As dreadful as it was to suffer through Ben Sheets's outing yesterday, it's a good time to remember what's nice about this team: there are other good players, including several excellent starters. I don't mean to understate Benny's importance to this team, but at the same time, it's a pretty decent club without him, too. Conveniently illustrating my point are the pitching matchups for our quickie two-gamer in Cincinnati:
- Monday, 6:10 CT: Chris Capuano vs. Eric Milton
- Tuesday, 6:10 CT: Dave Bush vs. Matt Belisle
Oddly enough, it's that pitching staff that has put the Reds in first place thus far. The offense, gutted by Wayne Krivsky's moves last season, is managing a mere .226/.316/.344, while the pitching staff has an ERA just over 3.00, thanks to the unlikely efforts of Belisle and Kyle Lohse. To make matters worse for the offense, Enrique Cruz appears to still be on the roster.
Here's your optional reading assignment:
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Red Reporter is discussing the implications of a possible decent season from Lohse. (I wouldn't worry about it if I were them.)
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The Church of Baseball does something alarming with a racing sausage.
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Red Hot Mama doesn't like Thom Brennaman, prompting the question: who's worse, the old D-Backs announcer or the new one?
- My team preview, written in mid-March.
Go Brewers!