Way back at the beginning of this fateful season, when some of us were convinced the Reds could sneak into the playoffs, I decided to make some predictions. My crystal ball was full of optimism, hopeful that young players could step forward and that the front office would do something, anything that made sense. I […]
Recently, I started re-reading The Art of Fielding by Chad Harbach. In some abstract way, the impetus behind that decision was that I wanted to start writing a baseball novel and how else to pump up your ambition than to read the best baseball novel of all time? (Yes, I will consider The Natural an acceptable answer as […]
Before getting into the meat of this recap, a short story in four parts: I sit down in front of the TV with the Reds game about to start. I open my computer with three tabs: WordPress (this recap), Fangraphs (light reading and stat work), and Twitter (because of course). Anthony DeSclafani mows down the […]
The Nation has been consumed by gifs of late and it’s all Chad Dotson’s fault. Well, actually I can’t know that for sure — it could be Jason Linden or Steve Mancuso or one of the other editors with keys to the Twitter machine. Regardless, on September 4, 2018, someone decided to tweet this: Let's […]
When you’re in your early 20s and convinced that time goes fast and that you must live in the now or risk losing the future, you forget that a baseball season takes a lifetime. Or, to be less melodramatic, a gestation period at least. Since the Reds’ season began, I have started dating a girl, […]
Plodding, ponderous, plain bad — all words used to describe Jesse Winker’s defense this season before his campaign ended with shoulder surgery. In particular when I wrote two weeks ago that Winker was the third-most valuable trade asset the Reds have, you all were quick to point out in the comments that Winker cannot possibly […]
In addition to my recent proclivity for Hawaiian shirts, I’ve also taken a fancy to obscure Minor League baseball jerseys. I mention this solely because scrolling through pages and pages of eBay auctions looking for the perfect blend of absurdity and savvy design has reminded how beautiful the sport of Minor League baseball is. You […]
For years, I’ve followed both Jonah Keri’s and Fangraphs’ versions of establishing top-50 MLB Trade Value lists. Both annual rankings seek to provide an idea of how the baseball industry values its players, creating a sort of “absolute value” for what players could fetch on the open market. It’s a delicate balance of friendly contracts, […]
Sometimes I forget how good Major League baseball players are at what they do. After spending hours fielding fly balls and grounders in high school, we would get to the game and still boot two or three plays in just such a horrendous fashion I’m sure our parents wondered if we actually practiced or just […]
Recently, I’ve developed an affinity for wearing Hawaiian shirts. With no hint of exaggeration or hyperbole, my free time activity of choice has become browsing Goodwill or other thrift stores for absurd, flowery torso wear. This shift — my entire life before this summer has consisted of earth tones — has derived of a combination […]
Following a sloppy top of the first inning that somehow, someway saw the Reds enter their half of the frame still tied, Eugenio Suarez went yard for the third straight day. There’s really no way to accurately explain how beautiful it has been to watch Suarez blossom into his new role as face of the […]
In Little League, no one wanted to play second base. Second sackers were too small to play first, too weak to make the throw from second or third, and too slow to cover the outfield. Playing second base was insulting. It was the coach calling you a runt and good-for-nothing small person in front of […]