January 30, 2025 • 17 mins
Tony and Austin talk Reds with Jeff Carr from LockedOn Reds, on ESPN 1530!
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Cincy three sixty about Cincinnati from Cincinnati, sponsored in part
by Cincy Shirts. Cincy Shirts All Cincy all Day. This
is ESPN fifteen thirty Cincinnati Sports Station.
Speaker 2 (00:15):
Hey, welcome back our two Cincy three sixty thanks to
Cinci Shirts on ESPN fifteen thirty Cincinnati Sports Station or
via the iHeartRadio app. Either way you find this. Whenever
you're finding this, Happy to have you along and excited
that you get an opportunity for the next couple minutes
to hear from our good friend from the Locked On
Reds podcast. Our good friend Jeff Carr is joining us
(00:37):
right now. We've got to talk Reds an active and
active January for the Cincinnati Reds. It's our good friend,
Jeff Carr. What's up, Jeff.
Speaker 3 (00:46):
The Reds are making moves. The temperature is getting closer
to flip flop weather Tony good day.
Speaker 4 (00:53):
You're sick, Jeff, you know that you're sick.
Speaker 3 (00:56):
I can't wait. We're like ten degrees away from flip flop. Well,
let's go.
Speaker 2 (01:00):
Pro flip flop guy. Jeff Carr, Oh, all day, I
hate socks. Let's start putting that in your bio.
Speaker 3 (01:06):
Jeff.
Speaker 2 (01:07):
Let's start with Taylor Rogers for those that don't dive
in the name. Taylor Rodgers might not mean a ton
to an average baseball fan, But what are the Cincinnati
Reds getting in Taylor Rodgers for the bullpen?
Speaker 3 (01:21):
He slots right in at the top of the bullpen
food chain for the Reds. We're talking like high leverage situations.
Terry Francona now has a right hander in Alexis Daz
that he can go to and a left hander in
Taylor Rodgers. There's some people that think that he might
even be better than Alexis Daz if you were going
for a more traditional like who's the closer, who's the
(01:41):
setup man? But I think that most bullpens nowadays are
by a committee and just based on the matchups. And
Terry Francona now has his third bona fide left hander
that he can go to. And heck, even if Alex
Young can earn a spot out of camp, then he's
got four lefties he could use out of that bullpen.
You'd be talking about fifty to fifty split for the
eight guys in the bullpen of being rivy lefty. That's
(02:04):
the kind of weapons that you really want to go
to go into a season with high expectations for.
Speaker 2 (02:10):
The bullpen itself. I went through the starting pitchers at
least on the roster earlier. I know it's not official
yet by the time the dust has settled. Is Graham
Ashcraft in that bullpen as well?
Speaker 3 (02:21):
I think it makes the most sense. Like at best,
I see him as a fifth starter in this group,
and he still has those questions about longevity. And Terry
Francona is very adamant that he wants his starters to
go deep into the game. He has said already that
he wants starters to be stretched out to one hundred
pitches before they leave Goodyear, and I love all of that,
(02:42):
but I feel like Graham Ashcraft is the most successful
when he can go one percent on every single pitch,
and you just can't do that if you're expecting to
go six to seven innings. So I think his best
attributes will play better in the bullpen than will out
of the rotation, and that, for me, is even more
(03:04):
of a bullpin upgrade than we already expect the bullpen
to have.
Speaker 2 (03:09):
Same question as it related to Taylor Rogers. In your opinion,
what of the Cincinnati Reds getting in Austin Hayes.
Speaker 3 (03:18):
Austin Hayes is going to bring a little bit of
a bat and a lot of a glove. I think
that his bat is solid. It's not the power bat
that we've been looking for, but he is going to
be able to slot nicely in the six to seventh
spot in the lineup, especially against the left handed pitching.
He might even back fifth or fourth because he mashes
lefty so well. But he's not like a straight platoon guy.
(03:40):
I think that's his baseline. But I think he can
play every day, especially in left field. And really what
Austin Hayes does is he frees up Spencer Steer to
move around, and Steer can play on the infield, he
can play third base, he can play first base for
them a lot more. And Austin Hayes will provide you
the arm in the outfield that we've not seen since
Jay Bruce. I mean, there's a lot of highlights going
(04:03):
around to the different throws that he can make from
all parts of the outfield. I'm looking forward to that
just about as much as what he can bring to
this lineup.
