Friday, April 20, 2001
Bowden pleased with Reds so far
Team has been competitive without Griffey
By John Fay
The Cincinnati Enquirer
When Jim Bowden and his braintrust put together the Reds for this year, they were hoping to have a team that could compete in the National League Central. Fifteen games into the season, the Reds, who open a three-game series with the New York Mets at Cinergy Field tonight, have done that.
They are 8-7 and in third place in the Central, two games behind the division-leading Cubs and a game ahead of the division-favorite Cardinals.
This good news comes amid all the bad news the Reds have dealt with early.
Their best player, Ken Griffey Jr., has been limited to pinch-hitting because of an injured hamstring. Their best starting pitcher, Pete Harnisch, has a 6.64 ERA. One of their top relievers, Scott Williamson, has been lost for the season because of an elbow injury.
“You have to be pleased,” Bowden said. “Our No.1 player is out, and we're right in the middle of the pennant race.”
The pennant race doesn't really heat up until July, but based on early returns, the Reds look a lot more like contenders than they did when spring training opened.
Among the pleasant surprises:
• Chris Reitsma. The Reds made the rookie right-hander the No.3 starter, and he has delivered. He is 2-0 with a 1.40 ERA in the three starts.
• The bench: Michael Tucker, who has taken over for Griffey, is hitting .280 with a homer and four RBI. He also has been solid defensively. Juan Castro has hit .333 and played flawless defense when filling in for Barry Larkin.
• Kelly Stinnett: The Reds picked him up as a free agent Nov.9. He looks like a $500,000 bargain. His defense at catcher has been so good that, for the time being, it looks like Stinnett is ahead of Jason LaRue on the depth chart.
• Larkin leading off: His success really doesn't qualify
as a surprise, because Larkin is a .300 career hitter. But it has gone better than the Reds could have hoped. Larkin's on-base percentage (.482) is second in the National League.
“He might be the best leadoff hitter in baseball right now,” Bowden said. “The way he's taken to that role is positive for this team.”
Bowden said the bench got a bad rap.
“I disagree with others who criticize it,” he said. “They're only looking at pinch-hitting. I think the bench is strong. Teams with good scouting departments — the Yankees and Atlanta — have called us about (trading for) our bench players.”
Bowden said Castro and Donnie Sadler both have drawn interest from other clubs.
Bowden said he's still looking for the same thing he was in the offseason.
“You can never get enough starting pitching,” he said.
The thing that bodes well for the Reds is that, as a team, they haven't hit.
Aaron Boone (.211), Alex Ochoa (.259) and Dmitri Young (.254) haven't hit for average. The Reds are 13th in the NL with 12 home runs. They are tied for 10th in runs scored.
“We're still not swinging the bats,” Boone said. “We've been winning with good pitching and defense and big hits.”
Bowden is confident the hits will come.
“It will come around,” he said. “Aaron Boone, Dmitri Young and Pokey Reese are going to hit.”
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Bowden pleased with Reds so far
