Sunday, April 21, 2002
Reds Q&A with John Fay
What does 'good start' really mean?
E-mailers wanted a definition of a “good start,” and the Bob Boone debate continued. Read on:
Q, from Tim in Cincinnati: This is by no way a slam on you. I read your article, and it was very good, but the headline just didn't sit right with me. Have we, as a sports town, lowered our standards to the point where we get goose bumps about a 7-5 record? Are the Reds as good as their 7-5 record? Was that your headline? Is that good? A better question might be: Are the Tribe as good as 11-1, or are the Tigers as bad as 0-11? Seven-and-five, in my opinion is not good, or bad, it's just getting by, and is that something we should really be spending our time dwelling on? As you pointed out, time will tell, and the Reds have a tough schedule coming up, so get back to us when the headline is: Are the
Reds as good as 22-10?
A: No, that wasn't my headline. The writer never writes the headlines for his own stories. But I had no problem with it. For the Reds, a 7-5 start is good. Over a full season, 7-5 turns into about 94-68. If the Reds win 94 games, John Allen, Jim Bowden and Boone will turn cartwheels up Pete Rose Way.
Q, from Jason in San Francisco: Will someone please write an article about the horrible managerial decisions Boone has made thus far this season? The most recent: The team is playing well and can cap off a 5-1 road trip with a win on Sunday. Ken Griffey Jr. and Sean Casey are already out, so what does Boone do? He rests Barry Larkin, Jason LaRue and Aaron Boone. That is inexcusable, especially since the next day was an off day. This team is winning games in spite of him.
A: Boone likes to use his “whole” team. The theory behind resting players before an off day is to give them two days. Frankly, the way Vicente Padilla threw that day, I don't know if Larkin and Aaron would have made a difference.
From James in Chicago: Being from out of town, I don't get the pulse of the fans back in Ohio, but it seems to me that from your columns, and discussions with my family, everyone seems to want to see all the negatives first. I read complaints that Boone used his bullpen even though they are in the midst of 24 scoreless innings! I want those guys pitching! I hear complaints about who is or isn't playing. But I look at this team and see a team that, after Saturday, is one game over .500 and 2 1/2 games out of first.
Boone has done that with having to give Barry extra days off, Griffey injured and a starting pitching staff that featured an Opening Day starter who was cast off by two teams in two years and whose best starter — in my book, Dessens — gets hard-luck loss after hard-luck loss. I don't expect us to be in first place at the end of the year, and I was never a huge Boone fan when he was with Kansas City. But it seems to me, he has done a decent job so far.
A: Bottom line with any manager is wins and losses. Boone has kept the Reds treading water despite losing his best player for at least three weeks.
Q, David from in Auburn, Ala.: How is Ray Knight fitting in with the Reds this time around? Does he like being bench coach? Does he think this will translate into another managing job somewhere? Or is he just happy to be out of the booth and back in uniform?
A: Ray seems happy. He soured somewhat on doing TV work. He's enthusiastic. The players seem to like him. He makes a game out of things like hitting fungos. He was the first to say he was more suited for coaching than managing.
Q, from Jeff in Fort Wayne, Ind.: Can you give any information on this Donny Leon down in Chattanooga? He seems to be hitting the cover off the ball. Just wondered about his age and if he is homegrown?
A: You're right. He is killing the ball. He went into Friday hitting .352 with six home runs and 13 RBI. He is not homegrown. He was signed as a free agent after the New York Yankees released him after seven years in the organization.
Send your questions to jfay@enquirer.com
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Reds Q&A with John Fay
