Cincinnati Reds vs Chicago Cubs – June 6th, 2024

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6 June 2024

Cincinnati Reds vs Chicago Cubs – June 6th, 2024 – The Cincinnati Reds are hot. Very hot. Winners of 9 of their last 12, the Reds come into this series just 4 games under .500. None of us would have believed that a few weeks ago. Since losing the last series to the Reds, the Cubs took a two game set from the White Sox. The Reds optioned Graham Ashcraft today in favor of Emilio Pagan. Not sure if this is just temporary to buy some time since he just had a start or more indicative of how they feel about him at the moment – only time will tell. Let’s break down how the Cincinnati Reds and Chicago Cubs will matchup tonight at Great American Ballpark.

Cincinnati Reds RHP Hunter Greene

Greene had been figuring it out until his last outing against the Cubs in which he gave up 5 runs, but still managed to go 6 innings. Greene’s advanced stats are phenomenal. The main area for improvement is BB % which sits at 10.4% putting him in the 22nd percentile. Most promising is his xERA sitting at just 2.88, good for the 86th percentile. The xERA being so much lower than his actual ERA shows that he’s throwing great stuff, but a decent amount of batted balls just fall the wrong way. His previous two starts before last time out were against the Dodgers – holding them to two runs and then one in those starts. Look for him to return to that form tonight.

Cincinnati Reds Lineup Card

	Batters	Average
1	CF TJ Friedl	.217
2	SS Elly De La Cruz	.241
3	3B Jeimer Candelario	.236
4	1B Spencer Steer	.247
5	DH Jake Fraley	.288
6	C Tyler Stephenson	.256
7	LF Jacob Hurtubise	.250
8	2B Jonathan India	.242
9	RF Will Benson	.208

Like I mentioned in last night’s game recap, the Reds are batting .281 with 16 homers since May 24th. Pretty much everyone is hot or at least back to average. India is .429 over his last seven and .318 over his last fifteen – really starting to put it together at the plate. Steer is .379 in his last seven and .315 over his last fifteen – almost as good as he started the year. Perhaps most importantly, Elly De La Cruz is starting to heat back up. Hopefully his homer on Tuesday was just what he needed. His exit velo is noticeably up. Also, Stephenson catching Hunter Greene is interesting – it’s well documented that Greene prefers to pitch to Maile.

Chicago Cubs RHP Javier Assad

Assad faced these Cincinnati Reds last time out giving up 2 runs over 5 1/3 innings. He’s a young, phenomenal pitcher that just does a little bit of everything. His fastball is by far his best pitch and he throw it right at guys. He won’t dance around because he doesn’t have great secondary pitches – or at least anything with movement. His advanced stats show a guy thats just middle of the road at everything which, with no real weakness, can mean success in the bigs.

Chicago Cubs Lineup Card

	Batters	Average
1	TBA
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9

Cincinnati Reds Rally in 6-run 9th Inning

By

Mike V

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5 June 2024

0

This Cincinnati Reds team that leaves Colorado after a sweep of the Rockies can contend. If they can dig themselves out of the hole they created in May, watch out when Noelvi Marte and (maybe) Matt McLain return. The Rally Redlegs finally came out and showed what this offense is capable of with two 10+ run performances in a sweep of the Colorado Rockies. Tonight’s win, which required a six-run top of the ninth inning on a two-run home run by Spencer Steer and a grand slam by Jonathan India, gave the Cincinnati Reds some life in this 2024 season.

Cincinnati Reds 2B celebrates as he rounds the bases on a grand slam in the 9th inning at Coors Field on June 5th, 2024.

Since dropping to a season-worst 10 games under .500 on May 23, the Reds have won nine of their last 12 games to improve to 29-33, just 4 games under .500. In 3 games at Coors Field, the Reds scored 29 runs, including 22 two-out runs. On Wednesday, the Reds battled back from deficits of 4-0 after one inning and 7-4 after the seventh. Personally, I was ready to call it after Ashcraft was blasted for 4 runs in the first inning.

Cincinnati Reds RHP Graham Ashcraft had a rough, short outing.

Ashcraft got the hook after a season-low 3 2/3 innings. The Cincinnati Reds had some life when Jeimer Candelario slugged a two-out, two-run homer to right field in the third inning. TJ Friedl tied the game up at 4 with his own two-run homer to right-center field in the fifth inning. Colorado went back on top with Elias Díaz’s solo homer off Nick Martinez and added two more runs in the seventh inning.

