2015 Cincinnati Reds

[bjd2933]

Catchers: Rene Rivera(3.5 Stars), Ricky Fons(1.0 Stars): Rivera was as offensively sound as a manager could expect last season, hitting .276 with 25 home runs, and 93 RBI's in 147 games behind the plate. Our organization knows that the future belongs to Terry Fortuna, but Rivera has done an admirable job holding the fort while the 20 year old backstop gets ready. Expect much of the same from the backup spot, as two or three guys should be shuffled around. Fortuna may even see some late season action himself.

First Base: Michael Hendren(2.5 Stars), Adrian Gonzalez(1.0 Stars): The loss of Andre "The Giant" Willard was a big one, but I like the players we took on in return. Hendren quietly had solid average(.308) and on base(.397) numbers, and while his power isn't what you ideally want from a corner infielder, his on base skills are an important part to this teams success and scoring runs. Gonzalez was signed to a minor league deal, and should be brought up shortly to provide an upgrade over Armando Collazo as a power bat off the bench.

Second Base: Luis Rodriguez(2.5 Stars), Carlos Calderon(2.0 Stars): With the loss of Willard, Rodriguez was the team MVP. Batting .288 with 33 home runs and a team high 113 RBIs. Rodriguez really picked up his game after being dropped from the #3 spot in the lineup to the #5 spot, where he will open 2015. Its a contract year for Rodriguez, and with no surefire heir apparent to second base, he could be extended before season's end. Calderon will take the utility man role, getting time off the bench at both second base and short.

Shortstop: B.J. Upton(2.5 Stars): Upton also came over in the Willard deal and really picked up his game upon arriving to Cincinnati. His power numbers need to improve, but the most important contribution to his game is his speed at the top of the lineup, in which we will rely heavily on him getting on base, and scoring runs.

Third Base: Xavier Nady(2.0 Stars): Third is one of the positions we struggled filling last season, also a position with a future stud(Justin Todd) in the minors. Nady will provide an adequate stop-gap, albeit not ideal defensively, he does have versatility in the field which will give us options to shift the defensive configuration around while still keeping him in the lineup should we have to make a move.

Left Field: Brett Raynor(3.5 Spect), Renato Losada(2.5 Stars): Raynor made a little bit of contribution to the team in limited action last season. Should he struggle, Losada could take over quickly.

Center Field: Miguel Valencia(2.0 Stars): No one knows what to expect from this 28 year old Cuban defector, but he was brought in to improve the outfield, another area in which our team struggled mightily last season. A well rounded player, posessing a decent eye, respectable speed, and good defensive range will face little pressure batting at the bottom of the Reds order.

Right Field: Coco Crisp(2.5 stars), Brian Anderson(2.0 Stars): Even at 34 years old, Crisp proved he can still play last season, hitting .285 with 11 homers and 71 RBIs. Most importantly, he is coming off a gold glove winning season in the outfield, and stole 45 bases last season. If there is one area we think we addressed properly, it was the outfield defense. Anderson didn't get the job done as a starter, but as a fourth/fifth outfielder/pinch runner, he fits the mold of what we need there. He could also see significant playing time if Raynor is sent down.

Pitching Rotation: Kyle Sleeth(3.0 Stars), Mark Prior(3.0 Stars), Brett Evert(3.0 Stars), Edwin Jackson(2.5 Stars), William Walk(1.5 Stars): The addition of Mark Prior improved a pitching rotation that was very quietly pretty good last season. Edwin Jackson posted the highest ERA of the staff at a respectable 4.25 from the bottom of the rotation. Brett Evertt, Jackson and Walk all move down a slot as Prior takes over as the #2 starter behind "ace" Kyle Sleeth. Last season's surprise player was William Walk, who started 26 games, won 15 of them, and recorded a team low 3.68 ERA, as well as a 1.01 WHIP, which was among the NL leaders. Its hard to expect a repeat performance from Walk, but with that kind of season, he deserves the chance to play his way out of the spot.

Mopup: Bobby Basham(1.5 Stars): Basham found himself up and down, in and out of the pitching rotation last season. His endurance and ability to give the team innings best suits him for the mopup/long relief role.

