Reds-Cardinals Series

Hello all...


Reds-Cards Series- Will It Be These Two At The End?
Very exciting day of baseball thus far, and who would think that the Reds-Cardinals series would be one of the most intriguing of the weekend midway through May?

I actually have a lot of confidence in the Reds. I think their offense is solid as well as their pitching, and am not at all surprised to see some early season success out of them. As bold as this may seem, I think when push comes to shove, it will be between them and the Cardinals for the NL Central at the end of the year. Dusty Baker doesn't run out the same 1 thru 9 everyday, and he's still tinkering to try and find the best lineup. Drew Stubbs has had some pretty impressive run and steal totals thus far with a touch of pop. You have to believe that he's their lead-off guy of the future, but he needs some more time to make better contact and strike out a lot less. But when you look at Brandon Phillips, a gold-glover, and Joey Votto, that offense has some pretty solid anchors.

Jay Bruce, a former man-crush of mine for his 5-tool abilities, is finally taking more walks, and Scott Rolen has been playing really well for the Reds. And I think they have enough solid pitching depth to make a serious run between Leake, Harang, Cueto, Homer Bailey (a very weak link) and Arroyo, although Arroyo could be in a different uniform by the end of the season. The back end of the bullpen is pretty solid too with Masset setting it up for the age-less Francisco Cordero. I'm not saying this is the best team in the majors, I just think that when looking at the talent and upside that they have, the Reds could be in the thick of things at the end of the year.

It also seems like the Cards offense hasn't even gotten started yet. Pujols is doing what Pujols does, but Holliday hasn't helped out too much. Freese will not hit over .350 the whole year, and I have always thought Schumaker and Brenden Ryan were a little over-rated. But good pitching beats good hitting a lot, and that Cardinals rotation has been absolutely stellar. Jaime Garcia has been one of the gems of my fantasy team, and when your 5th guy is producing like he is, what's not to like. Dave Duncan should be paid a lot of money, because he's doing a lot better work than Mark McGwire is right now.