India: "We're going to win the division"

[SunsetBengal]

Love the confidence, I just hope that they can back up those words in the second half of the season.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/mlb/these-cincinnati-reds-aren-t-holding-back-we-re-going-to-win-the-division/ar-BB1iXW7t?ocid=msedgntp&pc=U531&cvid=cef8a2281bfa428db71de631bb0a46f2&ei=22

Quote:GOODYEAR, Ariz. — When they’re not shattering teammates’ car windows in living batting practice, when they’re not practicing plays at home plate with stuffed hippos, they’re borrowing the celebrated phrases by one of their famed alumni.

“We comin."

The Cincinnati Reds, who don’t have a single everyday player born since the last time they won the World Series in 1990, with 29 years gone elapsed since their last postseason series victory, are going all Deion Sanders this season.

This is the year everything changes in Cincinnati.

“This is the year we’re going to be a playoff team" Jonathan India tells USA TODAY Sports. “We all know it. We just missed the playoffs by two games last year. We’re not going to miss it again.
“We’ve got more energy. We’ve more confidence. And a lot of us have a chip on our shoulder.

“We’re going to win the division this year."

Hey, why not? This is the youngest, most dynamic team in baseball. You can’t keep your eyes off Elly De La Cruz’s athleticism, Hunter Greene’s fastball, or the talent of Matt McLain and Spencer Steer.

They’re must-watch even in practice, with De La Cruz shattering Greene’s car window one day, playfully arguing who will pay. Meanwhile, third-base coach J.R. House is using a stuffed hippo for catchers to practice receiving throws and applying tags.

“We’re electric," India says. “We’re fast. We’re always on base. We steal bases. We create havoc. We’re got energy. We’re here to change the way of the game this year.

“We’ve got the best fans in baseball, and we’re going to get the division championship for the city."

This is a city steeped in glorious baseball tradition, going back to 1882, and it fell in love with the Reds all over again. They drew more than two million fans for the first time since 2015. They had 10 sellouts, their most in a decade. And ticket sales for this season are way up.

“It’s a baseball town, you’ve had generations of Reds’ fans," says Reds legend Eric Davis, who was on their 1990 World Series team. “They want to see some good exciting baseball, and that’s what we gave them last year. It’s a sea of red.

“Guys that have come up are sliding, running and diving all over the place, and high-fiving. That stuff is contagious. It’s electric."

Everyone in baseball took notice, with the Reds improving by 20 games last season with an 82-80 record, missing the playoffs by just two games.

“We could have been Arizona," India says after the Diamondbacks squeezed into the playoffs and reached the World Series. “I thought about that all winter."


Cincinnati: A baseball city
Veteran infielder Josh Harrison, who was born and raised in Cincinnati, went to the University of Cincinnati, and still lives here, thought about it all winter too.

This is where he always wanted to play, signing a minor-league contract at the age of 36, hoping he can wear a Reds uniform for the first time in his life.

“I know what baseball means to Cincinnati," says Harrison, one of two former All-Stars on the entire roster. “What it meant for the city to win the World Series. What the sport means to Cincinnati. And what it means when this team wins.

“The buzz around the city is insane, and it’s a testament to the way these guys go about their business. They get after it. You watch them on the bases. They got guys getting dirty. Got guys taking the extra bag. It’s the way we all grew up playing, and it’s refreshing to see that guys still have that hunger."

It’s also a confident team, believing in their hearts they can win the NL Central for the first time since 2012, scoffing at the idea that the Chicago Cubs should be the favorites after re-signing Cody Bellinger.

“I think we still beat them,” India told the Cincinnati Enquirer after the news. “He’s an unbelievable player. He’s an MVP. It definitely helps them.

“But it is what it is. It’s the same team from last year.”

The Reds, who spent $108 million in free agency, are counting on the lessons learned from last season to take them into October.

“It’s still a young team, I think it'll be that way for a while," Reds manager David Bell says, “but these young guys have a year under their belt now. They’ve also developed expectations.

“Guys are loose and having a good time, but there's a little bit of difference as far as the purpose or even seriousness in a good way.’’

Says Reds GM Nick Krall: “It's different this year. You still have the youthful energy, but it's youthful energy with purpose. This reminds me a lot like 2012 with the younger players coming up and gelling together."