Speaker 2 (04:12):
It feels like the Reds were actively trying at Luis
Robert of the Chicago White Sox. It sounds like this
deal fell apart for multiple reasons. Is this a deal
that you think can or should be revisited at all
still by the Cincinnati Reds before the season.
Speaker 3 (04:31):
I don't know if it'll be before the season. I
could see them checking back in closer to the trade deadline.
The White Sox are approaching this very strangely because just
about any contender that fancies in himself a playoff team
in the National League has checked in on Luis Robert,
and some of the American League teams have as well,
and all of them have come away with the same result.
(04:53):
They have just ended talks with the White Sox. I
think that what's most likely here is that Cres gets there,
president of Baseball Ops and Jerry Reinsdorf has pretty much
labeled Luis Robert as the franchise reset button, and unless
the deal that they are getting back does that, then
they're not happy with it. And the Reds, on the
other hand, are looking at this and saying, this guy's
(05:15):
played over one hundred games exactly one time in his career.
I don't know that we can really stomach the idea
of giving up what they're looking for, and so that's
probably where they are requesting money back from the White
Sox and Austin. As he pointed out, Jerry reins Dorf
doesn't want to give money to players. He's not giving
money to other teams. So I don't see this happening,
(05:39):
And quite frankly, I think that the money was a
part of it, but the players were a part of it.
And as much as Ken Rosenthal reported that there were
serious discussions, I question how close they actually got with this.
And I'm happy with where they went instead of this idea.
Speaker 2 (05:55):
Is that being said, it's still been a very active
offseason for the Cincinnati Reds. A couple weeks away from
pitchers and catchers reporting, do you still see anything out
there on the horizon that maybe the Reds could go
look for, maybe that they could add still to this
roster before spring training rolls around.
Speaker 3 (06:11):
I know that they were really talking internally about third base,
and I think Spencer Steer helps them out with that
discussion now that he can play more at that position.
But I do think that he's better suited for first
base when you're looking at like his best spot in
the infield and where he can help out the Reds
the most. It'd be interesting because there were definitely some
(06:32):
names that they were looking at, and some of them
were not really that high price to players just kind
of depends on what it would take to get them
in a trade. That would be the only spot though,
that I think that they go. I don't think we
see a big time outfield move like I mean, and
even this singular move would not be a big time
move to go get a guy like Randall Britchick or
(06:53):
Harrison Vader. But I don't think we see those moves
at all. If there's gonna be any outfielders coming in,
it's on like minor league invites, spring training invites with
a minor league deal. So I think that the Reds,
as far as the super intriguing part of the offseason
are done. There's definitely gonna be some organizational death that
they fell from here on out.
Speaker 2 (07:11):
There with spring training almost right around the corner. Now,
what are some of the bigger position battles that this
team and Terry Francona will have coming out of the spring.
Speaker 3 (07:24):
It's gotta be who's going to be playing first base?
Because you've got Jamer Candelario you've got cees as long
as he has you know, a right rist. I know,
we heard a lot of different reports as to whether
or not that's healthy, and he played well in the
Arizona Fall League to at least lend some hope to
that effect. But what's he going to do with all
(07:46):
of this? Is Spencer Steer gonna play there? What's Gavin
Lux doing? At first? They you know, there's so many
different options that the Reds could roll with, and then
Noel v marte Like, how does he factor into all
of this? Because I kind of feel like it's a
given that he starts in triple A. But Terry Francona
has said in multiple interviews that he doesn't know a
(08:07):
guy until he's got at least a thousand bats under
his belt in the major leagues. So does he fall
back on his scouting report and give him more of
a chance that I think fans are willing to give him.
That's going to be the big question for me in
spring training because as noelvi Martego's then we'll see a
lot of other roster moves. Otherwise he might even be
talking about Reese Hines at the end of the bench.
(08:29):
If Noelvi Martes starts the Aaron Triple A.
