This past weekend was not kindest to the Reds. Actually the past week was forgettable. Cincinnati played the Chicago Cubs a total of six games. Three of the games were in Chicago and three were in Cincinnati. Cincinnati was beaten two out of three in Cincinnati and two out of three in Chicago by the Cubs. Â
Chicago is currently in first place in the National League Central Division. While Chicago threatens to run away with the title, the Reds continue to sink faster and faster to the bottom. The Reds are currently in fourth out of five places in the National League Central Division.
Cincinnati has proven they can take care of business against the leagues bottom feeders. The Baltimore Orioles are in last place. Â The Reds successfully defeated Baltimore two out of three. They also successfully defeated the Colorado Rockies via sweep. The Rockies are currently on pace to have the worst record in major league history.Â
What’s the downfall? The offense. Nobody expected the Reds’ Big 3 to be having subpar years. Lack of clutch hitting and, well, lack of hitting period, has plagued Cincinnati. At present, the team is 29-31 and 8.5 games out of first place. To this point, Terry Francona has made a marked improvement over former manager David Bell.
Elly del La Cruz, Matt Mclain, and Spencer Steer are currently under-achieving. The Big 3 in the Reds’ lineup must start hitting if this team has any hopes of playing into October or November. De La Cruz is the most dangerous bat in the Reds’ lineup. The Reds’ phenom leads in most hitting categories, with 12 homers and 42 RBI’s. His batting average is a subpar .258. He’s got MVP numbers compared to Steer and McLain. McLain is hitting under .200, while Steer has only four home runs.
Coming up, the Reds schedule will get no easier. On deck will be a showdown with the first place Detroit Tigers and second place Cleveland Guardians. The Guardians will be seeking revenge after the Reds swept Cleveland in Cincinnati.Â
It remains to be seen if Cincy will be buyers or sellers at the trade deadline. Unless improvements are made, look for the team to start breaking up and selling off players in July. Sad to think of that for a team that had such high hopes, but the cold reality of a team under achieving.