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Another reason this Pandemic sucks

CO. Hoosier

Hall of Famer
Aug 29, 2001
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No baseball. While baseball has had its history of various problems, it has managed to put on an appearance of a game without a lot of accompanying BS. Having read "K" I was ready for the season.

This was going to be a White Sox year. Their free agent pickups, the maturation of young players, and solid managing and coaching were going to make them fun to watch after several years of mediocracy. The worst part of the season that might never be is the death of Ed Farmer; the Sox play-by-play guy. I loved the way he described the game. He had a unique way of describing what was in the heads of the pitcher, batter, and runners. His understated description of a big plays and dead pan sense of humor were a great way to listen to a game. RIP.
 
No baseball. While baseball has had its history of various problems, it has managed to put on an appearance of a game without a lot of accompanying BS. Having read "K" I was ready for the season.

This was going to be a White Sox year. Their free agent pickups, the maturation of young players, and solid managing and coaching were going to make them fun to watch after several years of mediocracy. The worst part of the season that might never be is the death of Ed Farmer; the Sox play-by-play guy. I loved the way he described the game. He had a unique way of describing what was in the heads of the pitcher, batter, and runners. His understated description of a big plays and dead pan sense of humor were a great way to listen to a game. RIP.

One of yours (former) - Troy Tulowitski - is at bat in the 2014 All-Star game right now. The local fox sports station has been showing the 1975 World Series between the Reds and Red Sox.

So, there's still some baseball.

It's better than the creep hosting Meet the Press ....
 
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No baseball. While baseball has had its history of various problems, it has managed to put on an appearance of a game without a lot of accompanying BS. Having read "K" I was ready for the season.

This was going to be a White Sox year. Their free agent pickups, the maturation of young players, and solid managing and coaching were going to make them fun to watch after several years of mediocracy. The worst part of the season that might never be is the death of Ed Farmer; the Sox play-by-play guy. I loved the way he described the game. He had a unique way of describing what was in the heads of the pitcher, batter, and runners. His understated description of a big plays and dead pan sense of humor were a great way to listen to a game. RIP.

Jeter doubled, in his last All-Star game, and Trout just tripled. Trout's talent is just incredible. He's not old now; was just a kid six years ago.
 
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One of yours (former) - Troy Tulowitski - is at bat in the 2014 All-Star game right now. The local fox sports station has been showing the 1975 World Series between the Reds and Red Sox.

So, there's still some baseball.

It's better than the creep hosting Meet the Press ....

More abou this.

The game on television and radio can become the background murmur of a life well lived. Put the game on in the browser, and handle that batch of work emails. Tune in on the radio, and get the chores and home projects done. Flip on the television during a summer party, and stay inside, in the air-conditioned air, when your friend says the pitcher is working on a no-hitter. So what if it’s only the third inning?

There is a hypnotic quality to television broadcasts of baseball. A pitcher sets the pace of play, and by doing so he sets the pace of a broadcast. Cut to the wide-angle shot of the field, cut back to the shot from the batter’s eye over the pitcher’s shoulder, cut to the close-up of the batter as he adjusts gloves, stance, and helmet. And cut back again. This is a hypnotism worth undergoing to catch up on a little sleep during languorous afternoons.
Dozing off during a night-time broadcast is living well.

 
More abou this.

The game on television and radio can become the background murmur of a life well lived. Put the game on in the browser, and handle that batch of work emails. Tune in on the radio, and get the chores and home projects done. Flip on the television during a summer party, and stay inside, in the air-conditioned air, when your friend says the pitcher is working on a no-hitter. So what if it’s only the third inning?

There is a hypnotic quality to television broadcasts of baseball. A pitcher sets the pace of play, and by doing so he sets the pace of a broadcast. Cut to the wide-angle shot of the field, cut back to the shot from the batter’s eye over the pitcher’s shoulder, cut to the close-up of the batter as he adjusts gloves, stance, and helmet. And cut back again. This is a hypnotism worth undergoing to catch up on a little sleep during languorous afternoons.
Dozing off during a night-time broadcast is living well.

My team I follow is on the west coast. MLB.tv airs their games at 10:05 start times here which is perfect for bedtime. I get 5 innings in every night for the past 10 plus years... the nice thing about MLB.tv is they also provide all the radio broadcasts also. This allows me to listen to games while driving over the car radio... I have even got to where I use twitter during the games to connect with the broadcasters... good stuff.
 
My team I follow is on the west coast. MLB.tv airs their games at 10:05 start times here which is perfect for bedtime. I get 5 innings in every night for the past 10 plus years... the nice thing about MLB.tv is they also provide all the radio broadcasts also. This allows me to listen to games while driving over the car radio... I have even got to where I use twitter during the games to connect with the broadcasters... good stuff.