Speaker 2 (08:33):
When you look at some of those players that stormed
on the scene a couple of years ago and then
dipped a little bit, Noelve Marte Ces. I know for guys,
injuries played a factor, or suspension played a factor. Matt
McClain missed all of last year. From that core group
of young stars that we thought were on the horizon
two years ago. Who do you think maybe takes another
(08:55):
step forward this year after taking a little bit of
a step back last year.
Speaker 3 (09:00):
I definitely look at Matt McClain coming back healthy, being
like the second most important player on this team to
Elie de la Cruz. But I really think we see
Spencer Steer take the step that we thought he was
going to take last year and hit over twenty home runs,
and there's a there's a camp that was satisfied with
his performance. But based on what we saw whenever he
(09:20):
was first called up and his first full year in
the majors, we thought, man, this guy's got the kind
of plate discipline to really be a force in this lineup,
but we didn't see that on base ability last year.
I think if that improves to the point where we
expect it to be. Like, I'm kind of thinking a
thirty seven, thirty eight percent on base kind of guy.
(09:41):
Then we are talking about a lineup lynchpin in Spencer
Steer where he wasn't that consistent force that the Reds
were hoping for last year. I think we can see
that in the lineup, and then wherever he fits in Defensively,
he has said that he wants to be a committee
and he wants to play wherever they him too, So
he's going to be the exception to well, you know,
(10:03):
most human beings, they want to have some consistency with
what they expect for their daily roles. His consistency is change.
So I think that it's all going to be about
how he hits in this lineup, because he's never going
to be a gold glove guy, but he's going to
be the guy that you're hoping brings you a lot
of run production.
Speaker 4 (10:20):
What do we know about Chris Valaka and the strategy
at the plate that he wants to instill in this team?
And who do you think on this roster excuse me
can benefit the most from Valaka's presence.
Speaker 3 (10:36):
Two words smart at bats? Well, I think at bats
is one way. Maybe at bats's two so three words,
three words smart at bats. The first year that he
jumped into Cleveland, Cleveland wasn't horrible at striking out the
year before he came, but they were the best team
at limiting strikeouts his very first year. And it wasn't
(10:57):
as if they went out and they got a bunch
of guys that just didn't strike out career. He was
able to kind of instill this sort of mindset with
the entire lineup, and I think that that is something
we can expect. Now. Is it going to take Elie
de la Cruz from a thirty percent strikeout guy to
a fifteen percent strikeout guy? I don't think so. But
if you cut five percent off of Ellie de la
(11:18):
Cruz's strikeout rate, then you're talking about an MVP candidate
with what he can do with that five percent. Is
he getting on base all that time? Is he putting
the ball in play all that time? All the havoc
that he could create. That's just the small example of that.
I can see him really working on some other guys.
What could he do with resigns. That's the one thing
(11:39):
that I'm very intrigued about because if he can cut
some strikeouts out of his game. He's got so much athleticism,
so much speed, that he could also be a very
sneaky value to this team moving forward. Chris Foleka is
going to turn these guys into more efficient hitters. And
I think that that, more than anything is what this
team has badly missed the Cup the last couple of years.
Speaker 2 (12:01):
How are you handicapping the Central like the gap between
maybe where the Reds are in And I think for
the most part, people think the Cubs and the Brewers
are teams that can compete. How big of a drop,
How big of a gap is it before you get
to the Cincinnati Reds And how can they close that
gap obviously and contend in the Central.
Speaker 3 (12:20):
I look at it as the Cubs are Tier one,
and then Tier two is the Reds and the Brewers.
I think that the Reds are right there with Milwaukee.
Milwaukee's gonna do something to compete, Like I know that
they traded away a couple of players this offseason, and
they lost with Lilya Domins the free agency, but I
still think that they know how to run their organization,
(12:41):
so I can never quite count them out and say
that yes, definitively, the Reds are better than them, but
I feel like the Reds have done enough to get
in that same category. And the real question will be
just how much valued is Terry francon Or bring to
the team. Can he get most of the players on
the roster to that ninety ninth percent entile as far
as their performance is concerned, Because if that's the case,
(13:04):
then they are right neck and neck with the Cubs.
