See our bold predictions for Cincinnati Reds, Joey Votto entering MLB spring training
Is there another team in baseball as exciting as the high-energy, high-expectation Cincinnati Reds these days?
We’re about to find out as pitchers and catchers report to Goodyear, Arizona, on Tuesday for the start of spring training.
With a roster bolstered by more than $108 million in free agent spending since last season’s surprising pennant chase that fell just two games short of the playoffs, the Reds open a camp filled with hope, young talent and playoff talk − if not necessarily established superstars or World Series rings.
How things look this spring over the next six weeks figures to have a lot to say about how all their unbridled optimism plays out for the six months that come next.
Which means there’s plenty of questions for the Reds to answer before breaking camp for the March 28 season opener.
Fortunately for "Enquiring" Reds fans, our crack staff of baseball experts already have the answers (well, they seem pretty sure they do anyway).
Our bold predictions for the spring:
Who’s taking the fifth for the Cincinnati Reds?
Assuming good health among all the starting pitching candidates, the Reds fifth starter after Hunter Greene, Nick Lodolo, Frankie Montas and Graham Ashcraft will be:
Gordon Wittenmyer, Reds beat reporter: Nick Martinez. Dude’s the second-highest paid guy on the roster this year, and he’s motivated to prove he’s more than a swingman.
Charlie Goldsmith, pro sports reporter: Andrew Abbott gives the Reds a different look in the rotation with his ability to attack the strike zone, command multiple pitches and go deep into games.
Jason Williams, columnist: Abbott. Loved how he competed and attacked the strike zone from the get-go in his rookie season, even when he got tired down the stretch.
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How many hometown guys does it take to build a Reds roster?
In other words, with Princeton High’s Josh Harrison (minor-league deal) and Moeller’s Brent Suter in camp, the Reds might have more than one Cincinnatian on the roster for the first time since Barry Larkin and Ken Griffey Jr. in 2004. So here’s the answer:
Wittenmyer: Three. Just enough health issues (Noelvi Marte’s hamstring), youth and variables are in play with the Reds infield that Harrison makes the opening roster with Suter. Another reason: If he has a good spring, they might lose the two-time All-Star to a late-March opt-out clause. And since Covington was my hometown last season, I’m counting Luke Maile as the third.
Goldsmith: Two. The final spot on the Reds’ bench will likely need to go to a player who can spell TJ Friedl in center field, so Josh Harrison begins the spring on the outside looking in.
Williams: Two. Maile is a clubhouse leader and a great fit to work with a young starting rotation. Suter may end up being the Reds’ best offseason signing. He adds a second left-hander to the bullpen, giving Reds manager and fellow Moeller alum David Bell more ways he can use his relievers.
What’s the short story for the Cincinnati Reds in 2024?
If all eyes are on the young infielders this spring, nobody figures to get more looks than Elly De La Cruz with all that extreme talent and all those second-half strikeouts in 2023 − which keeps at least one eye trained on who opens the season at shortstop:
Wittenmyer: Matt McLain. Don’t @ me. Not saying De La Cruz winds up in Louisville − though it’s possible (I said don’t @ me). But if Marte’s not quite ready to go, and EDLC has the kind of spring that keeps him at GABP, he’ll be needed at third.
Goldsmith: Elly De La Cruz. The Reds have been open about their plan to have Jonathan India play multiple positions, and Matt McLain is the Reds’ only other experienced second baseman. With McLain at second base on a lot of days, De La Cruz starts at shortstop often.
Williams: Easy, short four-letter answer. EDLC.
Where does Joey Votto land?
After pledging to play for at least one more season, the Reds icon was still a free agent on the eve of pitchers and catchers reporting to camps (among many unsigned players), which means that on Opening Day he’ll wind up:
Wittenmyer: In Toronto. On his couch. Votto seems to know what he wants, and it ain’t a part-time role -- or a minor-league deal and invite to camp if that’s what’s left in the market.
Goldsmith: The San Diego Padres need a DH and also could use a veteran presence on a team that’s pieces didn’t fit together last year.
Williams: Maybe in the Reds radio booth as a guest analyst on occasion. Maybe on more vacations around the globe. He was in Spain on vacation when the Reds parted ways with him in November. He’ll find something to do in retirement. Some teams have looked at Votto as a potential pinch-hitter and part-time DH, but he’s not been interested.
Where the hell is Jeimer Candelario going to play?
The Reds’ big ($45 million) offseason addition is a corner infielder added to a busting-at-the-seams infield group, which means that the only place he fits in the opening lineup will be:
Wittenmyer: First base and batting third. (See EDLC at third, above).
Goldsmith: He’ll make a lot of starts as the designated hitter while also playing first and third base.
Williams: He’ll bounce between DH, first and third to keep his bat in the lineup. Defensively, he was added as a depth piece in case Marte and/or Christian Encarnacion-Strand aren’t healthy or struggle.
Who’s gonna be in the “best shape of my life” this spring?
Wittenmyer: That’s easy: Me. Nobody has a lower bar to clear.
Goldsmith: Spencer Steer’s sprint speed pays off in the outfield.
Williams: Who cares? This is the big leagues. It's the players' job to be in shape. Either you produce or you don't.