How we lookin'? Does it matter?
You were put through the ringer last year as a Reds fan.
Fan favorites were sent away, traded away or walked away: Tucker Barnhart, Wade Miley, Nick Castellanos, Sonny Gray, Jesse Winker, Eugenio Suarez.
Last year's spring training feel good vibe was gutted.... and hope and faith bled out.
You were insulted by ownership on one of the biggest feel good days on the calendar each year. Your team then started 3-22 and was finished less than a month into the season.
The Reds completed the strip down at the deadline…flipping Castillo, Mahle, Drury, Pham, Naquin...and your team staggered to 100 losses for the second time….EVER. It was embarrassing.
Kyle Farmer went away in an offseason trade.
The offseason Hot Stove lacked a spark, even a match.
Now what?
Well, Nick Krall did infuse the system with young prospects with high ceilings and loads of athleticism. Some of that talent MIGHT be ready now. Most won’t be ready til later this season, or next season.
Gone are Aristides Aquino and Mike Moustakas. Those two players were offseason credibility check points for the organization. Well. Check. Check. Gone.
Expectations are low.
In reality, this is how a rebuild looks. Never pretty. Never clean. They take time. No shortcuts. Especially in the small market world of MLB.
But at least this rebuild attempt is different that any attempt in the 2+ decades of this ownership. Unlike 2014-2015, they allowed the GM to strip it down to the bolts and get max value for assets at the trade deadline.
The previous haul for Bruce, Cueto, Frazier, Chapman brought a return value around 20-cents return on the dollar. The latest haul drew rave reviews around MLB.
Make no mistake, they do have core pieces to work with: Greene-Lodolo-Ashcraft. Alexis Diaz appears to be a lockdown closer. Tyler Stephenson will be behind the plate some of the time….but planning to play somewhere most time. Jonathan India: is motivated to rebound from a sophomore slump, having learned lessons..
There are still holes and questions. Oh, a lot of both.
But young guys like Christian Encarnacion Strand. Spencer Steer, Will Benson, Brandon Williamson, Levi Stoudt have piqued interests and raise eye browns. And Elly...well, he's breathtaking....but probably at least a couple of months away.
Nobody is ready to say the P-word (playoffs). Might want to tap the breaks on talk of a run at .500. But maybe, just maybe, there is a method to the madness.
How we lookin'? Maybe more importantly, does it matter?
Where are you at? How do you feel? What’s your vibe?
Anger
Apathy
Curious/optimistic
Let's discuss tonight on Sports Talk.