But I also don't think that the Cubs did like
a whole lot. They got the best player in the
division this offseason in Kyle Tucker, and they did a
really good trade to get a good bullpen piece and
Ryan Presley. It feels like the Cubs and the Astros
just had a really good winter meetings. Maybe they really
shared a nice meal or something, because they keep seeming
(13:25):
to trade with each other. But I think that the
Cubs are the top team right now. The wild card
will be the Pirates. How healthy does their starting rotation
end up being this season? That is going to be
how far they go because their lineup didn't really improve
all that much, so they're still going to be a
low scoring team, but they have the ability to really
(13:46):
keep other teams to a low scoring output as well,
and then the Cardinals have just done nothing subtract, so
I expect them to finish last in this division.
Speaker 2 (13:56):
Lastly, Jeff, there was also a very under the radar
move that the Reds made earlier in the week, and
that was the signing of Wade Miley, a very low risk,
high reward type of signing. I know you were a
fan of this. Why were you such a fan of
the move with Wade Miley? And even if it's not
the production on the field, is he a guy that
can help that clubhouse as well from a veteran standpoint.
Speaker 3 (14:19):
Yeah, it's all about the presence that he brings to
the team. Whether or not he can make it back
to the mound I think is almost secondary in this deal,
because Terry Francona has focused heavily on the different personalities
that he's brought into the coaching staff and onto the roster,
the guys that can help lead this team to where
they want to go. Because he understands that the core
(14:40):
of this team is not going to change. The Reds
were never going to go into this offseason and dramatically
overhaul the roster because they have their core, as volatile
as it may seem, but can they get the best
out of that core, and how do the supporting players,
supporting coaches, supporting cast around this group affect them? Really
(15:00):
what they focused on and Wade Miley is just another
perfect example of that. He's pitched well here in the
year's past. I'm not expecting that at all. I would
expect eight to ten starts if we're talking about back
of the Baseball card type stuff, because he's coming off
of Tommy John surgery at the age of thirty eight.
That's not an age that you see a lot of
(15:21):
guys come back from and really put forth a productive season.
So a lot of his productivity is going to be
behind the scenes and stuff that we cannot measure. But
I think he was such a great get for this
young pitching staff. And then hey, also, I mean, you know,
Austin's favorite player, Ian Jabo is beast so that was
great to see as well.
Speaker 2 (15:42):
Awesome stuff. Jeff, we are weeks away from spring training,
a couple degrees away from flip flop weather. For you,
what's the easiest way to follow along with all your
Reds coverage leading up to everything?
Speaker 3 (15:55):
Hey, you can follow us on every podcasting platform out there,
including the iHeartRadio app on YouTube, and I'm also on
all the socials, the twitters, the Blue Skies and all
that at Jeff Carr with three f's, and I'm on
TikTok to come on. No dances yet, I'm working on
some dances, but probably you know a Skyline ice cream
(16:15):
review is in the near future.
Speaker 4 (16:17):
If you post a video on TikTok of you dancing
and flip flops, I will never speak to you again.
I just want you to know.
Speaker 3 (16:25):
I don't think my co host will either. I think seeple.
Speaker 2 (16:30):
Awesome. Jeff, Thank you so much, man, I look forward
to talking again soon.
Speaker 3 (16:34):
Hey, thanks guys.
Speaker 2 (16:36):
There he is Jeff Carr, locked on Reds Podcast. Always
appreciative of Jeff's time. Jeff's always such a happy, go
lucky guy. He is The flip flop thing throws me
off though.
Speaker 3 (16:46):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (16:46):
Listen, Jeff used to work here with us, and we
used to have to I've had that conversation with him
many times. He was open towing at work. I didn't
like it. Yep, fair enough, and to his credit, he
don't care.
Speaker 2 (16:58):
I don't care. We have talkbacks that we need to
get to. That'll happen when we get back on ESPN
fifteen thirty Cincinnati Sports Station. Thank you to our friends
here at Cinty Shirts.
Speaker 3 (17:10):
Now your chance to win a thousand dollars.
Speaker 1 (17:12):
Entered this nationwide keyword on our website, cran.
Speaker 3 (17:16):
That's cran. Enter it now.
