2008 Cincinnati Reds

The 2008 Cincinnati Reds will hope the addition of new manager Dusty Baker can bring the team back to its winning ways. The team capped off their seventh straight losing season last year when they finished fifth in the NL Central at 72 – 90. While the offense is loaded with great talent, the pitching staff isn’t much to speak of after the top two. So it might be tough for Baker to make an immediate impact the team is heading in the right direction.

Pitching:

Aaron Harang is one of the best-kept secrets in baseball. The Reds ace has had back-to-back 16 win seasons with out no one really taking notice. Bronson Arroyo is a proven number two starter but really struggled last year going 9 -15 with a 4.23 ERA. The team is hoping that young prospect Homer Bailey will be ready to step in and make an instant impact in 2008. Bailey got his feet wet in 2007 getting 9 starts before a groin injury. The team added a solid closer to the back end up the bullpen in Francisco Cordero, who saved 44 games for the surprising Brewers last season. Last year’s closer David Weathers will move to the primary setup role. Behind him they have the emerging reliever Jared Burton who posted 2.51 ERA in his rookie season in 43 innings.

Offense:

The 2008 Reds offense could be one of the best in the NL, but they won’t have the pitching to back them up. Red’s hitters play in hitter friendly Great American Ball Park. Big time sluggers Adam Dunn, Brandon Phillips, and Ken Griffey Jr lead the team. The team is hoping that young prospect Jay Bruce can step into the CF spot and put up big numbers at the plate. Bruce is said to be one of the best hitting prospects in the game, and will get his chance to show is stuff this year. The team is also moving to a young first baseman Joey Votto to take over full time duties at his position The team also has a solid rising bat in 3B Edwin Encarnacion who hit .289 with 16 HRs. Even if the youngsters struggle it won’t be a huge deal, because of the other big bats they have in the lineup

Defense:

The defense is pretty solid through out the field as they will be pretty athletic at all positions. The only hole they got is in left fielder Adam Dunn. While you have to put him somewhere to keep his bat in the lineup, he has limited range on the defense side of the ball. Catcher David Ross does a pretty solid job throwing out base runners. He sat down 45% of those who tried to steal against him last year.

Prediction:

While the Reds will score with the best of them, so will the teams they play. While Harang will win his fair share of games, the rest of the staff will struggle to get people out. We don’t think the Reds are ready to make a run in 2008, and won’t be till they add or find some more starters. We have the Reds finishing 5th in the Central ahead of the Pirates.

2008 Cincinnati Reds Odds to Win World Series 60 – 1

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