6 1/2 Back

[redram38]

All I can say is WOW. Who woulda thunk it lol
Even if they don't pull off an amazing comeback this has been a Fun second 1/2 and sets up for a better next year.

[BuckFoston]

Yeah this is pretty amazing to see the Reds 6 1/2 back but 6 1/2 games is still alot but hey you never know maybe they will keep this up and squeeze into the post season.

[TheBigLebowski]

It's really something.

Realistically, we have no shot - it'd be one thing if it was just the Cubs then us. However, there's the Cubs, Brewers and Cards all ahead of us. Furthermore, 6 1/2 games is a lot to make up with only 32 to play. Still, stranger things have happened and this second half surge has made this season almost enjoyable. Honestly, I was as miserable in the first half of this season as I have been as a Reds' fan in a long, long time.

I think Pete Mac has earned himself a permanent spot as manager. I think Krivsky looks a lot better now not only due to the Mac hire but, the Phillips/Keppinger/Hamilton/Ross acquisitions continue to pay dividends. I loved the Conine deal. "The Trade" remains...well, we all know what it was. Still, it looks like we might have come away with the best commodity in that trade with Bill Bray. Lopez and Kearns have been painfully average for Washington. Who knows..maybe, someday, Majewski will be a reliable bullpen arm. It's obvious that Krivsky is committed to giving him every opportunity to do so.

Anyways...if you'd have told me we'd be 6 1/2 games out with 32 to play 3 months ago, I'd have thought you were certifiable. Let's see what happens.

[CincyRedsFan30]

I'd leave the rotation as is for now, though I'm not so sure Shearn is a viable rotation member. Congratulations to him on getting the win though and pitching well today.

As I've tried to say since last year, the team's biggest overall problems still relate to the starting rotation. If Maloney and/or Cueto can make the jump to start next season, it could be much better, though I'd still like another guy to plug in there who could be a middle of the rotation type. Krivsky will have to make a smart move to make it happen in the offseason, but we have more available parts now it seems with more and more position players starting to breakout.

We still need a couple solid bullpen arms too but it is definitely a realistic possiblity for the team to compete if not win this division next year. Hopefully Krivsky is up for the task.

The good news about the rest of the year...playing the teams ahead of us six games each. Obviously need to do well against those teams but at least it gives us a prayer, which is incredible considering where we were when Narron was fired and where we were headed.

Krivsky has been frustrating as a GM. Sometimes he seems brilliant and other times he seems crazy. I'm gaining more confidence in him lately though.

[CincyRedsFan30]

Well that was a mess of a double header. Mackanin managed it like Narron. Just dropped his rating for "next year's manager" for me by a good bit in the biggest games of the year. Or did Jerry sneak in wearing a Mackanin suit? The whole double header notion seemed to make Pete's philosophy tonight on a lot of stuff very similar to Jerry's.

[TheBigLebowski]

Mackanin was indeed very Narron-esque last night. Very frightening. I would love for someone to explain to me what benefit there is to giving a guy like Jason Ellison two starts, even if one of the pitchers we faced was a lefty, and giving Hamilton none. Hamilton will get better and better against LHP's with more ab's. These arguably were the biggest games of the year, after all, and Mack managed them very poorly, from lineup construction to bullpen mgmt.

Disappointing results, no doubt. Still, I'm not bitterly disappointed.

[Slyder]

It's the little things like that doubleheader management that makes me hope that the Reds do indeed have a manager search rather than just give the job to Mackanin. Some of his moves have left me scratching my head on more than one occasion, usually theyve turned out but we just had an off day and Dunn and Hamilton both had the day off on Saturday so why did Jason Ellison see the field before the 9th let alone START. I dont care if the guy is Sandy Koufax vs Lefties Dunn gives you an all around better chance to do something than Jason "I'm hitting .062 as a Red" Ellison.

[Mr. D™]

I'm liking Mackanin

he's doing a lot better then Narron and doing much better with decisions