Cincinnati Reds OF Jacob Hurtubise smacked an RBI triple at Coors Field on June 5th, 2024.

The Reds stayed close with two runs in the eighth inning to make it a 7-6 game, including an RBI triple to right field by Jacob Hurtubise.

Cincinnati Reds OF TJ Friedl is HBP by Jalen Beeks in the 9th inning.

In the top of the ninth inning against the Rockies “for-now” closer Jalen Beeks, Friedl was hit by a pitch leading off the inning. The Rockies challenged but were not successful. Friedl was on second base with two outs when Steer slugged a two-run homer to left field for 439 feet.

Cincinnati Reds 2B Jonathan India celebrates rounding the bases on a grand slam at Coors Field on June 5th, 2024.

Beeks continued to struggle and gave up two hits and a walk to load the bases for India. Rockies rookie Angel Chivilli took over and immediately surrendered a sensational grand slam to India to make the game 12-7.

Cincinnati Reds 2B Jonathan India speaks to the media after the Reds win over the Rockies on June 5th, 2024.

India is 4-for-5 with the bases loaded in 2024 with four grand slams for his career.

During their 9-18 month of May, the Reds offense pretty much ceased to exist. Since their three-game home sweep of the Dodgers, they are batting .281 with 16 homers. The Cincinnati Reds return to Great American Ballpark to host the Chicago Cubs tomorrow. Make sure to come back for our game preview!

Cincinnati Reds vs Colorado Rockies – June 4, 2024

By

Mike V

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4 June 2024

0

Cincinnati Reds vs Colorado Rockies – June 4, 2024 – Last night’s game was beautiful. The Reds seem to be back on track. Check out our breakdown complete with highlights here. The Cincinnati Reds go into tonight’s matchup against the Rockies 27-33 on the season and 7-3 over their last 10. The Reds also optioned Nick Martini to AAA and added OF Blake Dunn to the active roster! Let’s break down tonight’s matchup in Denver.

Cincinnati Reds RHP Frankie Montas

Montas surrendered 3 over 6 innings on his way to a loss last time out against the St Louis Cardinals. 3 runs will work if the Reds hit like they did last night. Montas looked like an Ace on opening day. Since then, he’s been very up and down. He’s a bottom three guy in the rotation for sure until he can get consistent. His advanced stats don’t look great. The only things he is above average on are Fastball Velo (60th percentile), Breaking Run Value (67th percentile), and Barrel % (54th percentile). I’ve seen worse advanced stats from Reds opponents this year, but he’s the Cincinnati Reds worst performing starting pitcher by advanced metrics. Not good from a guy you gave a decent pay day to last offseason. Plus the Reds probably can’t really trade him for much if anything. Let’s hope some of that potential comes out soon.

Cincinnati Reds Lineup Card

	Batters	Average
1	RF Stuart Fairchild	.228
2	SS Elly De La Cruz	.233
3	3B Jeimer Candelario	.233
4	1B Spencer Steer	.243
5	DH Tyler Stephenson	.253
6	2B Jonathan India	.239
7	CF TJ Friedl	.200
8	LF Blake Dunn	–
9	C Luke Maile	.174

Blake Dunn makes his major league debut! We wrote about what to expect here. Outside of that, we have the usual against LHP. Fairchild in his rightful place and thank God that Stephenson is in the lineup even though he’s not behind the plate. Let’s hope that Steer, Candy, and Elly can stay hot.

Colorado Rockies LHP Ty Blach

Man, I’d hate to start against a team that just put up 13 runs against my team in our building. Blach is a sinkerballer through and through. His sinker is his fastball – tossing it over 50% of the time. Opponents are hitting .324 against his sinker, .290 against his changeup, and .238 against his cutter. His strength? He has the stuff to go right at guys. He doesn’t get hit hard – only giving up 3 HRs to this point in the season. He also only walks 4.9% of batters – good for the 88th percentile. With a 12% strikeout rate, 83% of batters put the ball in play. That’s insane. Look for the Reds to get aggressive on the basepaths and take advantage of the runners they get.

Colorado Rockies Lineup Card

	Batters	Average
1	DH Charlie Blackmon	.237
2	SS Ezequiel Tovar	.295
3	3B Ryan McMahon	.284
4	C Elias Diaz	.294
5	2B Brendan Rodgers	.270
6	1B Elehuris Montero	.218
7	CF Brenton Doyle	.270
8	LF Jake Cave	.253
9	RF Hunter Goodman	.179

Watch out – McMahon is back in the lineup. Blackmon also is in the lineup after a day off. This lineup can get hot at times, so don’t necessarily expect another 10 run slashing. We may see a shootout.

