Eighteen Weeks In

With the most meaningful series for the Redlegs since 1999 set to kick off tonight, allow me to set the scene. Typically by this point in the year, the Reds are hosting tryouts for the next year, and my mind has already discounted the Bengals and moved on to the upcoming Muskies season. These are uncharted waters for a young Reds fan like myself, and I sure am enjoying it Clark. Fresh off their first series sweep at Wrigley since August of 2005, the Reds stand atop the NL Central by 2 games at an impressive 64-48 record. What really jumped out at me about this past weekend though was just how quickly the tables can turn. Here's a stat-and-a-half for ya: the Cubs' lineup on Sunday makes a total of $144 million this year. The lineup the Reds ran out on the other hand? $4.2 million. Ironically enough, it was the Reds who were expected to go into Wrigley and win big...and they did exactly that while making the Cubs look like their little sisters. Now the road to October continues tonight against long division rivals STL Cards, and if you're not fired up...well then you're a shed.

First things first, this afternoon's headline: Reds go get Jim Edmonds for the playoff push. Is this significant? Probably not. Personally, I was a big fan of Chris Dickerson and what the future held for him. But it's time for me to stop thinking about the future. The Reds are good...NOW. Can't hurt adding another seasoned vet to the bench; I guess we'll see what happens. It'll be interesting to see the move the Reds make before today's game on the 25-man roster to make room for Jimmy, because quite frankly, this team seems to be jelling very well together as there are unsung heroes rising to the occasion just about every game. Janish, Hanigan, Caibro, Heisey...are you kidding me? The fact is that it is these players that are key parts to the Reds' success. For once, the Reds front office doesn't have to even worry when a player is out for a while cus these replacements are money in the bank. When OC got injured last week against the Pirates, I was actually pumped because I knew players like Paul Janish were going to fill the void and then some.


Ok ok, nothing you don't already know, this team is good. There is nothing fluky about a team that leads the NL in runs scored (4.89 a game), is third in defensive efficiency (converting 70.9 percent of balls in play into outs) and sixth in runs allowed (4.14) this deep in the season. Heck, anyone in the world who decides to make an espn.com pitstop right now is seeing this as the top story. Bottom line is that everybody is talking Redlegs for the first time in a looooong time. I'd say Dusty Baker's biggest concern at this point in the season is having a consistent favorite color. You just can't seem to go wrong with anyone on this squad.

In all honesty though, let's take a look at some concerns heading down the stretch. Mike Leake immediately comes to mind. He's near the innings pitched limit the Reds set on Leake for his rookie campaign, and has not pitched well at all recently as the Reds have given him lengthy time periods in between starts. Maybe he's wearing down, or maybe the NL hitters are starting to figure him out. Either way, if Leaker keeps it up, Homer Bailey is anxiously awaiting his turn to rejoin the big league club and looks very good to contribute down the stretch in the starting brotation. As for Aaron Harang, I wouldn't be surprised if Bob Catellini is arranging an assassination plot because quite frankly, no one wants him with the Reds, and no other team is going to want to pay that bum 13 mil to suck at life and be ugly. Concern number dos: the Reds still have 3 trips (16 games) to make to the West. In case you haven't noticed, the Reds suck big, fat you know what when it comes to playing baseball out West. When it comes to tackling this obstacle, I guess just cross your fingers?

Now, why I really like this team going forward. For one, nineteen of the Reds' last 22 games are against sub-.500 teams (Milwaukee, Houston, Pittsburgh, Arizona). I'd say that bodes well for a team trying to make a postseason run. Who would've guessed the Reds would give a crap who they were playing in September? Speaking of September, look for Jason Isringhausen and Aroldis Chapman (among others) to be called up by 9/1 to be eligible for the playoff roster. Seriously, this bullpen is gonna be nasty. Perhaps Bob could look into taking out CoCo along with Harang in the attack, but I'm not too worried about that bum. Hitters are more than likely going to shart themselves when the dig into the box only to be blown away by Aroldis' 103 mph heaters. If ya can't tell, I'm ready for a run. S'GO REDS, I'm out.