Speaker 4 (17:18):
Hey Alex, who's
Cincy three sixty about Cincinnati from Cincinnati, sponsored in part
by Cincy Shirts. Cincy Shirts All Cincy all Day. This
is ESPN fifteen thirty Cincinnati Sports Station.
Speaker 2 (00:15):
Hey, welcome back our two Cincy three sixty thanks to
Cinci Shirts on ESPN fifteen thirty Cincinnati Sports Station or
via the iHeartRadio app. Either way you find this. Whenever
you're finding this, Happy to have you along and excited
that you get an opportunity for the next couple minutes
to hear from our good friend from the Locked On
Reds podcast. Our good friend Jeff Carr is joining us
(00:37):
right now. We've got to talk Reds an active and
active January for the Cincinnati Reds. It's our good friend,
Jeff Carr. What's up, Jeff.
Speaker 3 (00:46):
The Reds are making moves. The temperature is getting closer
to flip flop weather Tony good day.
Speaker 4 (00:53):
You're sick, Jeff, you know that you're sick.
Speaker 3 (00:56):
I can't wait. We're like ten degrees away from flip flop. Well,
let's go.
Speaker 2 (01:00):
Pro flip flop guy. Jeff Carr, Oh, all day, I
hate socks. Let's start putting that in your bio.
Speaker 3 (01:06):
Jeff.
Speaker 2 (01:07):
Let's start with Taylor Rogers for those that don't dive
in the name. Taylor Rodgers might not mean a ton
to an average baseball fan, But what are the Cincinnati
Reds getting in Taylor Rodgers for the bullpen?
Speaker 3 (01:21):
He slots right in at the top of the bullpen
food chain for the Reds. We're talking like high leverage situations.
Terry Francona now has a right hander in Alexis Daz
that he can go to and a left hander in
Taylor Rodgers. There's some people that think that he might
even be better than Alexis Daz if you were going
for a more traditional like who's the closer, who's the
(01:41):
setup man? But I think that most bullpens nowadays are
by a committee and just based on the matchups. And
Terry Francona now has his third bona fide left hander
that he can go to. And heck, even if Alex
Young can earn a spot out of camp, then he's
got four lefties he could use out of that bullpen.
You'd be talking about fifty to fifty split for the
eight guys in the bullpen of being rivy lefty. That's
(02:04):
the kind of weapons that you really want to go
to go into a season with high expectations for.
Speaker 2 (02:10):
The bullpen itself. I went through the starting pitchers at
least on the roster earlier. I know it's not official
yet by the time the dust has settled. Is Graham
Ashcraft in that bullpen as well?
Speaker 3 (02:21):
I think it makes the most sense. Like at best,
I see him as a fifth starter in this group,
and he still has those questions about longevity. And Terry
Francona is very adamant that he wants his starters to
go deep into the game. He has said already that
he wants starters to be stretched out to one hundred
pitches before they leave Goodyear, and I love all of that,
(02:42):
but I feel like Graham Ashcraft is the most successful
when he can go one percent on every single pitch,
and you just can't do that if you're expecting to
go six to seven innings. So I think his best
attributes will play better in the bullpen than will out
of the rotation, and that, for me, is even more
(03:04):
of a bullpin upgrade than we already expect the bullpen
to have.
Speaker 2 (03:09):
Same question as it related to Taylor Rogers. In your opinion,
what of the Cincinnati Reds getting in Austin Hayes.
Speaker 3 (03:18):
Austin Hayes is going to bring a little bit of
a bat and a lot of a glove. I think
that his bat is solid. It's not the power bat
that we've been looking for, but he is going to
be able to slot nicely in the six to seventh
spot in the lineup, especially against the left handed pitching.
He might even back fifth or fourth because he mashes
lefty so well. But he's not like a straight platoon guy.
(03:40):
I think that's his baseline. But I think he can
play every day, especially in left field. And really what
Austin Hayes does is he frees up Spencer Steer to
move around, and Steer can play on the infield, he
can play third base, he can play first base for
them a lot more. And Austin Hayes will provide you
the arm in the outfield that we've not seen since
Jay Bruce. I mean, there's a lot of highlights going
(04:03):
around to the different throws that he can make from
all parts of the outfield. I'm looking forward to that
just about as much as what he can bring to
this lineup.
