mgroves

The 2006 season is over, and the Reds are not in the post-season. Here’s the complete record. Baseball-reference also has full stats for 2006.

There were good and bad things about 2006, and improvements that must be made for 2007 in order to be in contention again.

Good things

• Bronson Arroyo – He is the Reds’ deal of the century. All-star, #1 in innings pitched, #1 in starts, #4 in ERA, #1 in NL shutouts, #6 in strikeouts. I’d trade Wily Mo for Bronson any day of the week.
• Aaron Harang – #1 in NL wins, #1 in NL complete games, #2 in shutouts, #1 in strikeouts, #1 in starts. Harang is possibly the best pitcher in the game that no fan outside of Cincinnati has ever heard of.
• David Ross, Brandon Phillips, Scott Hatteburg: excellent offensive additions, exciting players to watch. Edwin had a breakout year.
• Highest winning percentage since 2000 (.494). The Reds were not eliminated until the very last week of the season. The Reds were 46-38 against NL Central teams.

Bad things

• The Trade. I’m still hesitant to call it a failure because it may ultimately work out for the Reds, and if the trade wasn’t made, there’s no guarantee that the Reds would have made it to the postseason. That being said, the trade itself did not fix the bullpen (though the bullpen ERA did certainly improve in the second half). I’m not sad about losing Lopex, but Kearns belongs in GABP Right Field. Hopefully he’ll be back one day.
• The Bullpen. Horrendous. Arroyo and Harang were killer, the rest of the starters were decent, but the bullpen alone kept the Reds out of the postseason.
• Ken Griffey, Jr. Not a bad season, but not a great season. Injuries again, but even worse: less production than normal. I can certainly cut him some slack because of his parents, but this was not a good Griffey season.

What needs done next year:

• A 3rd killer starter. The Reds have 2 of the best starters in the NL. If they had a 3rd killer starter, they would be a force to reckon with. Hopefully Homer Bailey can be this guy, or Krivsky can deal for someone. Or both would be nice.
• Adam Dunn. He produces runs, no question, but his defense is a horrible liability and his situational hitting can be lacking at times (one very noteable exception). I would much rather Adam had went to Washington in “The Trade”, but now that Kearns is gone, I think Dunn should be kept. Something needs to be done to improve his strikeouts and defense.
• Ken Griffey, Jr. He needs to be moved to right field or something. He is still a good center fielder of course, but there is less risk in right and less ground to cover. His arm might not be up to the job though.
• Bullpen. The Bullpen this year had more turnover than a McDonald’s. A solid bullpen needs to be assembled in the offseason. This should be priority #1 for Krivsky.

One other note: the Reds may have somewhat different uniforms next year.

2 Responses to “Reds 2006 Postseason Recap”