The Cincinnati Reds Select Blake Dunn: What to Expect

By

Nati

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4 June 2024

0

On May 29th, 2024 the Cincinnati Reds DFA’d Mike Ford clearing a 40 man roster spot to use however they wanted. They finally figured out how they wanted to use it: Blake Dunn Called Up. What can we expect from the Cincinnati Reds 11th rank prospect?

Blake Dunn Background

Blake Dunn was a 15th round (450 overall) selection by the Cincinnati Reds in 2021. He played collegiately at Western Michigan where he slashed .331/.428/.473/.901 and stole 50 bases while hitting only 11 homeruns. Blake has been a suberb athlete his whole entire life; he played all 4 years in highschool: Football, Basketball, Baseball & track. Blake has always been “undersized” standing at a mere 5’10” weighing 210, but his athleticism has never been in question. He’s quick, strong, but maybe his top quality is his passion for the game. Had it not been for injuries, he likely would’ve made his big league debut by now. He’s 25, and played in 4 minor league seasons thus far, including 2024.

Speed (55 Grade)

Going back to athleticism when it comes to Blake Dunn: Speed. He has it. It’s above average. And it’s been utilized quite frequently as a Cincinnati Reds farmhand. In his first fully healthy year (2023) he stole 54 bases between A+ Dayton and AA Chattanooga. 54/61. He scored 107 runs total, many accredited to his aggression on the basepaths.

Power (50 grade)

Blake flashed a ton of power, primarily generated off his batspeed, which he’s shown to possess a lot of. In 2023, he hit 23 homers. 8 of those came in A+ Dayton, and 15 of them came in AA Chattanooga. Anyone that follows ball knows the pitching in AA is 5x better than A+, so this is a very impressive feat. Blake had a .989 OPS in AA in ’23. So far in 2024, he has 4 HRs in AAA Louisville, with an OPS of .726. It’s no secret he started the year slow, but he has a .545 SLG% in his last 10 games with 2 homeruns.

Defense (50 grade)

Blake Dunn is an all out grinder. He can play all 3 outfield positions, and that’s where the Cincinnati Reds will have him playing as well. He is an above average defender and has a good arm. He’ll likely play a corner outfield position, but can play centerfield if necessary. He profiles best in left field with the Reds.

Discipline

You can really find a lot of similarity between Jacob Hurtibise and Blake Dunn – both of these guys never had shit given to them in the baseball world, none of them were top prospects, they’re just GRINDERS. The type of guys you want on the diamond with you at all times. Blake Dunn isn’t afraid to work a count to get on base for his team. He’s averaging a crazy .408 OBP as a professional baseball player. In AAA Louisville, even with a slow start, he has an .348 OBP. Getting on base is something you can’t teach. Blake does strikeout quite a bit, and I absolutely expect that in his game as a big leaguer, but it’s going to be followed up with a lot of other good things. He has a 24:55 BB:K in AAA so far, which, for him, I believe he’s better than.

Blake Dunn Called Up

We can expect Blake to play quite a bit in the days coming – The Chicago Cubs possess 2 southpaws that we have the potential to see, the Colorado Rockies have a lefty throwing tonight’s game, as of right now, the Guardians will have a LHP going in that short series with us as well. I think Blake will get adequate playing time, especially late in games and first off the bench type things.

Cincinnati Reds Score 13 in Rout of Colorado Rockies

By

Mike V

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4 June 2024

0

It was beautiful. Everything came together. Every Cincinnati Reds batter got a hit. Reds batters hit 6 XBHs. Will Benson, Elly De La Cruz, and Jeimer Candelario all topped 100 MPH exit velocity. The Reds set season highs in runs and hits and 7 batters had an RBI.

How about a Monday night #Reds #Atobttr highlight for your Tuesday morning?

Whole game highlights!
⚡️ ⚡️#ATOBTTR: 13#Rockies: 3

We appreciate your support!
TikTok: Nati.sports5 @mikemadethis1 pic.twitter.com/sYHvwAFTDa
— Nati Sports (@Nati_Sports) June 4, 2024

The Reds endured a rough May going 9-18 on the month. Since the Reds were 14-10 to start the season, they have gone 13-23. Our talisman, Elly De La Cruz, has gone .182 in that time frame. It’s no secret that De La Cruz and Spencer Steer drove the team’s early success. Things are turning around.

