Cincinnati Reds: Three Ways To Win a 60 Game Season

The Cincinnati Reds must be .500+ against division rivals

The main reason for failure for the past five seasons is due to the inability to beat their division foes. Last season the Reds only had a winning record against the Chicago Cubs (11-8). They went 7-12 against the Pittsburgh Pirates, who was the weakest team in the division. Then they were 8-11 against the Milwaukee Brewers and 7-12 against the St. Louis Cardinals. This needs to change.

With the season being a 60-game season, every divisional team plays 40 games against each other. The Reds get to play 10 games with each team, and the target mark looks like 22-18 can easily be accomplished. If the Reds go negative against the Pirates, Brewers, Cardinals or Cubs, then the shortened season is gone.

Win the one-run games

Winning the one-run games develops a great amount of confidence and swagger for a playoff team. A team that can overcome the close games will have that confidence that the Reds have been lacking. The Reds were 24-33 in one run games last season, and that percentage won’t get things done this year. The Reds haven’t had a star lineup that gave the electric atmosphere to win the close games; but they do now.

The Cincinnati Reds need to avoid the cold bats

The Reds are notorious for having cold bats at the beginning of the season. With this being just a 60-game season, there is no time to wait for the bats to heat up.

Last year, Suarez had a huge case of the cold bats, but then heated up by mid season. In the first three months he batted .248, hit 17 homeruns, and drove in 48. In the last three months he was batting .303, with 33 homeruns, and drove in 55. Suarez is a player that can carry any team, but he needs to crank the bat early this season.

Another player that can carry any team is the legendary Joey Votto. Last year, he started the season at .246 and during the last half he batted .408. In his 2016 near-MVP season, he started slow at .236 but then batted .468 during the last two months. Votto doesn’t have the luxury of time this season.

Conclusion

The Reds will be putting a great lineup out this for this shortened season. They don’t have the luxury to start slow. They need to have a winning record with divisional teams. The close games need to be won, but they should ow have the power to limit those type of games altogether.

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