Don’t think for a second that last year’s dramatic rise from dreadfulness to contention was a fluke.

The Reds’ prized trio of young pitchers Hunter Greene, Graham Ashcraft and Nick Lodolo missed a combined 15 months with injuries last season.

India missed two months of the second half with a strained hamstring and plantar fasciitis. Infielder Matt McLain, who finished fifth in the NL Rookie of the Year balloting, was out the last month with an oblique strain.

Still, there they were, hanging in the wild-card race until the last weekend of the season.

“It definitely left a bad taste in our mouths," Bell says, “but although there was clear disappointment at the end thinking we were going to get in. But the silver lining is the hunger that’s there this year after being that close."

“This team is going to be really good for a long time,’’ India says. “This organization is flourishing."

And these Reds are embracing the pressure and expectations.

“You hear the outside noise," says McLain, will be the Reds' primary second baseman, “but it’s exciting to have expectations. We learned a lot last year. For me personally, the games got a little bigger towards the ends, and I was trying to do too much. It’s easy to get caught up in that."

The difference now is they know what to expect, have 10 legitimate starting candidates, and the surreal potential of Greene, Ashcraft and Lodolo.

“We know what we got in here, now it’s just a matter of doing it," Lodolo says. “We exceeded everyone’s expectations last year, but not our own. We know we belong. Now, we’ve just got to go out there and do it."

The Reds have the talent, the energy, the hunger, and perhaps now the poise to make it a summer they’ll never forget.

They were a highlight reel last summer.

This time, they want to make it a documentary.

“We all saw the noise they were making the noise last year," says veteran reliever Emilio Pagan, one of the first free agents to sign with a two-year, $16 million contract. “Most of the highlights on MLB Network were coming out of this group of players. The highlights were running non-stop. It’s like, ‘These guys are good.’

“Now, to be on a team that winning the division is more than just a goal but a real opportunity, is everything you could want. We got everything we need. All of the right pieces are there for us.

“Now, it’s up to us."

What more could you ask?

[*bengalfan74*]

(02-27-2024, 09:53 AM)SunsetBengal Wrote: Love the confidence, I just hope that they can back up those words in the second half of the season.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/mlb/these-cincinnati-reds-aren-t-holding-back-we-re-going-to-win-the-division/ar-BB1iXW7t?ocid=msedgntp&pc=U531&cvid=cef8a2281bfa428db71de631bb0a46f2&ei=22

Yes that's the thing

I'm pretty confident they'll be a lot of fun to watch. Lots of action, base stealing, hit and run, so on. I'd guess the offense will be putting up some runs. Question is can pitching staff hang in there after August ?

I know I'm way more excited for this summer than I have been in a long time Reds wise.

[SunsetBengal]

(02-27-2024, 05:45 PM)bengalfan74 Wrote: Yes that's the thing

I'm pretty confident they'll be a lot of fun to watch. Lots of action, base stealing, hit and run, so on. I'd guess the offense will be putting up some runs. Question is can pitching staff hang in there after August ?

I know I'm way more excited for this summer than I have been in a long time Reds wise.

Seems like the rotation has a couple of arms with injury histories.  Who knows, maybe we get lucky and they all stay healthy this year?

[CJD]

(02-27-2024, 09:53 AM)SunsetBengal Wrote: Love the confidence, I just hope that they can back up those words in the second half of the season.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/mlb/these-cincinnati-reds-aren-t-holding-back-we-re-going-to-win-the-division/ar-BB1iXW7t?ocid=msedgntp&pc=U531&cvid=cef8a2281bfa428db71de631bb0a46f2&ei=22

They'll definitely be in the running. We have improved in a lot of areas this off season. Improved starting pitcher depth (Added Frankie Montas, Nick Martinez and Nick Lodolo is coming back), improved bullpen depth (Nick Martinez, Emilio Pagan, Brent Suter), Jeimer Candelario replacing Joey Votto/Nick Senzel is an upgrade.

Then we have a second year coming for Abbott, EDLC, McLain, CES, Marte, Steer, and Benson.

