Friday, March 12, 1999
White likely sole southpaw
But Hudek, Belinda strong against lefties
BY CHRIS HAFT
The Cincinnati Enquirer
SARASOTA, Fla. — The Reds bullpen lacks balance, though that's tolerable if it doesn't lack quality.
Ideally, the relief corps would be evenly divided between left- and right-handers, giving manager Jack McKeon multiple options for various situations.
Unfortunately for McKeon, Gabe White probably will be the bullpen's lone lefty. Should McKeon save White for the ninth inning to preserve a lead, which is the role he's expected to share with Danny Graves, the Reds wouldn't have a lefty to use against a tough left-handed hitter in earlier innings.
Fortunately for McKeon, he has some right-handed alternatives.
That defies baseball's time-honored “percentages,” which dictate that lefties are most effective against left-handed hitters and that right-handers are best against righty batters.
However, two Reds righties were particularly effective against lefties last year. John Hudek held lefties to a .160 batting average (8-for-50), while Stan Belinda checked in at .220 (20-for-91).
Thus, if he chooses, McKeon can save White for the later innings while Hudek or Belinda faces the likes of San Francisco's Barry Bonds, New York's John Olerud or Colorado's Larry Walker with runners on base in the sixth or seventh innings.
“I'd love to have three (lefties) and three (righties),” McKeon said. “But just to say you have another left-hander in there doesn't prove a thing. If you let a right-hander go that's pretty good and keep a left-hander who can't get the job done ...”
The Reds avoided that on Thursday, trimming lefties Joey Eischen (released) and Jim Crowell (optioned to Triple-A Indianapolis) from the spring roster. Eischen was ineffective in his lone exhibition outing, allowing two runs in one inning, and Crowell is still recovering from shoulder surgery.
Temporarily options include using Steve Avery out of the bullpen in April, if he's anointed the No.5 starter, or giving Dennys Reyes some experience in that role. But Avery struggled for Boston last year when he made his first nine appearances in relief, posting a 9.64 ERA (though that followed a spring in which he rarely pitched). Reyes' future is as a starter, not a reliever. “He needs to pitch,” McKeon has said repeatedly.
There's also Milwaukee's Mike Myers, a lefty the Reds have pursued. But when the Reds have inquired about Myers or his teammate, second baseman Fernando Vina, the Brewers mention Cincinnati's best young pitchers — Brett Tomko, Rob Bell or Scott Wil liamson. No deal.
Which brings the Reds back to Hudek and Belinda.
Hudek explained that his success against lefties stems from his pitching style, which contrasts with hitters' tendencies. “I pitch up in the zone, and I think a lefty's danger zone is down-and-in,” said Hudek, who was 5-6 with a 3.09 ERA overall last year and 4-2, 2.43 after joining the Reds from the New York Mets in a July trade.
Belinda's efficiency last year against lefties wasn't an aberration. They hit just .182 against him in 1990 and .193 off him in 1992.
“With right-handers, sometimes I get a little too cocky,” he said. “I try to overpower them and I get burned that way. With left-handers, I know I can't get cocky with them, and it forces me to throw my other stuff. It actually almost plays into my hands, making me realize I need to throw all my pitches at different times of the count.”
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