I listen on satellite radio. I also spent a lot of time each day with the At Bat app on my Iphone. The effects of that person who got sick in China run far a deep.
 
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More abou this.

The game on television and radio can become the background murmur of a life well lived. Put the game on in the browser, and handle that batch of work emails. Tune in on the radio, and get the chores and home projects done. Flip on the television during a summer party, and stay inside, in the air-conditioned air, when your friend says the pitcher is working on a no-hitter. So what if it’s only the third inning?

There is a hypnotic quality to television broadcasts of baseball. A pitcher sets the pace of play, and by doing so he sets the pace of a broadcast. Cut to the wide-angle shot of the field, cut back to the shot from the batter’s eye over the pitcher’s shoulder, cut to the close-up of the batter as he adjusts gloves, stance, and helmet. And cut back again. This is a hypnotism worth undergoing to catch up on a little sleep during languorous afternoons.
Dozing off during a night-time broadcast is living well.


I love the camera shot from behind the batter, catcher and home plate umpire. I wish they would use it much more often. You don't get a chance to really appreciate the incredible stuff MLB pitchers have except from the batter's perspective.

We were fortunate to have a HOF broadcasting duo - Marty Brenneman and Joe Nuxhall - for years. Sit on the porch or deck, have beer, or four, or a bourbon, read a newspaper or book, enjoy a nice summer evening.

And, on another note, I have tremendous appreciation for any pitcher, or any player for that matter, who returns from rotator cuff surgery. Having had it about two-and-one-half years ago, with the resulting maybe 95% mobility, I am impressed that anyone can come back.
 
Check out the game cast on ESPN. I will use that because it provides a batter with the strike zone divided into 9 even sections like a tick-tack-toe board. In each of the 9 sections, it provides the current batters average when the ball is thrown in that zone. It really shows how much homework the pitchers do for each game. They are always throwing to the low average sections of the zone. Then you get the “oops”pitches where they miss the spot and put it in the hot zone.... changes how you watch the game
 
Jeter doubled, in his last All-Star game, and Trout just tripled. Trout's talent is just incredible. He's not old now; was just a kid six years ago.
This is a bigger hit to the sport via this pandemic than anything else. We haven’t had a player like Trout since perhaps Griffey Jr and we are missing months of his prime.
 
No baseball. While baseball has had its history of various problems, it has managed to put on an appearance of a game without a lot of accompanying BS. Having read "K" I was ready for the season.

This was going to be a White Sox year. Their free agent pickups, the maturation of young players, and solid managing and coaching were going to make them fun to watch after several years of mediocracy. The worst part of the season that might never be is the death of Ed Farmer; the Sox play-by-play guy. I loved the way he described the game. He had a unique way of describing what was in the heads of the pitcher, batter, and runners. His understated description of a big plays and dead pan sense of humor were a great way to listen to a game. RIP.
I understand the issue is travel and if one player/staff gets infected then the entire staff has to be quarantined. all that said, in the context of honoring tv contracts and playing in front of empty stadiums, the relative lack of contact and distancing in the sport seems like it would be the best suited to return the fastest out of the major sports.
 
I understand the issue is travel and if one player/staff gets infected then the entire staff has to be quarantined. all that said, in the context of honoring tv contracts and playing in front of empty stadiums, the relative lack of contact and distancing in the sport seems like it would be the best suited to return the fastest out of the major sports.

Yes and no. Was just talking about this with my son, who is a baseball player. He is desperate to go out to a park and throw long toss, which is a primary developer of arm strength, with one of his teammates. Even though the closest they would get to each other is 15 feet (and at max they would be over 250 feet apart), there's the thing of the ball traveling between them and any virus that could travel on that between hands. Obviously, caution is the name of the game right now and I'm not sure we have the confidence yet to understand transmission really well. Are catchers more at risk because they are within a foot or two of every batter on the opposing team? Is "going to the mouth" forbidden in any way? I'm sure it can all be worked out, but I'm not sure it will be worked out all that more quickly than the NBA and NFL.
 
No baseball. While baseball has had its history of various problems, it has managed to put on an appearance of a game without a lot of accompanying BS. Having read "K" I was ready for the season.

This was going to be a White Sox year. Their free agent pickups, the maturation of young players, and solid managing and coaching were going to make them fun to watch after several years of mediocracy. The worst part of the season that might never be is the death of Ed Farmer; the Sox play-by-play guy. I loved the way he described the game. He had a unique way of describing what was in the heads of the pitcher, batter, and runners. His understated description of a big plays and dead pan sense of humor were a great way to listen to a game. RIP.
This does suck. I was flying the Cincinnati Reds flag yesterday in honor of what I think was going to be (hopefully will be) a good season. The Reds made a lot of very solid moves this off season and have the players they need to have a very good season and contend for the playoffs. The pitching staff and the offense should be among the best in baseball this season - if we ever have this season.
 