Cincinnati Reds Elly De La Cruz — Cincinnati Reds SS Elly De La Cruz celebrates after hitting an RBI double on June 3rd at Coors Field.

Personally, my eyes were drawn to the 109.7 MPH exit velo on Elly’s first at bat even though he was out. He hasn’t been hitting the ball that hard for a month. His very next at bat, he blasted a 100.4 MPH rocket for an RBI double to left-center. As we noted on X (Twitter?), this snapped a 0-16 slide. In the postgame, Elly noted that he has not made an adjustment to his swing through his struggle the last month.

The 0-16 is no longer!

Great swing by Elly de La Cruz right there
Double scoring benson
2-1 #Reds
— Nati Sports (@Nati_Sports) June 4, 2024

Jeimer Candelario followed up Elly’s double with a 2 run HR to right field that went 423 ft. Candy started the year very slow. We all doubted him and hated the move. He has been HOT going .310 over his last 7 and .278 over his last 30. That’s some consistency. It also speaks to how bad his start was that his average is still only .233.

Cincinnati Reds OF Will Benson celebrates after hitting a 2 RBI triple on June 3rd at Coors Field.

Will Benson finally got over .200 recently. He sealed this one with his 2 run triple to right field making the game 6-3. And he lost his helmet again. Benson also added another RBI with a sac fly to left field in the 6th inning. He ended the game 2-3 with 3 RBIs.

Spencer Steer added two more runs in the 6th with a 2 run single. Much like Elly, he started the season off hot, but has batted .176 since the beginning of May. Steer never stopped hitting the ball hard, and didn’t strike out near as often as Elly. The Cincinnati Reds need both of those guys to stay in this form. In his last 7 games, Steer is slashing .321/.367/.357.

This month, the Cincinnati Reds have series against every National League Central division rival. They also have series agains the Guardians and the Red Sox. June will determine the season. If they can come out near or on the better side of .500, its alive.

Revisiting a Cincinnati Reds Trade – Tyler Naquin Trade 2022

By

Nati

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4 June 2024

0

Tyler Naquin Trade 2022: On July 28th, 2022, the Cincinnati Reds were straight up sellers. They were sellers pretty much right as they started 3-22. Anything a team wanted to offer on, the Cincinnati Reds were going to sell. That’s when New York Mets’ GM, then Billy Eppler, gave Nick Krall and Sam Grossman a call wanting Tyler Naquin, who in 2022 had a very mid-season. Tyler was slashing .240/.305/.427/.732 in the 1st half, he only had 6 HRs.

They were all over it. They didn’t even have to “negotiate” – the Mets accepted the offer immediately. Some would say it’s a deal that was part of the reason Billy Eppler was relieved of his duties.

Alright, I made that part up, the Metropolitans went a way different way with Cohen obtaining the team. I, Nati Sports, would actually declare this to be one of Nick Krall’s biggest W’s as GM when it comes to acquistion. Let’s see how these two prospects are doing…

Hector Rodriguez – OF A+ Dayton Dragons (Reds 13th ranked prospect)

A small, (5’10”, 185) but compact hitter, Hector Rodriguez was a mere 18 years old at the time of trade. Known for his quick hands, and bat to ball skills, the Cincinnati Reds Amateur scouting were all about him. He was signed by the New York Mets for $100,000 in 2021 and he has done nothing but hit since. Signed as an infielder, he is now an outfielder, which fits the Reds mould much more. He has plus speed, paired with extremely low whiff rates, he is almost certain to be a major leaguer one day. He’s 20 years old. I would imagine AA Chattanooga being on the horizon very soon for Hector. In A+ right now, he’s currently slashing .302/.336/.437/.773 which would be considered a “down” year for him. A lot of us are a little surprised he hasn’t hit more homeruns yet, but contact rate is still there, as is the rest of his game. He rarely strikes out, and the higher he goes, the more that stays consistent. He has 17 total XBHs in 200 ABs – only 4 of those are homers. He had 16 HRs last year in A ball in Daytona, which, the Florida State League is notorious for pitcher friendly ballparks, so that mark is impressive. There are a LOT of folks that believe Hector is the best “hitter” in the Reds’ organization. I would rank him 2nd, just behind Sal Stewart. Ladies & gentlemen, perhaps we have our own Luis Arraez?

