Reds need more balance on offense

Correcting an imbalance will be one of the Reds' chief tasks this season. Though the Reds became only the second team in history to avoid being shut out all season in 2000, they underachieved at the plate.

Their team batting average of .274 ranked fourth in the National League, but St. Louis, which thrashed them by 10 games in the Central Division, outscored them by 62 runs (887-825) while hitting .270. Cincinnati hit 200 home runs for only the third time in franchise history, but stole just 99 bases, matching its lowest total for a full 162-game season since 1971.

In hindsight, the Reds' lineup featured too many one-dimensional players. Sean Casey, Dmitri Young, Dante Bichette, Aaron Boone and Eddie Taubensee all were solid hitters, each easily able to reach 15-20 homers and 85-90 RBI at that point in their careers, but all except Boone lacked speed and were average at best defensively.

Ken Griffey Jr. was the only true power threat, Barry Larkin and Pokey Reese the only real running threats, and the trio were the lone Gold Glove-caliber fielders. But Reese's struggles at the plate often kept him off the bases, and injuries often kept Larkin out of the lineup.

Because the team couldn't manufacture runs, it often waited for Griffey to hit a three-run home run.

The Reds reached their offensive peak during an 18-11 September/October, which was marked by Casey's proficiency (.378, 10 homers, 32 RBI) and increased playing time for outfielders Alex Ochoa and Michael Tucker after an Aug. 31 trade sent Bichette to Boston. Tucker and Ochoa amassed 10 of the Reds' 27 steals in September/October, the club's highest total in any month last year.

Those players are back. So are career .300 hitter Larkin, who's apparently healthy, and superstar slugger Griffey, who should benefit from a year's adjustment to the NL.

But roles remain uncertain, because no proven leadoff or cleanup hitter exists and the sequence of the crucial 3-4-5 spots in the batting order has been questioned. Here's a look at how certain Reds might help the balance:

• LARKIN: Though he has preferred not to lead off in previous years, he'll try it at manager Bob Boone's request. Larkin's above-average on-base percentage — .377 lifetime, a team-high .389 last season — makes him an ideal candidate for this spot. So does his hitting ability.

“You want your best hitter coming up a lot,” said Boone, pointing out that the leadoff man will bat with a runner in scoring position when the pitcher sacrifices a teammate ahead.

• GRIFFEY: As the club's only legitimate home-run hitter, he's the best candidate to bat fourth, a spot he has avoided. As his career demonstrates, he's fine hitting third if someone else developed enough power to bat cleanup. If that doesn't happen, might Griffey change his mind along with Larkin for the good of the team? Boone's communication skills could help.

• REESE: The second baseman's offensive struggles last year have been well-documented. He hit .255, a 30-point drop from 1999, and his on-base percentage was a lowly .319. He also stole 29 bases in 32 tries for a league-best .906 success rate.

Potentially, Reese is part of the solution, not the problem. Though he led off in 92 games last year, he might be more proficient near the bottom of the order. He hit .320 in the eighth spot in 1999.

• OCHOA: He has made a progressively strong case for everyday duty. “He has shown he's ready to find that out,” said Boone, stopping just short of naming Ochoa the projected starter in right field.

Check Ochoa's rising batting averages since 1997: .244, .257 and .300 before a career-high .316 last season. He accumulated 13 homers and 58 RBI in just 244 at-bats in his first year as a Red, indicating he could bat as high as fifth.

• TUCKER: He occupied all eight nonpitching positions in the batting order at least once last year, reflecting his versatility and suggesting that Boone may find him handy as he searches for the best combination. Tucker's career-high 15 homers and 13 steals in just 270 at-bats demonstrated his ever-present potential.

The left-handed batter's career statistics fit a platoon player's profile (.266 against righties, .239 against lefties). But, said Boone of his right-field candidates, Tucker and Ochoa, “I don't want them to be platoon players. They're both better than that.”

• CASEY - YOUNG: Except for Young's switch hitting, they're extremely similar: high-average, gap-to-gap hitters with decent but not overwhelming power. They also have a knack for thriving in the clutch. Casey's .367 average with runners in scoring position was fourth-best in the NL last year; Young hit a rousing .336 in those situations. Boone's challenge will be to find the spots in the batting order that maximize their production. In a perfect world, one will become more of a slugger, prompting a move to cleanup.

• JASON LARUE: The defense should improve automatically with LaRue catching more frequently. Pitchers have posted ERAs under 4.00 with him behind the plate in each of the last two years, and last year he threw out 25 percent of base stealers, exceeding Eddie Taubensee's 20 percent. LaRue's agility will help not only in blocking balls in the dirt, but also when he's running himself. Like most catchers, LaRue's not a stealing threat, but he's mobile enough not to clog the bases too much.

• DONNIE SADLER: Barring injuries, he probably won't start, but the utilityman arrives in Cincinnati with a reputation for possessing decent tools, including speed. Assuming Sadler makes the team, he'll give Boone additional late-game options as a pinch runner, adding much-needed dash to the bench.

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