We went 82-80 last season and missed the playoffs by about 1.0 games. The Brewers have gotten worse, the Cardinals are assembling the oldest rotation in league history (the projected starting 5 are 32, 34, 35, 36, and 36 for an average of 34.6 years old), and the Pirates and Cubs have mostly treaded water. As long as the rookies don't crater, I think we have a good shot at adding 3 to 7 wins to our 2023 win total and enter the playoffs as division champions.

[Forever Spinning Vinyl]

Brewers closer Devin Williams is out for around 3 months with stress fractures in his lower back. They had a pretty solid staff last year, not sure about their replacements for Burnes, but this might help keep them off of the Reds backs early on.

[Forever Spinning Vinyl]

They just signed Justin Wilson again. He didn't pitch too bad the last time he was here, he just made too much money at the time.

[*bengalfan74*]

This hasn't aged well.

[SunsetBengal]

(06-03-2024, 04:01 PM)bengalfan74 Wrote: This hasn't aged well.

That is true. However, I was compelled to take advantage of the feel good moment while the time was ripe.

[*bengalfan74*]

(06-03-2024, 04:29 PM)SunsetBengal Wrote: That is true. However, I was compelled to take advantage of the feel good moment while the time was ripe.

We'll get em next year 

[SunsetBengal]

(06-03-2024, 04:44 PM)bengalfan74 Wrote: We'll get em next year 

You know that this year is bad, as we're usually saving that slogan for 2 weeks after the All-Star break.

[The D.O.Z.]

(06-03-2024, 04:44 PM)bengalfan74 Wrote: We'll get em next year 

Hey, it finally worked for the University of Michigan. [emoji2369] If you repeat something enough, eventually you can speak it into existence.

But I'm also starting to believe the law of averages and "a clock is always right twice a day" doesn't pertain to the Cincinnati Reds.

[cinci4life]

(06-03-2024, 06:12 PM)The D.O.Z. Wrote: Hey, it finally worked for the University of Michigan. [emoji2369] If you repeat something enough, eventually you can speak it into existence.

But I'm also starting to believe the law of averages and "a clock is always right twice a day" doesn't pertain to the Cincinnati Reds.

Seems like a bad example since ttun had to cheat to do it.

[grampahol]

As long as they don't have to replay the month of May..That was a rough stretch. I almost gave up on them..From dead last to 2nd place in a few weeks..That's pretty impressive. 

[*TheLeonardLeap*]

Narrator Ron Howard: "They didn't."

[TecmoBengals]

[The D.O.Z.]

Nope. This team was toast after May. After getting embarrassed at home vs the Royals, they’re dead in the water. This is the typical late season David Bell managed Reds team and it’ll be like this for the foreseeable future. Forgive me if I sound pessimistic, the lack of playoff wins during my adult years (46 now) has me jaded and apathetic towards this organization.

[*bengalfan74*]

(08-18-2024, 07:44 PM)The D.O.Z. Wrote: Nope. This team was toast after May. After getting embarrassed at home vs the Royals, they’re dead in the water. This is the typical late season David Bell managed Reds team and it’ll be like this for the foreseeable future. Forgive me if I sound pessimistic, the lack of playoff wins during my adult years (46 now) has me jaded and apathetic towards this organization.

My fear is this team will remain toast under this ownership and management.

[StoneTheCrow]

(08-18-2024, 07:44 PM)The D.O.Z. Wrote: Nope. This team was toast after May. After getting embarrassed at home vs the Royals, they’re dead in the water. This is the typical late season David Bell managed Reds team and it’ll be like this for the foreseeable future. Forgive me if I sound pessimistic, the lack of playoff wins during my adult years (46 now) has me jaded and apathetic towards this organization.

We can’t have more than one nice (professional sports) thing in Cincinnati at any given time. We’re lucky to even have one, I guess.

[*TheLeonardLeap*]

(08-18-2024, 08:04 PM)StoneTheCrow Wrote: We can’t have more than one nice (professional sports) thing in Cincinnati at any given time. We’re lucky to even have one, I guess.

That's why the Bengals missed the playoffs last year? FC Cincinnati had the best record in MLS last year.

Someone either needs to go preemptively bubblewrap Burrow or steal FC Cincinnati's equipment so they have to forfeit the rest of the season because they have the 3rd best record in MLS this season.

[*ochocincos*]

Where's Maury Povich? Because the lie detector test determined that was a lie.