A Look at the 2008 Cincinnati Reds—Starting Pitchers

Before the 2008 MLB season begins, read as Andrew Meeds offers his outlook on the pitching depth of the Cincinatti Reds.

by Andrew Meeds (Scribe)

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Sports

January 28, 2008

If you haven't noticed by now, my favorite baseball team is the Cincinnati Reds, so I have decided to speculate on their upcoming season.

First I will look at each position:

Starting Pitching

1. Aaron Harang is among the most under-appreciated players in baseball. He has quite a lengthy list of noteworthy achievements:

* NL Wins Leader (2006)
* NL Strikeouts Leader (2006)
* NL Complete Games Leader (2006)
* 15 Wins Seasons: 2 (2006 & 2007)
* 200 Innings Pitched Seasons: 3 (2005-2007)
* 200 Strikeouts Seasons: 2 (2006 & 2007)

Harang finished with a lower WHIP than five Cy Young award nominees. Including Carlos Zambrano, Brandon Webb, and Brad Penny. With 231.7 IP, only Brandon Webb threw more innings than Harang.

2. Bronson Arroyo finished seventh in IP last year, adding to his reputation as a workhorse. He also started 34 games, only one less than Dontrelle Willis, who led the league. Apart from those stats, Arroyo's 2007 season was less than impressive.

Look back at 2006 when Arroyo finished 23rd in MVP voting, only one place behind '07 MVP Jimmy Rollins. Arroyo had an ERA of 3.29 (fourth in the league), led the league in IP, threw three complete games, and finished sixth in strikeouts.

The 3rd, 4th, and 5th spots are largely undecided between the following pitchers:

Matt Belisle
Homer Bailey
Edinson Volquez
Jeremy Affeldt
Johnny Cueto
Bobby Livingston
Tom Shearn

Here are my thoughts:

3. Matt Belisle has the best shot at starting. Belisle went 8-9 in 30 games last year with a 4.85 ERA, and should be able to improve slightly on those numbers this season.

4 and 5:

These spots are still mostly up for grabs. As of Opening Day, I expect Reds super-prospect Homer Bailey to earn one of them. He is a top 10 prospect and should develop into a strong talent.

Johnny Cueto will likely start in AAA, although many people believe he is going to be better than Homer Bailey. I personally believe Bailey will have a more successful career.

Bobby Livingstone is still recovering from surgery.

My favorite off the bat for #5 as of now is Edinson Volquez. This is the pitcher the Reds acquired from the Rangers in exchange for Josh Hamilton.

Jeremy Affeldt will likely be in the bullpen.

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reply to comment by aaron
6 months ago

Where do you think Fogg fits 3,4, 5 or even 2