Speaker 2 (04:12):
It feels like the Reds were actively trying at Luis
Robert of the Chicago White Sox. It sounds like this
deal fell apart for multiple reasons. Is this a deal
that you think can or should be revisited at all
still by the Cincinnati Reds before the season.
Speaker 3 (04:31):
I don't know if it'll be before the season. I
could see them checking back in closer to the trade deadline.
The White Sox are approaching this very strangely because just
about any contender that fancies in himself a playoff team
in the National League has checked in on Luis Robert,
and some of the American League teams have as well,
and all of them have come away with the same result.
(04:53):
They have just ended talks with the White Sox. I
think that what's most likely here is that Cres gets there,
president of Baseball Ops and Jerry Reinsdorf has pretty much
labeled Luis Robert as the franchise reset button, and unless
the deal that they are getting back does that, then
they're not happy with it. And the Reds, on the
other hand, are looking at this and saying, this guy's
(05:15):
played over one hundred games exactly one time in his career.
I don't know that we can really stomach the idea
of giving up what they're looking for, and so that's
probably where they are requesting money back from the White
Sox and Austin. As he pointed out, Jerry reins Dorf
doesn't want to give money to players. He's not giving
money to other teams. So I don't see this happening,
(05:39):
And quite frankly, I think that the money was a
part of it, but the players were a part of it.
And as much as Ken Rosenthal reported that there were
serious discussions, I question how close they actually got with this.
And I'm happy with where they went instead of this idea.
Speaker 2 (05:55):
Is that being said, it's still been a very active
offseason for the Cincinnati Reds. A couple weeks away from
pitchers and catchers reporting, do you still see anything out
there on the horizon that maybe the Reds could go
look for, maybe that they could add still to this
roster before spring training rolls around.
Speaker 3 (06:11):
I know that they were really talking internally about third base,
and I think Spencer Steer helps them out with that
discussion now that he can play more at that position.
But I do think that he's better suited for first
base when you're looking at like his best spot in
the infield and where he can help out the Reds
the most. It'd be interesting because there were definitely some
(06:32):
names that they were looking at, and some of them
were not really that high price to players just kind
of depends on what it would take to get them
in a trade. That would be the only spot though,
that I think that they go. I don't think we
see a big time outfield move like I mean, and
even this singular move would not be a big time
move to go get a guy like Randall Britchick or
(06:53):
Harrison Vader. But I don't think we see those moves
at all. If there's gonna be any outfielders coming in,
it's on like minor league invites, spring training invites with
a minor league deal. So I think that the Reds,
as far as the super intriguing part of the offseason
are done. There's definitely gonna be some organizational death that
they fell from here on out.
Speaker 2 (07:11):
There with spring training almost right around the corner. Now,
what are some of the bigger position battles that this
team and Terry Francona will have coming out of the spring.
Speaker 3 (07:24):
It's gotta be who's going to be playing first base?
Because you've got Jamer Candelario you've got cees as long
as he has you know, a right rist. I know,
we heard a lot of different reports as to whether
or not that's healthy, and he played well in the
Arizona Fall League to at least lend some hope to
that effect. But what's he going to do with all
(07:46):
of this? Is Spencer Steer gonna play there? What's Gavin
Lux doing? At first? They you know, there's so many
different options that the Reds could roll with, and then
Noel v marte Like, how does he factor into all
of this? Because I kind of feel like it's a
given that he starts in triple A. But Terry Francona
has said in multiple interviews that he doesn't know a
(08:07):
guy until he's got at least a thousand bats under
his belt in the major leagues. So does he fall
back on his scouting report and give him more of
a chance that I think fans are willing to give him.
That's going to be the big question for me in
spring training because as noelvi Martego's then we'll see a
lot of other roster moves. Otherwise he might even be
talking about Reese Hines at the end of the bench.
(08:29):
If Noelvi Martes starts the Aaron Triple A.