Jose Acuna – RHP AA Chattanooga Lookouts (Unranked)

Jose Acuna is a real slept on piece of that Naquin deal – the dude has some real strikeout stuff. The more I look back on this, what an absolute fleecing for the Reds, even if neither of these dudes debut with the team at the MLB level. Acuna is back from a minor injury suffered in April & is with the Chattanooga Lookouts where he’s now pitched in 2 games as the Reds are taking his innings very seriously and limiting them. What’s wild here is…Acuna isn’t even in our top 30 prospects (per Pipeline) yet he’s pitched great every stop he’s been at. It’s unclear if the Reds will use him as a starter or reliever, but he has thrown a LOT of strikes everywhere he’s been in our pipeline. I joked with the caption above about the Reds best kept secret, but hell, you can’t even find a picture of this dude online anywhere in a Reds uniform.

Since acquistion on 7/28, Jose Acuna has compiled 58 BBs compared to 145 K’s in the Reds organization. So far in AA in 2 games pitched, he’s only allowed 1 run unearned in the 4.2 innings he’s pitched, and K’d 6. We’ll see how he continues with health in AA, but considering he had an 100 K year last year for the Dragons, I have no doubt he’ll continue to make strides. I’m not shocked he’s not ranked in our system, we have an underrated farm year after year.

Was this Nick Krall’s best work so far?

I think it genuinely needs to be considered. Compared to what was given up, and what was received, I mean Hector Rodriguez is a certain Major Leaguer, Jose Acuna has a ton of promise…this easily could be Nick Krall’s best work as GM of the Cincinnati Reds. Shoutout Metropolitans. These two just to get beat by the San Diego Padres in round 1 back in 2022. Tough cooking. So is this a Nick Krall win, or do we give the credit to the Reds Amateur Scouting team? Joe Katuska’s squad? Hmm…

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Cincinnati Reds vs Colorado Rockies – June 3, 2024

By

Mike V

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3 June 2024

0

Cincinnati Reds vs Colorado Rockies – June 3, 2024 – The Cincinnati Reds come into this series off of a series win against division rival Chicago Cubs. I did a full breakdown on this upcoming series, so go check that out too. Looking forward to tonight, the Reds will face Ryan Feltner with Andrew Abbott on the mound. The Reds have an advantage this series, especially with their momentum and desperately need to carry it forward into the next series against the Cubs again. Let’s break down the matchup for tonight.

Cincinnati Reds LHP Andrew Abbott

Cincinnati Reds Pitcher Andrew Abbott — Cincinnati Reds LHP Andrew Abbott.

Abbott had a rough time out last week against the St Louis Cardinals giving up 6 runs over 6 innings with 2 HRs. Plain and simple, Abbott’s issue is the homers. I noted last time he was on the bump that a noticeable majority of his runs surrendered have been to the long ball this season. Well, thank goodness the Rockies don’t hit an exorbitant amount of HRs – ranking 26th in the bigs.

Abbott’s advanced profile will drive you crazy. He’s not doing any one thing particularly well. He’s just doing everything… mid. What is wild is, given his HR issue, he actually ranks really high for Hard Hit % (86th percentile). If you break down the situations where he has given up runs, it becomes a little more clear. Abbott is dominant until he’s not. He clamps down lineups but then leaves a fastball over the heart of the plate or – as he has done 4 times now – hangs a sweeper gift that gets a ride to the stands.

Look for Abbott to take it a little slower this time out. The Rockies may be a bad team, but they have a few guys that can really hit. I highlighted Ryan McMahon as the guy to watch out for and you can read exactly why here. I’ll say to expect Abbott to surrender 2-3 runs on a homer today and pray I’m wrong.

Cincinnati Reds Lineup Card

	Batters	Average
1	CF TJ Friedl	.167
2	SS Elly De La Cruz	.233
3	3B Jeimer Candelario	.229
4	1B Spencer Steer	.234
5	RF Jake Fraley	.295
6	C Tyler Stephenson	.248
7	DH Nick Martini	.200
8	2B Jonathan India	.228
9	LF Will Benson	.197

The usual for these Cincinnati Reds. Bell really isn’t the guy to mix things up due to performance. As evidenced by the fact that Fraley and India are on fire and are not moving up the lineup. Maybe there is something to a guy performing in a certain spot.

Colorado Rockies RHP Ryan Feltner

Plain and simple, the Cincinnati Reds should fleece this guy. 6 starts on the season, he’s surrendered 5+ runs. The Reds hit RHP well. This guys offspeed and breaking stuff is so hittable, Benson may even see enough beach balls that he blasts one into the stands. I can’t make this up – the batting average on his slider is .347 and for his changeup its .400! His fastball gets hit to the tune of a .264 average. Everything this guy throw is hittable.

