Thursday, June 19, 2014

Thoughts on the nearly half-way point

I thought, I'm on Twitter so much on my phone, why not use the phone to write on the old blog? I don't have an Android phone, so I don't have a great mobile app, but the html is fine, though the auto correct is beyond annoying. Still necessary, though, as I make a lot of typos on the phone.

We've nearly reached the halfway point of the 2014 season, so I thought I'd put a few thoughts down about the Reds. One word can sum up the season at this point: disappointing. The team just hasn't been firing on all cylinders for most of the season. Granted, injuries had a lot to do with it; having eight players on the DL on Opening Day, including much of your bullpen, is devastating, but come on. Even those who weren't hurt struggled. Offense? It didn't exist until recently.

There are, of course, blinding bright spots: Cueto, Simon, Chapman, Broxton, Hamilton, Mesoraco, and Frazier are all worthy of all star selection. The first three will probably go, but I doubt there is room for the others, especially since the hated Taint Louis Deadbirds get to choose the team. With that many players worthy of selection, you'd think this team would be better than .500. But here we sit, reaching .500 then losing it by walking in the wining run against the hated Pissburgh Pyrites. It was such a typical kind of loss; a few stupid things happen, and that's that.

Marty said something that got a few folks outraged around Cincy parts, an outrage that was unwarranted. He criticized the players' baseball intellect. Those who were outraged either don't watch the team make boneheaded decisions time and time again, or they're so blinded by their hipster hate for the establishment that they were outraged because they are outraged every time Marty opens his mouth. Todd Frazier getting picked off in extra innings today is just the latest example of the brainfarts that continue to plague this team.

There are some encouraging signs that the team is about to make up some ground in the standings. They took two of three against the Sausages and two of three against Pissburgh while the offense has started to score runs. Reaching .500 was very important; even with the loss today we're still right there. A nice four or five game winning streak could help them take off. Luckily, we have the Chubs coming up, always a nice team to play when a winning streak is in order.

This team makes me want to throw things sometimes, but then they'll do something good and I'm happy all day long. Consistency is lacking; that's the key to a great second half. We can still win this thing, so keep a positive attitude and cheer on the Reds!