Cincinnati Reds Report Cards: Paul Janish

For good or bad, Paul Janish inherited the position of shortstop after Alex Gonzalez was sent to Boston.

Janish fits the description of "slick fielding, weak hitter" all to well. His defense has been sterling this season, as he has committed only three errors in 82 games.

In a 10-game stretch from August 23 through September 1, Janish batted .333 with one home run and nine RBI. During that run, he was 14-for-42. That was the highlight of the season for him, although he did have 14 multi-hit games.

You could see many things about Janish, but one thing you can't say about him, is that he is "clutch." With RISP he batted a dismal .175. He had a career .261 average in the minors, so he should be able to hit something else besides his weight.

I have written before that I believe shortstop is the Achilles heel to the whole operation. I know the Reds don't offer All-star quality, except for maybe three positions, but without getting more than .200-plus out of your eight hole, you have troubles.

There has been talk earlier of trying Drew Sutton at second and moving Brandon Phillips to his original position at shortstop. I believe Sutton would be a better hitter than Janish, though it would almost appear as a lateral move to me.

He stacks up better than average against the rest of the league when it comes to base running, although he is far removed from a being bandit on the bases.

His pitching is atrocious, giving up nine hits and 11 earned runs in two innings. That blows up to a 49.50 ERA if you are counting. I say that "tongue in cheek" because he only filled in when there was nobody left to call on. Kudos for having the balls to take the mound in such a situation.

If he could get his batting up to a respectable .250, I would say we have something, but until then I'd keep looking.

Next up:  Scott Rolen

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Cliff Eastham is a BR Featured Columnist for the Cincinnati Reds

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