What Feltner does do well is limit walks. He’s in the 70th percentile with only a 6.8 BB %. He also limits exit velocity with an average exit velo of 87.6 MPH – good enough for the 76th percentile.

Colorado Rockies Lineup Card

	Batters	Average
1	SS Ezequiel Tovar	.297
2	Brendan Rodgers	.265
3	C Elias Diaz	.301
4	1B Elehuris Montero	.216
5	CF Brenton Doyle	.260
6	DH Jacob Stallings	.319
7	LF Sean Bouchard	.206
8	RF Hunter Goodman	.189
9	3B Alan Trejo	.108

The Rockies don’t seem to be taking this one too seriously. McMahon is off and I’m sure Abbott is celebrating on the inside. The Rockies will play their three worst hitters – Goodman, Trejo, and Bouchard. Interesting to see.

Cincinnati Reds vs Colorado Rockies – Series Preview

By

Mike V

-

3 June 2024

0

Cincinnati Reds vs Colorado Rockies – Series Preview – The Cincinnati Reds won a series! Against a division rival too. Even the game that they lost was competitive, so it really could have been a sweep. The Reds need to carry forward that momentum to Colorado. Cincinnati faces a 3 game set against a very poor Rockies team in Denver. The Rockies will run out three starters that wouldn’t make Cincinnati’s roster. Let’s break down how the Cincinnati Reds match up against the Colorado Rockies.

Cincinnati Reds Notebook

Cincinnati Reds infielders Elly De La Cruz, Jonathan India, Spencer Steer, and Jeimer Candelario gather near the mound in between innings at Great American Ballpark.

The Cincinnati Reds will run out Andrew Abbott followed by Frankie Montas and then Graham Ashcraft on Wednesday to wrap up the series. With Lodolo back in the fold, its crazy to think these three are the bottom three of the rotation. The Cincinnati Reds pitching staff has been incredible – at least compared to previous years.

That being said, Abbot is coming in off a rough start in which he gave up 6 to the Cardinals. Montas put in a solid 6 innings of 3 run ball. Ashcraft gave up 3 over 5 innings of work last time out against the Cubs. Overall, it works out directly in the Reds favor that these three are the ones to face the Rockies. Greene and Lodolo will be available against the Cubs in the next series.

The bats awoke against the Cubs over the weekend. The Cincinnati Reds scored 5 runs in each ballgame. That kind of hitting will win you 90 games a season. Let’s hope the lineup stays awake. I noted yesterday that TJ was due to breakout and then he hit a 3 run bomb off Steele. Look for him to keep getting on base. India is batting .300 over his last 7. Fraley is hitting a monstrous .385 over his last 7 and he gets to feast on some struggling starters coming up – two are RHP. Be patient with Elly – hopefully a change of scenery and the Denver air will produce a moonshot.

Colorado Rockies Notebook

The Colorado Rockies celebrate after a victory.

The Rockies will run out Ryan Feltner tonight, Ty Blach tomorrow, and Dakota Hudson on Wednesday. I will cover each of these guys more in depth in the game previews, but its rough. Hudson is the only one that could sniff a shot on the Reds rotation. Feltner has 6 starts that he has given up 5+ runs on the season. Big yikes. Their team ERA is a league worst – 5.18.

The Rockies do have some good hitters though. Ezequiel Tovar, Brendan Rodgers, Ryan McMahon, Elias Diaz, and Brenton Doyle are all hitting .260+ with full workloads this year. Their team batting average of .247 is actually 10th best in the bigs. They do not hit a lot of homers though ranking 26th in that category with 49 on the season – more than the Reds mind you. McMahon has 10 homers on the season.

Colorado Rockies Highlighted Hitter – Ryan McMahon

Colorado Rockies 3B Ryan McMahon flips his bat and points after launching a Home Run agains the Tampa Bay Rays.

McMahon has been a menace this year. Slashing .284/.371/.470 and smashing 10 homers on the year, McMahon is the guy to watch out for on this Colorado ball club. He’s actually on a bit of a skid right now, but that just shows how hot he has been to this point. He bats left but feasts on LHP, so Andrew Abbott will need to watch out since homers are his main problem.

