The Reds Need a Strong Second Half

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I know it is merely stating the obvious, but they have played with such mediocrity in the first half that I am currently in a severe condition of melancholy.

In the first half of the season, the biggest roll they have been on is a four game ride back near the end of May when they won the last game of a series with the Cleveland Indians and then swept the Houston Astros at home.

During that four game stint they batted .294 as a team with six HR and 24 runs scored. In the process they roughed up Roy Oswalt, who owns them unconditionally.  He didn’t absorb the loss, but it was a slice of heaven not to be thumped by him.

On the other end of the spectrum they have three separate streaks of four losses in succession.  During their first four-game slide, three came at the hands of the San Diego Padres from May 15 to May 18 and then the opener at home against the Philadelphia Phillies.

While in the throes of this debacle they were batting an anemic .167 while hitting six HR and scoring only 12 runs.

In the tail end of a series with the Washington Nationals they lost one and then were swept by the Kansas City Royals at Kaufman Stadium.  Their hitting again was dismal as they batted .156 while hitting two HR and only scoring eight runs.

In the eight games that Aaron Harang has lost, the Reds have only been able to put 16 runs in his pocket. Now, I am no mathematician but I can see real fast that they are only averaging two runs when he loses. How can you expect a man to win ballgames when you do not provide him with any offense?

The same thing applies to Bronson Arroyo.  I know he hasn’t been burning up the National League so far, but My God, when you only get 17 runs during your eight losses, it sucks.  That is what the Reds have done to their two perennial best starters.

It is very basic at its core.  It is not a new discovery, or established by some cosmic equation.  It is simple; if you don’t score, you can’t win.

There is plenty of talent on this squad.  I know it’s not the ’27 Yankees or anything, but if the Reds hit on all eight cylinders they can be dynamic.

Let’s enjoy ourselves during the All-Star break and come back in the second half with a clear sense of purpose.