Reds Drop Fifth Straight.

Disgusted? Let me tell you about disgusted. I am in the Army. I spent all of last season in Iraq. I got to watch a total of two games last season. This season, I'm not in Iraq, but am stationed in Hawaii. I HAVE TO PAY FOR A SUBSCRIPTION on MLB.TV to watch the Reds games!!! That's disgust boys and girls. To race home from work to catch the last three innings, see a lead, only to watch that disgusting David Weathers throw each and every outing. Or see Dusty play his pal from his Chicago days Patterson who couldn't hit a softball off a tee.

That is disgust.

Dunn is not the problem. Yes, the guy strikes out a lot, but he gets on base and DOES drive in runs. National League: He is 13th in OPS at .900, tied for 4th with 21 home runs, is easily on pace to knock in over 100 RBI, has led more walks than anyone else at 67, has the 13th highest OBP at .389, top 20 with a slugging % of .516, and on a sidenote: His fielding percentage is .967.

I repeat, Dunn is not the problem.

As for Junior. How can you people turn on him like you have? The guy is much more valuable than anyone is admitting. Everyone knows, if not for the injuries, we have the best baseball player in the history of the game. And the injuries only affect the stats. We all know that he was, is, and always will be the best. And even if you don't agree, you have him in the top ten OF ALL TIME. Have we forgotten what that means for a young ball club, to have an EXTRA SEASONED veteran, if not the best, one of the best, just for advice, instruction, encouragement? We need him. He is still hungry. He is worth more than we can put a price tag on. And when we take our kids to the park, we can show them the best while he is still playing. Griffey IS NOT THE PROBLEM EITHER.

We can win while keeping Junior. Trading him is not the answer. It is not the answer. Yeah, he's only batting .240, yeah, he's only hit 10 HR, yes, he's only driven in 36 RBI, yes, he's only got an OPS of .745, yes, he's only drew 46 BB...but compare that to Derek Jeter. Aside from Jeter's .279 AVG, Griffey is ahead of him in every category. You don't see the Yankees demanding his trade. Chicago's Fukodome is batting .290, and is just slightly ahead of Junior in OPS, but Junior betters him in every other category. and the Cubbies are in 1st place. Arizona's Justin Upton's stats are almost identical to Junior's. And guess what. They are winning and in 1st place.

My point. WE CAN WIN WITH JUNIOR. GRIFF IS NOT THE PROBLEM.

So I've given my two cents on what the problem ISN'T. So here's my two cents on what the problem IS.

#1 - Pitching - The declining quality of decision-making on the mound from Harang, Arroyo, and Cueto. While we can and SHOULD expect Cueto to make bad decisions while on the mound, he's a rookie, we should not see the same mistakes out of our two veteran hurlers. But this does not fall solely on them, it is a combination of the catchers and the pitching coaches not taking control when needed. The majority of the time it comes down to either a bad pitch, or a bad scouting report.

#2 - Pitching - The absence of a 5th spot on the rotation. Belisle was given too many opportunities to turn it around and should have been converted to a bullpen pitcher much sooner. Dusty hit the nail on the head. He's okay until he's facing batters for the 2nd and 3rd time. Homer Bailey is turning into a certified dud, and Daryl Thompson just isn't ready.

#3 - Pitching/Managerial - DAVID WEATHERS. The guy is a bum who has pulled the shades over lots of peoples' eyes for 18 years too long. Reds fans have consistently watched him give wins away all season long. The guy will never save 33 games again. He'll never save 33 out of 39 opportunities again. He is a waste and a downer for the team. Why hasn't he been released or traded? Why is he being paid $3.3 MIL? To keep the team in the cellar?

#4 - Patterson/Managerial - Bronson Arroyo has a higher OBP than Corey Patterson. He's hitting .188, the same as Jannish, which we expect from a rookie. Not from a guy who's been playing for 8 years. Since June 5th, after being recalled from AAA where he was sent to "find" his swing, he's 7 for 46. That's .152, and he's only accounted for 5 runs. Is that $3 MIL production? Is that what a MLB player is paid to do? CUT HIM.

Bottom line:

REDS
11th in NL scoring with 367. Which is descent, but could be much better. They're not hitting with RISP. For example, in the June 10th - June 19th homestand, they were 6-for-57 (.105) with runners in scoring position. They were 2 and 7 in that homestand and could have very easily won 3 of those games if not for choking with runners on the bags. And it's the same story of late, losing to the horrid Pirates now two straight. But, that also goes back to the pitching, since they gave up a total of 48 runs in those 7 games. But that's no excuse for hitting .105 with RISP. Those were games that could have been won.

5th in NL HR with 92. Out of the 4 teams who hit more: Florida, 1.5 games out of 1st place - Philadelphia, 1st place - Milwaulkee, 8.5 ahead of the Reds, and 4.5 out of 1st - and Chicago, 1st place. hmmm...

Defense - 5th in NL in Errors committed with 58. But the Diamondbacks have committed one more and are in 1st place, so this can be overcome.

So, in short. It's not because of Dunn or Junior. Trading them is not the answer. The answer is not just one statement, and it is not simple. But for starters, they can stop giving the ball to Weathers, take the bat out of Patterson's hands, strike fear in the heart of Dick Pole if his boys Arroyo and Harang aren't brought under control, maybe even look for a trade for one of them, if not both. With the offensive numbers put up by the team, if Arroyo and Harang can get their acts together, and Weathers is cut/traded/assassinated, then the team can have a great second half and get within striking distance of the playoffs. But it has to start soon, and it has to begin with the pitching.