In return to playoffs, the Cincinnati Reds hope to bring postseason success in series against Braves
CINCINNATI, Ohio (BVM) — For Cincinnati Reds fans, it has been a long seven years of losing. A city so deeply rooted in baseball history has had to suffer through some of the worst baseball the franchise has seen. The Reds haven’t posted a winning season since 2013 and, as a result, missed the postseason for six straight seasons. Seven long rebuilding years later, following a huge offseason in which the front office unloaded their wallets, the Reds finished 31-29, as the first wild card team, and are once again back playing October baseball.
On Sept. 12, the Reds were six games under .500 with 14 games remaining. Since then, they have gotten hot, winning 11 games and losing just three. In the last three series of the season, against the offensive juggernaut Chicago White Sox, the NL-Central rival Milwaukee Brewers, and at the Minnesota Twins – who possess the best home record in the MLB – the Reds took two out of three in each.
The Reds certainly feel the momentum as starting pitcher Trevor Bauer said recently, “as we’ve seen, year in year out in baseball, it’s not necessarily the best team that wins. It’s the hottest team that wins.”
Bauer is slated to start game one of the best-of-three series against the Atlanta Braves on Wednesday at noon EST in Atlanta. Bauer, a right-handed pitcher, is among the favorites to win the NL Cy Young after finishing the regular season with a 5-4 record and a spectacular 1.73 ERA in 11 games. He will try to set the tone for the series and will square off against the Braves’ No. 1 pitcher, left-hander Max Fried, who finished the season 7-0 with a 2.25 ERA also in 11 games.
As is usually the case, pitching is a huge factor in deciding playoff baseball series. The Reds boast one of, if not the best ,1-2-3 punches in all of baseball. In a three game series, this might be all they need. Bauer is the team’s ace. However, the next two in the rotation could be the ace of many other teams. Right-hander Luis Castillo, scheduled for game two, finished the regular season with a 3.21 ERA in 12 starts. Fellow right-hander Sonny Gray, who will start game three if necessary, was close behind with a 3.70 ERA in 11 games himself.
The Reds bullpen struggled mightily in the beginning of the season, but found its stride as of late and began to dominate. The go-to guys in the pen include righties Tejay Antone, Lucas Sims, Michael Lorenzen, Archie Bradley and closer Raisel Iglesias. Lefty Amir Garrett is the eight inning setup man. The bullpen finished with a 4.53 ERA, which by all accounts is solid for how poorly they began the season.
The Braves starting pitching is a young core, leaving much to be desired compared to the veteran Reds staff. A team that saw new addition Felix Hernandez opt out and had star Mike Soroka go down with an injury in early August, the Braves pitching staff is not at its full potential. Game one starter Fried is the clear leader. Game two will find right-handed pitcher Ian Anderson on the hill. Anderson, who only started six games this season, finished with a 1.95 ERA. If necessary, game three will be started by right-hander Kyle Wright, who struggled along with a 5.21 ERA in eight games.
The Braves bullpen shows a big difference in efficiency from their starters. Four impressive lefties Tyler Matzek, AJ Minter, Will Smith and Grant Dayton, platoon with solid righties Chris Martin, Darren O’Day and closer Mark Melancon. The Braves bullpen has been impressive this season and it may need to continue that trend this series if the starting pitching sputters.
The Reds bats have been cold in 2020, finishing with a league worst .212 team batting average. This is the worst season batting average in major league history since the White Sox mustered a .211 BA in 1910. The expected best hitters have been brutal this season. First baseman Joey Votto finished at .226, third baseman Eugenio Suarez at .202, right fielder Nick Castellanos at .225, second baseman Mike Moustakas at .230, and designated hitter Jesse Winker at .255. Many believe the Reds hitters have been extremely unlucky this season, as their .244 BABIP (batting average on balls in play, which shows how lucky or unlucky hitters are) is the lowest in the majors by 23 points.
The Braves bats, on the other hand, are the team’s calling card. Their .322 BABIP is the best in the majors. NL MVP candidates first baseman Freddie Freeman and designated hitter Marcell Ozuna raked this season, finishing with .341 and .338 batting averages, respectively. Young stars including outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. (.250), second baseman Ozzie Albies and shortstop Dansby Swanson (.274) also held their own at the plate. Catcher Travis d’Arnaud, a new addition, slugged .321.
Clearly, the series will be defined by incredible pitching against incredible hitting. That said, it may come down to the bullpens, as those aforementioned factors have the potential to even themselves out. The Reds bullpen is hot, but the Braves bullpen is established and solid.
The Reds have no plans of letting their season end any time soon. A confident group, with all the momentum one could ask for, the Reds have an open door to make a splash in the 2020 postseason.
Gray is ready to make some magic happen, saying the team “packed for a month.”
For the first time since 1995, the Reds hope to finally win a playoff series and make their mark in the rich baseball history of the city of Cincinnati.
