FalconBlog--Triumphs and Trials in the BGSU Falcon Nation

Update: Reds Trendline

As part of what is nominally a continuing series, I'm looking at the areas where the Reds looked to improve their pitching and whether its working or not.

The basic answer is yes, but it still has a ways to go. I remain somewhat encouraged. Claussen and Bong are pitching well in AAA, and I continue to think the team may have enough umph to put together decent pitching in the future. The bottom line for 2004 is this...when the hitters are healthy, we're a decent team, maybe 88 wins. When the hitters are benched, we have no depth, and we're barely servicable.

With that in mind, here is how the numbers stack up. Our control is better and strikeouts better than last year--but still below average. We are giving up just as many HR's (second most in NL and more than the Rockies), and one hit per game above the league average. We are 14th in Runs Allowed. The slight drop over 2003 in ERA is due to better control and more K's, but its still very high.

BB/9 (2003--3.67 2004--3.19 NL Avg--3.42) (Note, this has steadily risen all year)
K/9 (2003--5.80 2004--6.05 NL Avg--6.54)
H/9 (2003--9.82 2004--9.81 NL Avg--8.96)
ERA (2003--5.09 2004--4.98 NL Avg--4.27)
K/bb (2003--1.58 2004--1.90 NL Avg--1.91)
hr/9 (2003--1.30 2004--1.34 NL Avg--1.07) (Rocketed up in the past month)
e/game (2003--0.87 2004--0.61)

Finally, our pythag. We should be 36-44, and we are 43-37, so we are seven games above our pythag, and holding, more or less, over a month ago. Some might argue its inflated by a couple blowouts (Oakland and Cleveland...curse inter-league play), but this team is still over its head. I love it, and we play hard and don't give up, but we are over our head.

The Reds ERA is almost equal to the D-Backs. Yet they are 29-52. Amazing.

Well, we need to win the series today, which we should be able to do, and then head to Busch for the fourth, grit our teeth and pull some wins out. They have nasty pitching waiting for us, and if our guys do not produce or are not healthy, we will get eaten alive.