McMahon’s statcast is a bit scary for teams getting ready to pitch to him. He ranks in the 75th percentile or better in Batting Run Value (88th), xBA (78th), xSLG (86th), Average Exit Velocity (96th – 93.5 MPH), Barrel % (88th), Hard Hit % (97th), and BB % (83rd). Those are some wildly consistent numbers. He hits the ball well and he hits the ball HARD. He’s also patient and walks a ton. This guy is not an easy out.

Predicting what the Cincinnati Bengals Ja’Marr Chase contract will look like

By

Nati

-

3 June 2024

0

Ja’Marr Chase Extension Prediction On 6/3/24, Justin Jefferson signed a MEGA deal to stay with the Minnesota Vikings. We all knew that Justin Jefferson would reset the WR market in a big way and would be the first WR off the board to sign an extension in “MEGA” territory and he just did it today. The Vikings will pay him $110,000,000 GUARANTEED, and according to Ian Rapoport, the total deal is worth 4 years, $35m AAV, $140M if it’s all played out. But this is about our beloved Ja’Marr Chase, Justin just set the market for us, let’s get into it with Ja’Marr Chase Extension Prediction…

Ja’Marr Chase isn’t the only Cincinnati Bengals receiver currently waiting on a contract, Tee Higgins is also. Tee won’t even be a thought now, though he likely wasn’t even before Justin reset the market, because Ja’Marr is going to get every bit of what Justin just got, probably even more. In fact, he’s on record stating that he won’t sign until Justin does, this, obviously, so he can outdo him. They’re BFFs. Who doesn’t love a little friendly competition of who can get a bigger BAG?

There IS reason to worry, contrary to other belief…

When it comes to Ja’Marr Chase signing an extension, there is certainly reason to believe in a halt. I don’t think it’ll come quick, and the reason? Ja’Marr Chase wants to be paid up front. He’s already said that. And when a player declares that, they typically mean it. Now, here’s the issue: The Cincinnati Bengals…they don’t pay players up front. It wasn’t until recently where they paid Joe Burrow $219M guaranteed with a $45m signing bonus. Do the Bengals like Ja’Marr the same as Joe? Probably not…but they should. Especially if they aren’t going to pay Tee. We’re reaching levels, now, where it’s going to come down to paying one top WR, and the rest will be on minimums, otherwise teams won’t be able to afford them anymore with the cap. $110M guaranteed for a receiver is ludicrous. I mean what in the hell.

Do the small market Cincinnati Bengals even have the cash for Ja’Marr Chase after Joe Burrow’s extension?

That remains to be seen. The Bengals are as tightlipped as anyone out there. What I can say is this…they’ve went balls to the wall in racking up sponsorships. They’re selling gate names, for crying out loud. But look, boys and girls, the Cincinnati Bengals are THE smallest market, they’re valued dead LAST according to Forbes in franchise value. 32/32. They’re worth an estimated $4B, and I’m sure they can continue to borrow against their valuation as most teams do, but doesn’t it get a little scary when hearing they could tie up almost $320m GUARANTEED to two players? It feels terrifying to me. Especially when you look into the stadium we play at, the owner we have…ahhhhh.

Ja’Marr Chase Extension Prediction

As most know, and as you just read, the Bengals simply don’t give out frontloaded guaranteed contracts. They’re going to have to go against their ideologies again, much like they did for Burrow, in order to land Ja’Marr Chase. And as much dooming as I’ve done here, I don’t think twice about it happening. I don’t. It’s just a matter of when. I REALLY do not anticipate it being this year. They have him, technically, under contract for 2 more seasons. They’re notorious for holding out, doesn’t matter who the f you are. But we can guarantee one thing, his deal will look something like (Remember, this is strictly a guess using sentiment and what Jefferson just got) – it’s entirely possible Ja’Marr will be more team friendly, especially since he’s been vocal about wanting Tee to stay with the Bengals) – We believe Ja’Marr is going to go set the record, and at a later time, restructure his deal to earn even more $ and help alleviate the cap.

4 years, $150m, $37.5 AAV, $117M Guaranteed $40M signing bonus to alleviate cap

Ladies & gentleman, the two highest paid Cincinnati Bengals in history. Just get them a Super Bowl win before Mike Brown croaks, please. Thanks. Also, make sure we have a productive Offensive Line. Thanks again.

Cincinnati Reds vs Chicago Cubs – June 2, 2024

By

Mike V

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2 June 2024

0

Cincinnati Reds vs Chicago Cubs – June 2, 2024 – Last night was a heartbreaker for those of use who stayed up. Up by 4 early, giving up a grand slam, then Sims serving it up on a platter for Swanson to take the victory. It really felt like last night was the game to take the series and get things going. Let’s see how your Cincinnati Reds match up in today’s day game in Chicago.

