Reds July Game Thread 2024

[CJD]

(07-16-2024, 08:10 PM)TheLeonardLeap Wrote: It's looking like Marte might not be so great without roids and Friedl is always just going to get hurt (and McLain has been on the 60-day IL twice in his 2 years so his 2025 could decide if he's even slightly reliable or not).

Other injuries are always going to happen. If you are always just waiting to have 100% health in order to not have an excuse of why you have a bad team, you're always going to have a bad team. It was why I was so confused when people were so quick last offseason to write off India from the 2024 roster due to "too much depth".

I agree that injuries happen and that hope is not a strategy, but 4 starters missing the majority of a season is not normal and very few teams would have a functional offense in that case. 

Imagine a Dodgers offense where Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman, and Teoscar Hernandez were all injured for a majority of the season. 

They'd be playing Enrique Hernandez (557 OPS), Gavin Lux (562 OPS), Miguel Rojas (756 OPS, which is respectable), and Andy Pages (706 OPS, also fairly respectable) in their 1 through 4 slots, and they'd likely have to lean on players like James Outman (516 OPS) and Chris Taylor (525 OPS) for every day at bats.

They're already one of the worst teams in the majors from 7 to 9, and those 4 major injuries would make their entire lineup below average or terrible, with the exception of Will Smith.


Now, I'm not saying CES, Marte, Friedl and McLain are Ohtani/Betts/Freeman/Hernandez level talents, but the point is, even the best offenses will falter when they lose half their starters.

I hope the Reds have big plans this coming off season, because if they don't want to draft Condon, then I hope they have a long term solution in mind for a right handed bat in the outfield that isn't just "I hope Hinds never regresses to the mean."