Young Reds win again!

So the Reds are hot right now - winners of their last 4. I watched the game on ESPN GameCast today during work, and watched both Tuesday night and Sunday's games on FSN and was pleased at the team's performance in their last games. Keeping in mind, the Nationals aren't the best team out there, but they aren't the worst either. The Reds have been beating up on the teams that they should beat - Marlins, Pirates, Nationals, Brewers, Cubs. They went 1-2 against the Cards, but then you can' expect them to sweep St. Louis.

The young talent on this team has really impressed me. Brandon Phillips (.360) was a HUGE pickup, Felipe Lopez (.294) has made most Reds fans say Barry who?, and the Ryan Freel (.274) is consistently on base and stealing a few (8 SB). Adam Dunn (.234) doesn't have the hottest bat, but his 22 walks gives him the highest on-base percentage (.419) on the team. And then there's Edwin Encarnivore (.279) , named for how he's eaten up the opposing pitching in April. 22 RBI's and 8 doubles has made him a force.

The Reds can always hit, that's never been in question. But with the addition of so-far stud Bronson Arroyo, even the loss of Eric Milton has gone mostly unnoticed. Arroyo and Harang are pitching deep into games, giving the bullpen lots of rest and making sure when they're needed there won't be any excuses of "overuse". Even a new guy from Triple-A, Ramirez, came up and pitch a 7-inning gem the other night. We've even converted 8-of-10 save opportunities.

Again, I say it's only April. There's a lot of time for the Reds to crash and burn. But there's a few differences this year. 1) The Reds pitching is getting them wins, not just the hitting. 2) Junior has taken his injury early this year, and the Reds continued to win even while he was gone. (Hopefully his injuries are done now) 3) The Reds are winning at home and away. 4) I want the Reds to do good.

I love the Reds and hope they contend this year and every year. But in staying with my realistic thinking, I believe the most I can hope for is a .500 finish and no firestorm sell-offs of talent. I see the core of a very good, very young team (Encarnacion, Lopez, Phillips, Dunn, Kearns, Junior, Arroyo, Harang) and I hope the new Reds owners see it too.