Speaker 2 (08:33):
When you look at some of those players that stormed
on the scene a couple of years ago and then
dipped a little bit, Noelve Marte Ces. I know for guys,
injuries played a factor, or suspension played a factor. Matt
McClain missed all of last year. From that core group
of young stars that we thought were on the horizon
two years ago. Who do you think maybe takes another
(08:55):
step forward this year after taking a little bit of
a step back last year.
Speaker 3 (09:00):
I definitely look at Matt McClain coming back healthy, being
like the second most important player on this team to
Elie de la Cruz. But I really think we see
Spencer Steer take the step that we thought he was
going to take last year and hit over twenty home runs,
and there's a there's a camp that was satisfied with
his performance. But based on what we saw whenever he
(09:20):
was first called up and his first full year in
the majors, we thought, man, this guy's got the kind
of plate discipline to really be a force in this lineup,
but we didn't see that on base ability last year.
I think if that improves to the point where we
expect it to be. Like, I'm kind of thinking a
thirty seven, thirty eight percent on base kind of guy.
(09:41):
Then we are talking about a lineup lynchpin in Spencer
Steer where he wasn't that consistent force that the Reds
were hoping for last year. I think we can see
that in the lineup, and then wherever he fits in Defensively,
he has said that he wants to be a committee
and he wants to play wherever they him too, So
he's going to be the exception to well, you know,
(10:03):
most human beings, they want to have some consistency with
what they expect for their daily roles. His consistency is change.
So I think that it's all going to be about
how he hits in this lineup, because he's never going
to be a gold glove guy, but he's going to
be the guy that you're hoping brings you a lot
of run production.
Speaker 4 (10:20):
What do we know about Chris Valaka and the strategy
at the plate that he wants to instill in this team?
And who do you think on this roster excuse me
can benefit the most from Valaka's presence.
Speaker 3 (10:36):
Two words smart at bats? Well, I think at bats
is one way. Maybe at bats's two so three words,
three words smart at bats. The first year that he
jumped into Cleveland, Cleveland wasn't horrible at striking out the
year before he came, but they were the best team
at limiting strikeouts his very first year. And it wasn't
(10:57):
as if they went out and they got a bunch
of guys that just didn't strike out career. He was
able to kind of instill this sort of mindset with
the entire lineup, and I think that that is something
we can expect. Now. Is it going to take Elie
de la Cruz from a thirty percent strikeout guy to
a fifteen percent strikeout guy? I don't think so. But
if you cut five percent off of Ellie de la
(11:18):
Cruz's strikeout rate, then you're talking about an MVP candidate
with what he can do with that five percent. Is
he getting on base all that time? Is he putting
the ball in play all that time? All the havoc
that he could create. That's just the small example of that.
I can see him really working on some other guys.
What could he do with resigns. That's the one thing
(11:39):
that I'm very intrigued about because if he can cut
some strikeouts out of his game. He's got so much athleticism,
so much speed, that he could also be a very
sneaky value to this team moving forward. Chris Foleka is
going to turn these guys into more efficient hitters. And
I think that that, more than anything is what this
team has badly missed the Cup the last couple of years.
Speaker 2 (12:01):
How are you handicapping the Central like the gap between
maybe where the Reds are in And I think for
the most part, people think the Cubs and the Brewers
are teams that can compete. How big of a drop,
How big of a gap is it before you get
to the Cincinnati Reds And how can they close that
gap obviously and contend in the Central.
Speaker 3 (12:20):
I look at it as the Cubs are Tier one,
and then Tier two is the Reds and the Brewers.
I think that the Reds are right there with Milwaukee.
Milwaukee's gonna do something to compete, Like I know that
they traded away a couple of players this offseason, and
they lost with Lilya Domins the free agency, but I
still think that they know how to run their organization,
(12:41):
so I can never quite count them out and say
that yes, definitively, the Reds are better than them, but
I feel like the Reds have done enough to get
in that same category. And the real question will be
just how much valued is Terry francon Or bring to
the team. Can he get most of the players on
the roster to that ninety ninth percent entile as far
as their performance is concerned, Because if that's the case,
(13:04):
then they are right neck and neck with the Cubs.