Middle Relief: Taketo Kata(1.5 Stars), Josh Thigpen(1.5 Stars), Derrick Turnbow(1.5 Stars): Probably one of the weaker links on the team, the Reds were unable to address their middle relief pitching the way we would have liked. The team used a lot of different arms in the pen last season, and will most likely do the same this time around.

Setup: Joe Valentine(4.5 Stars), Tyler Pelland(2.5 stars): As weak as the middle relief is, we feel we significantly strengthened our bridge to our closer. Pelland had a respectable debut last season, and hard throwing Valentine came over in a deal with Florida. If Whitlock doesn't work out as the closer, one of these cats could assume the role.

Closer: Dennis Whitlock(4.5 Spect): Whitlock pitched only 11 plus innings last season, but was impressive in that short amount of time. He will open the season as our closer, a role in which Derrick Turnbow played his way out of last season.

Lineup w/o DH

RF Coco Crisp
SS BJ Upton
1B Michael Hendren
C Rene Rivera
2B Luis Rodriguez
3B Xavier Nady
LF Brett Raynor
CF Miguel Valencia
Pitcher

Lineup with DH

RF Coco Crisp
SS BJ Upton
1B Michael Hendren
C Rene Rivera
2B Luis Rodriguez
3B Xavier Nady
LF Brett Raynor
CF Miguel Valencia
DH Renato Losada

Team Goals: Last season we took a step in the right direction by increasing our win total by 9, and moving up two spots in the standings. The next step for the Cincinnati Reds is .500, which would be an 8 game improvement. While we didn't add any huge Free Agents, we added guys that addressed our teams needs short term, as we continue to develop our prospects. A hot start could keep some big names in place, but another slow start could see expiring contracts like Rivera, Rodriguez, Crisp and Jackson to be shipped out before the deadline. We know we play in the largest division in the league, which also happens to be a pretty strong one, but this team refuses to quit.

[Porter]

Still needs some work to get to PIT and STL. But they are improving, 3rd or 4th seems likely right now.

[bjd2933]

If I finished third, I'd be thrilled. I try my best to put the best team out there every sim of every season, but I'm a realist. I'm not making the playoffs, and am probably 2-3 seasons bare minimum from contending.

[Slyder]

If I finished third, I'd be thrilled. I try my best to put the best team out there every sim of every season, but I'm a realist. I'm not making the playoffs, and am probably 2-3 seasons bare minimum from contending.

You never know, I thought my team was one more year away from being serious contenders to the playoffs. Get off to a good start and decided the time was now made some trades and it worked. Keep your options open.

[HafDawg2003]

Any way the wind blows.........

[bjd2933]

Batting AVG: .257 (21st)
Homeruns: 141 (21st)
Walks: 493 (16th)
Stolen Bases: 152 (10th)
Runs Scored: 713 (24th)

Pitching ERA: 4.05 (12th)
Opponents AVG: .240 (2nd)
HRs Allowed: 188 (25th)
Walks Allowed: 507 (15th)
Runs Allowed: 699 (8th)

Overall Record: 77-85(4th Place in the NL Central)

Team MVPS: Luis Rodriguez(.250, 32 HR, 109 RBI), Brett Evert(13-10, 3.15 ERA, 1.05 WHIP)

Can't say I'm disappointed, playing in a strong division, it is going to take time to make the playoffs. While I didn't move up in the standings, a five win increase is significant enough, despite not having met my goal of a .500 record.

The moves I made were a mixed bag. Nady provided the power I expected, but the average was unacceptable. Mark Prior never really found his role on this team, and will probably spend all of next year in the bullpen unless I can move him between now and then. The Bay for Rivera trade worked out in my favor. I needed outfield help, and Bay provided it at a reasonable price. Terry Fortuna was obviously ready to take over the catcher spot, so Rivera became expendable.

The rotation saw the continued solid performances of Brett Evert, Kyle Sleeth and William Walk, and the emergence of Michael McCullough and Michael Wimbley as future stars. This should be an exciting rotation next season.

The bullpen floundered again, but was not without its bright spots. Joe Valentine had a career year at age 35 as both a setup man and closer. Derrick Turnbow was quietly solid after losing his spot as the closer last season. And trades for Gaby Lerma and Jose Diaz brought stability to an otherwise dreadful who's who of relievers.

Off-season targets will most likely be relievers, relievers, relievers.