Thirteen Weeks In...

And more than halfway home. With the All-Star game less than a week away, the Redlegs are currently reppin' an impressive 48-36 record atop the NL Central. The 12 games over the .500 mark is a season high (and maybe a decade high?) and in all honesty, there's little indication they'll be slowing down any time soon. Words such as "reer'd" and "unreal" would perhaps be appropriate to describe the season thus far, but after further examination, there's a little bit more than luck involved.


Before I talk anymore about the squad though, allow me to first address the Joey Votto outrage. In all honesty, I think this is the best thing that could happen for both Votto and the Reds. We've all heard the numbers and categories Vottomatic is top 5 in and whatnot, and that's great. I'm not going to waste time saying why he should be in, because quite frankly it's bullshit. By the numbers, it's the biggest NL All-Star team snub since 1952...and that's why he'll ultimately get voted in by the fans on Thursday as a more than deserving candidate for the final spot. What people are overlooking though is the publicity this is bringing to the Reds, and more importantly, Votto. I'd bet there's a good chunk of the baseball world who doesn't, correction: didn't, even know who Joey Votto is/was, let alone that he's an MVP candidate. The casual observer more than likely doesn't even check the NL central standings because they're so sure a certain red bird will be perched atop the rest. If nothing else, this snub will at least temporarily shine the spotlight on the commendable work Votto and the Redlegs have accomplished for all the nation to see and talk show hosts to get fired up about. All in all, I'm loving the way the Reds Nation (yeah I said it) is rallying around this cause for justice, and I have little doubt it will be served along with a little extra motivation for Votto. Based on early indications, the man will be going Yahtzee twice daily. Boom, JV 19 for MVP!


Moving on: Joey's not the only player doing major bro-work for this ballclub. Heck, let's not forget the 3 Reds who did punch their ticket to Anaheim in Art Rhodes, Brandon Phillips, and fellow MVP candidate Scott Rolen. Two "washed up" veterans and a guy who sacrificed some RBI's to help his team pick up W's; it's beautiful, really. Pardon the Muskies reference, but I think Phillip's career as a Red has been quite reminiscent to that of a man by the name of Stanley Burrell. Like Stan the man, B-Phil came to the Nasti big number minded, and did exactly that on some less than stellar teams. Over time, his identity has changed into a defensive master, and quite frankly doing whatever on the offensive it takes to get his squad W's, even if it means a hit to the numbers...ok I'm done.

At any rate, this team is good. Offensively, they lead the NL in runs, batting average, home runs, hits, total bases, slugging percentage, OPS, and did I mention runs? As far as pitching, at least they lead the NL in games played...so they got that goin' for them, which is nice. Bottom line, this team is dirty and can only get dirtier. As we learned from last year's trade deadline, Big Bob Castellini isn't afraid to make some noise. Expect more of the same this year along with the much anticipated arrivals or Edinson Volquez and (gasp) Aroldis Chapman to pump a little cortisone shot into the Redlegs...let's just hope they don't muff the shot (see Gary Majewski).


Chawny Gomes is still doing his thing, and his continued raking in compliance with a healthy outfield and continued growth out of Drew Stubbs is vital if the Reds want to be contenders. Three home runs per game would be nice, but I'll take some solid defense and stolen bases. Preserving Mike Leake will be another key to watch in the 2nd half. If you've heard anything about the Verducci Effect, you'd know why the Reds have reason to be vigilant about their young righty. In addition, Johnny Cueto has historically had a tendency to deteriorate in productivity as the season wears on, so perhaps a 6-man rotation will be in the cards in order to protect the pair of young right handed starters. The bullpen has been questionable at best with the exception of Arthur "Nails" Rhodes. I anticipate a shakeup in the pen say around, I don't know, July 31st. As far as the best infield in the majors go, I don't see anything getting their way except for injuries or All-Star-itus. Talk about professionals, those guys get it done. Corky behind the dish scares me...A LOT. This guy should be helping the Bats bring home AAA titles, not the 1st place Reds! The handle bar mustache can stay, but please get us a catcher Bob. I knew Berry shouldn't have waved Ramon to third and that Ramon Hernandez's triple was too good to be true...

Around the Horn's Tim Cowlishaw picked the Reds as his NL representative in the World Series way back in April, and as the season wears on, it's only looking more realistic. This team has silenced doubters over and over again, and are probably the sole reason Aaron Boone has retained his job on Baseball Tonight. The injury bug has yet to make its pit stop in Cincinnati, but who says it has to? There's reason to be excited about this team, and all we can do is look on with our fingers crossed. That's all I got. Keep it real...