But I also don't think that the Cubs did like
a whole lot. They got the best player in the
division this offseason in Kyle Tucker, and they did a
really good trade to get a good bullpen piece and
Ryan Presley. It feels like the Cubs and the Astros
just had a really good winter meetings. Maybe they really
shared a nice meal or something, because they keep seeming
(13:25):
to trade with each other. But I think that the
Cubs are the top team right now. The wild card
will be the Pirates. How healthy does their starting rotation
end up being this season? That is going to be
how far they go because their lineup didn't really improve
all that much, so they're still going to be a
low scoring team, but they have the ability to really
(13:46):
keep other teams to a low scoring output as well,
and then the Cardinals have just done nothing subtract, so
I expect them to finish last in this division.
Speaker 2 (13:56):
Lastly, Jeff, there was also a very under the radar
move that the Reds made earlier in the week, and
that was the signing of Wade Miley, a very low risk,
high reward type of signing. I know you were a
fan of this. Why were you such a fan of
the move with Wade Miley? And even if it's not
the production on the field, is he a guy that
can help that clubhouse as well from a veteran standpoint.
Speaker 3 (14:19):
Yeah, it's all about the presence that he brings to
the team. Whether or not he can make it back
to the mound I think is almost secondary in this deal,
because Terry Francona has focused heavily on the different personalities
that he's brought into the coaching staff and onto the roster,
the guys that can help lead this team to where
they want to go. Because he understands that the core
(14:40):
of this team is not going to change. The Reds
were never going to go into this offseason and dramatically
overhaul the roster because they have their core, as volatile
as it may seem, but can they get the best
out of that core, and how do the supporting players,
supporting coaches, supporting cast around this group affect them? Really
(15:00):
what they focused on and Wade Miley is just another
perfect example of that. He's pitched well here in the
year's past. I'm not expecting that at all. I would
expect eight to ten starts if we're talking about back
of the Baseball card type stuff, because he's coming off
of Tommy John surgery at the age of thirty eight.
That's not an age that you see a lot of
(15:21):
guys come back from and really put forth a productive season.
So a lot of his productivity is going to be
behind the scenes and stuff that we cannot measure. But
I think he was such a great get for this
young pitching staff. And then hey, also, I mean, you know,
Austin's favorite player, Ian Jabo is beast so that was
great to see as well.
Speaker 2 (15:42):
Awesome stuff. Jeff, we are weeks away from spring training,
a couple degrees away from flip flop weather. For you,
what's the easiest way to follow along with all your
Reds coverage leading up to everything?
Speaker 3 (15:55):
Hey, you can follow us on every podcasting platform out there,
including the iHeartRadio app on YouTube, and I'm also on
all the socials, the twitters, the Blue Skies and all
that at Jeff Carr with three f's, and I'm on
TikTok to come on. No dances yet, I'm working on
some dances, but probably you know a Skyline ice cream
(16:15):
review is in the near future.
Speaker 4 (16:17):
If you post a video on TikTok of you dancing
and flip flops, I will never speak to you again.
I just want you to know.
Speaker 3 (16:25):
I don't think my co host will either. I think seeple.
Speaker 2 (16:30):
Awesome. Jeff, Thank you so much, man, I look forward
to talking again soon.
Speaker 3 (16:34):
Hey, thanks guys.
Speaker 2 (16:36):
There he is Jeff Carr, locked on Reds Podcast. Always
appreciative of Jeff's time. Jeff's always such a happy, go
lucky guy. He is The flip flop thing throws me
off though.
Speaker 3 (16:46):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (16:46):
Listen, Jeff used to work here with us, and we
used to have to I've had that conversation with him
many times. He was open towing at work. I didn't
like it. Yep, fair enough, and to his credit, he
don't care.
Speaker 2 (16:58):
I don't care. We have talkbacks that we need to
get to. That'll happen when we get back on ESPN
fifteen thirty Cincinnati Sports Station. Thank you to our friends
here at Cinty Shirts.
Speaker 3 (17:10):
Now your chance to win a thousand dollars.
Speaker 1 (17:12):
Entered this nationwide keyword on our website, cran.
Speaker 3 (17:16):
That's cran. Enter it now.
Speaker 4 (17:18):
Hey Alex, who's
Popular Podcasts
Crime Junkie
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by audiochuck Media Company.
24/7 News: The Latest
The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.