With a 91-71 record the Cincinnati Reds finished first in the National League Central, and were really the surprise team of 2010. We knew they had some talent and were young, but they really stepped up and made people take notice this year. In all they spent 101 days in first place, and built as big a lead as 8 full games. They had a winning record in every month save September. They went 49-30 against their four divisional rivals and that included a 6-12 record against the St. Louis Cardinals. They also went 8-7 in interleague play.
The offense is how this team got things done. They ranked first among the 16 NL clubs in every key offensive category. Their team batting average was .272. All of their regular nine position players batted better than .250 for the year. They hit 188 home runs on 1,515 hits and scored 790 runs. Reds batters struck out 1,218 times the sixth most among the NL teams and they drew just 522 walks which was only the ninth most in the senior league.
If this team has a weakness it is in the pitching staff, really in the back end of the starting rotation. Two of their regular five starters had double digit victories but only three finished with a winning record. The staff ERA was 4.02, just 8th best among the NL teams. They only managed to strike 1,130 batters and issued 524 walks. They also gave up 1,404 hits.
If this team can stay the course, and add pieces where and when they can this should be a good team for a long time. They are looking at Dontrelle Willis as a back of the rotation starter and have signed him to a minor league deal. They are also looking at securing their own talent at least for 2011 and in some cases for the long term.
Related Links:
- Cincinnati Reds news and notes
- The Business of Major League Baseball
- Joshua Lobdell.com
