Dateline: 318 kilometers from the Gulf of Mexico.
The Reds defense let them down last season. It wasn’t just too many errors, it was makeable plays that weren’t made.
The Reds have 13 players listed as infielders and two players, Cooper Bowman and Spencer Steer, who have extensive infield experience.
Many of the infield crew also have experience at multiple positions in their toolbox.
The Reds will use the Cactus League to sort through their options.
“There are some changes,” Francona said. “Hopefully it stays that way. What I mean it’s getting (TJ) Friedl back healthy. Having (Matt) McLain is going to be huge. We’re going to have a challenge to figure out where our guys go and why they go there. So you’re going to see guys move around. You’re going to see (Christian) Encarnacion-Stroud at third. We want to see where (Gavin) Lux feels. We want to get his bat in the lineup and we also want to accomplish a really good defensive team. You’re going to see a lot of different lineups. Hopefully, and again hopefully, because everything doesn’t work out the way you want. As we get closer to the season guys will be playing where they're going to play and we have some flexibility.”
Defense and baserunning are two of the game's elements that are overlooked because they don’t lend themselves as easily to statistical analysis but are often the difference between wins and losses.
“So often and I’ve been guilty of it too, you chase offense and you end up chasing your tail because you’re not catching the ball the way you need to. It is a really hard way to be successful when you’re giving extra opportunities and extra outs.”
The Reds have infield coach Freddie Benevides and bench coach Brad Mills “really getting after it.”
“You will see early in spring Freddie when they come out of a game, will take two or three guys back here (the Reds development complex) while they’re hot and they’ll go through their defensive work. You go see guys to go through infield and it’s nice and easy, because you can’t kill guys (with overwork) but when they’re hot it’s a really good time. Freddie can take whoever he wants. He can have the whole field. They accomplish what they want and the guys are done.”
“These guys take ground balls at every position,” Francona said. “I try to give them a heads up where they’re going to play but if you have guys that can move around, it really helps. If you’re moving guys around because you have to or it’s not working, that’s not really what you’re shooting for. There are going to be some swings and misses and hiccups along the way. I get that. We have to answer some questions and I’d rather that happens in the first couple weeks of spring training than in July,”
Baserunning can be overlooked as well. The Reds are going to push defenses on the base paths this spring to evaluate what works and what doesn’t before the season starts.
“That’s where you can make some gains. Our responsibility, our goal, our challenge is to beat the teams we’re playing. Ok how do we do that? How do we separate ourselves from other teams? Baserunning is one. Defense is the other.”
“This is where I need to be careful. I love the fact and I say it all the time, running like your pants are on fire. Like get your ass down the line. Run somebody into making a mistake. If you do that enough, someone is going to run into an out, it’s almost impossible not to. I can’t over react when that happens. There’s times when a guy has a really good opportunity. A guy makes a good play and there are two outs. I don’t want guys looking over our shoulder. In spring training, I do want them to push, like going first to third. If they’re out they can say maybe that's too much but now they know. I’d rather them find out now.”
There is also a fine line about taking opportunities that are worth taking and just running aggressively.
“I don’t want us running to run,” Francona said. “We’re running to help us win. There can be a difference. In the minor leagues they let you run because they want them to know how to do it. Then you get here and you’re running to win, not just because it’s in your toolbox.”
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