QUESTION OF THE WEEK
Q: What would be your all-time Cincinnati Reds all-star team? — CLAUDE, Middletown.
A: Well, I’d start with Harry Wright back in 1869. But I didn’t see him play. Just missed him. How about an All-Star team of Reds since I began covering them in 1973, and even that is fantastically difficult. But here goes: C Johnny Bench, 1B Sean Casey, 2B Joe Morgan, 3B Tony Perez (yeah, I fudged, but he did start out at third), SS Barry Larkin, LF Pete Rose, CF Eric Davis, RF Ken Griffey Jr. Pitching rotation: LHP Don Gullett, RHP Jose Rijo, LHP Tom Browning, RHP Johnny Cueto, RHP Tom Seaver. Closer: Aroldis Chapman. Give me that team and I’ll whip anybody.
Hall of Fame baseball writer Hal McCoy knows a thing or two about America’s pastime. If you’d like to tap into that knowledge, send a question to halmccoy1@hotmail.com.
Q: There have been only four team captains in Reds history and only one (Barry Larkin) made it to the Hall of Fame and he was not a shoo-in. Are team captains overrated? — DAVE, Miamisburg/Centerville/Beavercreek.
A: Team captains are not chosen for their prospects of making the Hall of Fame. They are chosen on their leadership qualities and if they are somebody the team will listen to and follow. Nevertheless, I do believe official team captains are not necessary. The guys in the clubhouse know who is a leader.
Q: Based on what you saw this spring, who would have been your Nos. 3, 4 and 5 starters for the Reds to begin the season? — ARLEY, Auburn, Ohio.
A: I am assuming you are listing Johnny Cueto and Mike Leake as one and two and that Homer Bailey will miss his first start. That said, my third would have been Tony Cingrani (to give them a left-hander), but they put him in the bullpen. And I would have kept another left-hander, Paul Maholm, instead of Jason Marquis, and used hard-throwing Michael Lorenzen as the fifth starter until Bailey returns and then put Lorenzen in the bullpen. But the next time the Reds ask my advice on roster moves will be the first, as it should be.
Q: In the last four seasons that include the Phillies playoff sweep, the playoff collapse against the Giants, the one-and-out playoff against the Pirates and last year’s debacle, I believe inconsistent hitting was the cause. What is your opinion of how the Reds will hit in 2015? — BRIAN, Centerville.
A: They were 28th of 30 major-league teams in runs scored last year. All they've done is add outfielder Marlon Byrd, and one man isn't going to make up the difference. The Reds are counting on about five players to have better seasons and to me that's a mighty stretch. It is sort of a "hit" or miss thing and I fear they might miss more than hit.
Q: How many guys on the Reds would you consider untouchable? — ERIK, Cincinnati.
A: Based on last year's finish? Only Johnny Cueto, but because of free agency nobody on a team can be considered untouchable. They'll probably have to trade Cueto or let him go to free agency. The Reds should listen to any offer for any player to help them in the future because the present doesn't look good.
Q: Do you believe the Reds got enough in the trades of Alfredo Simon and Mat Latos? — LEE, West Carrollton.
A: You usually have to wait awhile to see how trades turn out. The key player in the Simon trade was 23-year-old shortstop Eugenio Suarez. The kid can pick-it clean. If he can hit, which he will have to show in Triple-A this year, the Reds have something. The Latos deal was addition by subtraction, but the Reds believe 24-year-old Anthony DeSclafani can be as good, or better, than Latos. That, too, is something down the road.
Q: Why don’t the Reds trade Johnny Cueto right now while his value is high because realists know the Reds won’t make the playoffs? — BOB, Cincinnati.
A: You probably are right about the Reds not making the playoffs, and it would make sense to trade him now. But that would admit early defeat to the fan base and if the Reds have even a sliver of optimism about squeezing into the playoffs they have to have Cueto. Let's see how they feel at the All-Star break.
Q: When the Reds traded Tony Perez to Montreal after the 1976 season for pitchers Woodie Fryman and Dale Murray, what were their stats and service with the Reds? — CRAIG, Cedarville.
A: Amazingly, even though Fryman lived in northern Kentucky, he said he didn't want to pitch for the Reds and showed it. He was 5-5 with a 5.38 ERA in 12 starts and five bullpen appearances. When the Reds put him in the bullpen he said he wanted out. And the Reds traded him after one season to the Cubs for pitcher Bill Bonham. Eventually Fryman returned to his beloved Montreal for the last five years of his career. Murray was pretty good in 1977, 7-2 out of the bullpen, but he was 1-1 in 1978 when the Reds traded him to the Mets for outfielder Ken Henderson in May. President/General Manager Bob Howsam went to his grave saying, "Trading Tony Perez was the worst thing I ever did in baseball."
Q: What are your picks for MLB records that will never be broken? - JOE, Kettering.
A: I have two. First, Nolan Ryan's all-time strikeout record (5,714). The guy was superhuman to be able to throw 100 miles an hour in his late 40s and still strike people out. Throw in his seven no-hitters, too. Second is Pete Rose's 4,256 hits. Think about it. For a player to do that he needs to get 200 hits a year for 20 straight years and those 4,000 hits still leave him 256 short.
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