Cincinnati Reds LHP Nick Lodolo

In the same amount of starts and just a bit more innings pitched than this point last season, Lodolo has less than half the ERA and almost 1 less WHIP. We’re finally seeing the real Nick Lodolo – an ace. He’s had a rough outing or two, but outside of getting knocked around early a couple of times, he has been dominant. Absolutely dominant.

He’s above average in every advanced metric except fastball velo. He has an 80th+ percentile rank in xERA, xBA, Chase %, Whiff %, K % and BB %. He’s an Ace ladies and gentlemen. All 4 homers he’s surrendered this year have been on his fastball though. His curveball is nasty – giving him a 3 Pitching Run Value, and his sinker is phenomenal when it’s on. Lodolo has the stuff to shut down any lineup.

Cincinnati Reds Lineup Card

	Batters	Average
1	CF TJ Friedl	.161
2	SS Elly De La Cruz	.238
3	3B Jeimer Candelario	.223
4	1B Spencer Steer	.228
5	DH Jake Fraley	.278
6	C Tyler Stephenson	.248
7	LF Jacob Hurtubise	.212
8	2B Jonathan India	.230
9	RF Will Benson	.199

TJ is going to break out soon. Hopefully it’s tonight, but he’s seeming more and more settled in. Elly needs to break out of his cold spell. .186 over his last 15 is not going to do it. Candelario and Stephenson have cooled down too which does not bode well. India and Benson, however, have both played very well over their last 7 – .286 and .364 respectively. Benson is still striking out a ridiculous amount, but he’s getting on base too. A team that regularly starts the two guys with the most strikeouts in the league (Elly and Benson) will find a hard time getting anything going.

Chicago Cubs RHP Ben Brown

Brown will be making his 14th career appearance in the bigs today. He’s found some solid early success in his young career to the tune of a 2.72 ERA. Notice I said appearance earlier – 8 of his appearances have been in relief. He has gone 6 innings once and went 7 his last time out in a phenomenal start against Milwaukee with no runs surrendered. He’s given up 11 runs across those appearances, but 6 were surrendered in his big league debut on March 30th against the Rangers.

He’s been on fire since, logging 6 scoreless appearances. As expected with such a young career, his advanced statistics are all over the place. He has a league worst average exit velocity of 93.4. Yet his pitching run value is 8. Wild. His batted ball profile shows that balls just get hit right at guys. All the time. He also strikes out quite a bit of batters – 29.9% of batters faced. Brown is a two pitch pitcher – a four seam and knuckle curve. His fastball is average, but his curve has a .120 batting average against.

Chicago Cubs Lineup Card

	Batters	Average
1	2B Nico Hoerner	.259
2	RF Seiya Suzuki	.265
3	CF Cody Bellinger	.254
4	DH Christopher Morel	.198
5	1B Patrick Wisdom	.214
6	LF Ian Happ	.219
7	SS Dansby Swanson	.208
8	3B David Bote	–
9	C Miguel Amaya	.191

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Cincinnati Reds RHP Hunter Greene

Cincinnati Reds Lineup Card

Chicago Cubs RHP Javier Assad

Chicago Cubs Lineup Card

Cincinnati Reds RHP Frankie Montas

Cincinnati Reds Lineup Card

Colorado Rockies LHP Ty Blach

Colorado Rockies Lineup Card

Blake Dunn Background

Speed (55 Grade)

Power (50 grade)

Defense (50 grade)

Discipline

Blake Dunn Called Up

Hector Rodriguez – OF A+ Dayton Dragons (Reds 13th ranked prospect)

Jose Acuna – RHP AA Chattanooga Lookouts (Unranked)

Was this Nick Krall’s best work so far?

Cincinnati Reds LHP Andrew Abbott

Cincinnati Reds Lineup Card

Colorado Rockies RHP Ryan Feltner

Colorado Rockies Lineup Card

Cincinnati Reds Notebook

Colorado Rockies Notebook

Colorado Rockies Highlighted Hitter – Ryan McMahon

There IS reason to worry, contrary to other belief…

Do the small market Cincinnati Bengals even have the cash for Ja’Marr Chase after Joe Burrow’s extension?

Ja’Marr Chase Extension Prediction

Cincinnati Reds LHP Nick Lodolo

Cincinnati Reds Lineup Card

Chicago Cubs RHP Ben Brown

Chicago Cubs Lineup Card