

This off season has been full of rollercoaster rides and literal sit stills for every team in baseball. For the Reds, we get the opportunity to see a new owner and general manager show us what they’ve got.

Some are optimistic of new general manager Wayne Krivsky’s moves since his hiring. Yet some are not so pleased. After new owner Bob Castellini professed his means to turn this organization around and make it into a championship caliber team, we all are getting a taste of what direction they are looking. A trade for pitching has come upon us with this new regime. Like it or not, it does help this rotation immensely.

With the smell of spring in the air and baseball fever burning through our veins we have a lot to look forward to as Reds fans. There is no longer a status quo. We have a team that is going to have to work hard to earn a position on the field. Just ask Josh Hancock about that. You could also look in Edwin Encarnacion's direction to see a guy who has played hard in order to earn a starting job for this team this season.

Krivsky’s vow to get better every day is noticeably coming through. Some of his recent signings may not help this team now or ever, but he is undoubtedly putting things together to better this team each and every day.

So what do we have to be optimistic about other than the great weather moving in and being able to catch a few baseball games on the idiot box every now and then? Here is my optimistic take and what I would love to see the Reds command this season.

For starters we have to look at the most important piece of a baseball team. We have to look at the starting rotation. Anchoring the staff will be Aaron Harang who has been absolutely incredible this spring with 0.64 ERA. He is continuing to improve on his 2005 performance which earned him credit as the ace of this staff. I expect big things from him and a whole lot of consistency. I am predicting 14 wins for this ace.

Next guy to look at is the newly acquired Bronson Arroyo from the Boston Red Sox. As long as he can continue to eat innings and can build on his career numbers or at least follow in that same mold, we have a nice arm in the 2 spot. Again, consistency is the key for him as well. 11 wins sounds credible to me for him.

The next arm in the rotation should be Brandon Claussen who has been solid this spring as well. He is another one that had a good season in 2005. I will go on a limb and say he will be our best overall pitcher this season. I think 2006 will be his breakout year and he will help push the Reds into contention. He will have at least 14 wins as well.

This brings us to the money making Eric Milton. After his disappointing season last year, he hopes to repave his career. He has looked extremely better this spring from throwing much harder and getting ahead of hitters. I still believe he will give up a lot of home runs and will not live up to his salary, but he will be much more polished than last season. As Krivsky has said, Milton has his legs back and it will only help him become a winner again. I want to say he will have at least 10 wins this year.

Dave Williams and Paul Wilson will fill out the final spot in the rotation unless a late trade comes in just before the season starts. I am not feeling anything positive on Williams thus far. He has not had a good spring so far. Yes his numbers are comparable to Milton’s this spring, but he simply has not had a single good outing. I hope he gets better than what he is showing right now, but if he doesn’t I do not expect much. Thank goodness I have such high hopes for Claussen. I hope he can get 5 wins this year. Paul Wilson is a guy I have always been optimistic for and I hope he can break into the rotation this year. Yet he is injured this spring and it suits him well. He has had an entire career of injuries and is likely tired of seeing the operating room. I hope he comes in and brings back some of what we saw in 2004.

This team’s bullpen will be full of veterans with Weathers, Mercker, White, and Hammond. The young guys are the ones who will make things interesting. I am looking forward to seeing guys like Belisle and Coffey pitch out of the bullpen this year. It would be sensational to see one of these guys step up and be the perennial closer that this team has been lacking over the last few seasons. Another closer in the works is Ryan Wagner who may have been called up to the big time a little too quickly. With a little more conditioning into the system, he may breakout and become that great arm we have all been looking for.

With a closer by committee set to inhabit this squad we may be in a pinch when it comes to closing out ball games. It would be far better for this team if one of these young guys can reach their potential very early on in the season.

The lineup has gotten a little worse as a sacrifice to the rotation. Yet it is still potent. Young studs like Dunn, Lopez, and Encarnacion are still improving and could pick up the absence of Casey and Pena. Griffey Junior looks like the Griffey of old and is swinging a very hot bat this spring. Both in the World Baseball Classic and in his short tenure in the spring training camp in Sarasota this season, Griffey has been phenomenal. If he can come into the season and continue to hit like he has, we have a chance of improvement on literally every part of the batting order except 1B.

For right now, Scott Hatteberg is penciled in at 1B. But there have been many indications that Krivsky is looking for an upgrade while they are still presenting hope in him for PR reasons. If there was one job for Krivsky before the season starts, it would be to get an upgrade at 1B. He can deal with the rotation and a closer as the season progresses.

So as the birds are still chirping and I am growing more excited for the season to begin by the minute, I am also looking forward to seeing where this team will go this season and what Krivsky and company can do with a team that is not expected to do much.

Its time for baseball!

[777rak]

Nice read!!! I enjoyed it even though I am not a Reds fan lol :P

[ghettochild]

1b and 2b bro, woemack and aurillia aren't upgrades over freel..

[redsrbetter]

well I am not positive that Freel will not start at 2B. Although I really believe that Aurilia will start at 2B the majority of the time, I couldn't say that it isn't an upgrade because Aurilia is an upgrade to DJ.