Early in the 2008 season, there are two things that are very clear with the Cincinnati Reds. First, they need to figure out how to deal with having two left-handed 1st basemen and second, how to improve their roster against left-handed pitching. These two items seem to be a significant problem for Cincinnati, but also both could be “fixed” by one single roster move.
A manager can only do so much with what they are given, and Reds’ manager Dusty Baker has a bit of an issue on his hands. Young 1B prospect Joey Votto made the opening day roster for Cincinnati despite the fact that the Reds also have Scott Hatteberg under contract in 2008. Votto has started the season strong batting .320 with 2 HR and 5 RBI through 10 games while Hatteberg is hitting .190 with 0 HR and 2 RBI in 10 games while getting 4 ABs fewer than the younger Votto. So statistically, it’s clear in the early-going that Votto is the better choice. The Reds are reportedly shopping Hatteberg, and despite his solid clubhouse presence and veteran leadership skills, I think it’s time to hand the job to Votto.
As for the lack of hitting against left-handed batters, the Reds’ lack of offensive depth and right-handed hitters is clearly hurting this team. Edwin Encarnacion continues to struggle batting just .171 through 35 ABs which maks things worse, and the Reds have even gone as far as sitting both Hatteberg and Votto down as Jeff Keppinger got the start at 1B on Sunday @ Pittsburgh. But Cincinnati needs to make a move to get another right-handed bat on the 25-man roster, and AAA Louisville does not look to have the solution.
A review of the AAA team leads me to think that a deal is likely the Reds’ best option to get new blood into the franchise. Jolbert Cabrera and Jerry Harriston, Jr. both bat right handed and both are hitting over .400 at AAA, but both are primarily 2B and Brandon Phillips is not going anywhere for the Reds. With AAA not looking to be the best option, the best-case scenario is if the Reds could get a marginal prospect or relatively equally-skilled 1B who hits right-handed to replace Hatteberg. Either way, both of these issues need to be resolved if the Reds want to contend in 2008.