Dusty Baker Holds a Closed Door Meeting With Reds

Dusty Baker isn't big on having a lot of meetings but with tough losses mounting, he decided two games before the All-Star break would be the time.

Baker will never tell what was said but knowing him it was not a finger pointing or fire and brimstone meeting.

Baker does his best to keep the players positive.  He has been where they are and remembers.  There are former major leaguers who quickly forget what they went through during their playing days.

That does not mean that Baker can not be a disciplinarian when needed.  Last season after a loss to San Diego in April, Baker did lose his temper and lit a fire under the team.  That particular loss was caused by a lack of concentration.  Baker nipped that in the bud.

This Reds team has lost a lot of close games in which a break here or there would have changed the outcome.  There has been errors in those games but not a lack of effort.  In fact the Reds have lost three or four games when the pitcher made his pitch and the hitter hit a weak ground ball that found a hole or a bloop that found grass between a couple players.

On Friday night for instance, Francisco Cordero made a pitch to Casey McGhee that would have ended the game if it had been hit just a little harder.  That is not to say that Cordero didn't create a problem for himself but it seems that for weeks every mistake haunts the Reds.  It seems that clutch hits have eluded them.

There is an example in the game going on now.  With runners on first and second and one out, Jay Bruce hit a hard line drive single to right that was right at rightfielder Corey Hart.  That caused the runner to be held at third.  Lately the opponent would hit a bloop in that situation that would allow the runner to score.

My guess is the meeting to remind the players to keep playing hard that those breaks will eventually even out.