Reds fans are bitterly disappointed in the loss that ended a trying season.
The Pittsburgh Pirates ended 21 years of frustrations by defeating the Reds 6-2 in a one-game postseason playoff of wild card teams.
 |
| http://www.wiedemannbeer.com/ |
Cincinnati fans were spoiled by the Big Red Machine, the standard by which all other Reds' teams are measured whether the comparison is fair or not. Social media allows the voices of decent to resonate quickly with more volume than the letters to the editors of the golden age in Reds' history.
Make no mistake as nostalgic as Reds' fans are for the Sparky Anderson years, the development of the current edition of Reds has some parallels to the BRM. If only the fans could stop blaming Dusty Baker and realize that patience should not be mistaken for complacency.
Sparky Anderson took over the Reds at the age of 36. Reds' fans were indignant when team president Bob Howsam introduced him. Sparky who? How could he hire a nobody that was roughly the same age as Bronson Arroyo?
The Reds surprised everyone by winning the National League West. The Reds fell short of the World Championship when they were handled by the more experienced Baltimore Orioles much like the 2010 Reds of Dusty Baker were handled by the Philadelphia Phillies.
The Orioles veteran pitching staff that included Jim Palmer and Mike Cuellar had very little trouble with the Reds lineup of Johnny Bench 22, Lee May 27, Tommy Helms 29, Dave Concepcion 22, Tony Perez 28, Bernie Carbo 22, Bobby Tolan 24 and Pete Rose 29. The Orioles dispatched the Reds in five games.
The Phillies of 2010 with Cy Young award type pitchers Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee easily out classed, Ryan Hanigan 29, Joey Votto 26, Brandon Phillips 29, Jonny Gomes 29, Drew Stubbs 25 and Jay Bruce 23. The Phillies swept the Reds in three games.
The Reds of 1971 and the Reds of 2011 both suffered through injury laden years to finish below .500.
The Reds of 1972 with the addition of Joe Morgan 28, lost to the Oakland A's in the World Series but this time in seven games. Centerfielder Bobby Tolan, recovered from a torn achilles, could not track down a key hit in game seven. The 2012 Reds fought off the favored St. Louis Cardinals to win the Division and were on the verge of sweeping the San Francisco Giants when a devastating untimely injury to its 19-game winning pitcher and an untimely error by a Gold Glove thirdbaseman led to a five-game series loss.
The 1973 Reds were bounced in the first round of the playoffs by the New York Mets. The 2013 Reds lost a one-game playoff to the Pirates.
The Reds failed to make the playoffs in 1974 under Anderson. The Reds with Dusty Baker will have a chance to mature a year sooner than their '70's counter part.
One wonders if the fans were as conspicuously critical in the 1974 if Sparky Anderson would have been permitted the opportunity to break through with the 1975 and 1976 Reds.
The 2014 Reds will have a successful and more seasoned manager. The team is at a similar stage of development as the 1974 team that ended up with three Hall of Famers.
Baker has done as much with less than Sparky Anderson already. Reds' fans need to exercise some patience.
One of the complaints heard in Reds' country is that the Reds are content to make the playoffs. The same could have been said about the early editions of the Big Red Machine. It took five full season to develop into true champions. Baker is on the right track. The organization has developed a fine young pitching staff. With tweaks this team has a chance to accomplish what the BRM did.
It remains to be seen if Joey Votto can be the quiet run producer that Tony Perez turned out to be.
Zack Cozart offensively is ahead of Dave Concepcion. Can he continue to improve?
Can Devin Mesoraco be the offensive force that Johnny Bench was. It would be a stretch to expect Mesoraco or Ryan Hanigan to be the defensive catcher that Bench was.
Brandon Phillips is being mentored by Morgan. He has actually passed some of Morgan's career offensive numbers.
Jay Bruce is providing power as George Foster did. Bruce is defensively as good as Ken Griffey Sr.
Ryan Ludwick is one year removed from an injury that could solidify the offense as he rebounds.
Billy Hamilton could be a super star. Tony Cingrani, Robert Stephenson and a couple others have a chance to help the Reds sustain a winning tradition if given the chance.
No comments:
Post a Comment