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Yes and no. Was just talking about this with my son, who is a baseball player. He is desperate to go out to a park and throw long toss, which is a primary developer of arm strength, with one of his teammates. Even though the closest they would get to each other is 15 feet (and at max they would be over 250 feet apart), there's the thing of the ball traveling between them and any virus that could travel on that between hands. Obviously, caution is the name of the game right now and I'm not sure we have the confidence yet to understand transmission really well. Are catchers more at risk because they are within a foot or two of every batter on the opposing team? Is "going to the mouth" forbidden in any way? I'm sure it can all be worked out, but I'm not sure it will be worked out all that more quickly than the NBA and NFL.
Yeah i didn't even think of the damn ball. ugh.
 
This does suck. I was flying the Cincinnati Reds flag yesterday in honor of what I think was going to be (hopefully will be) a good season. The Reds made a lot of very solid moves this off season and have the players they need to have a very good season and contend for the playoffs. The pitching staff and the offense should be among the best in baseball this season - if we ever have this season.

Agree about the Reds having a tremendous off season. A good friend is a big Reds fan and he was very excited. I'm a White Sox guy and I can't help believing that the team was still a season away. Maybe competing for a wild card if all goes right, but still too young and the pitching wasn't there yet. The Reds on the other hand looked like they could win that division if all goes right.
 
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No baseball. While baseball has had its history of various problems, it has managed to put on an appearance of a game without a lot of accompanying BS. Having read "K" I was ready for the season.

This was going to be a White Sox year. Their free agent pickups, the maturation of young players, and solid managing and coaching were going to make them fun to watch after several years of mediocracy. The worst part of the season that might never be is the death of Ed Farmer; the Sox play-by-play guy. I loved the way he described the game. He had a unique way of describing what was in the heads of the pitcher, batter, and runners. His understated description of a big plays and dead pan sense of humor were a great way to listen to a game. RIP.

One thing about the ChiSox home games if they were to occur during the pandemic.

Social distancing for those attending wouldn't be a problem.
 
This does suck. I was flying the Cincinnati Reds flag yesterday in honor of what I think was going to be (hopefully will be) a good season. The Reds made a lot of very solid moves this off season and have the players they need to have a very good season and contend for the playoffs. The pitching staff and the offense should be among the best in baseball this season - if we ever have this season.

With the Reds' staff this year and some astute free agent pick-ups this put them in a very good spot to legitimately challenge for the NL Central.
 
Agree about the Reds having a tremendous off season. A good friend is a big Reds fan and he was very excited. I'm a White Sox guy and I can't help believing that the team was still a season away. Maybe competing for a wild card if all goes right, but still too young and the pitching wasn't there yet. The Reds on the other hand looked like they could win that division if all goes right.

Grandal would be a huge boost to the pitching staff. The Sox made their move this year. The only thing another year would do is allow some of the youngsters to further develop. Moncada turned the corner last year and Eloy J was amazing out of the box. With the addition of Keuchel and Gonzalez and if Kopech overcomes TJ surgery, I think the Sox were off to the races.
 
With the Reds' staff this year and some astute free agent pick-ups this put them in a very good spot to legitimately challenge for the NL Central.

The only thing that matters to me in the NL Central is that the Cubs don't win. If that means Reds do, I'm all in. Cards seem to be perpetual over achievers. Don't know how they do it year in and year out.
 
Grandal would be a huge boost to the pitching staff. The Sox made their move this year. The only thing another year would do is allow some of the youngsters to further develop. Moncada turned the corner last year and Eloy J was amazing out of the box. With the addition of Keuchel and Gonzalez and if Kopech overcomes TJ surgery, I think the Sox were off to the races.

Grandal was a huge pickup, but is not long removed from when the Dodgers punted on him because he was struggling so badly receiving pitches in the playoffs. The Sox #1 is one season removed from being the worst full-time starter in the majors. They don't even have a legitimate #2 pitcher right now. Hopefully Kopech will step up to fill that role eventually, but he wasn't even slotted to start the season on the big team roster. They will likely be starting two talented, but unproven rookies in CF and at 2B. Their defense is suspect. IMHO, expecting them to compete for a division title this year is believing that everything goes right and that's a recipe for being disappointed.
 
Agree about the Reds having a tremendous off season. A good friend is a big Reds fan and he was very excited. I'm a White Sox guy and I can't help believing that the team was still a season away. Maybe competing for a wild card if all goes right, but still too young and the pitching wasn't there yet. The Reds on the other hand looked like they could win that division if all goes right.
Concur.
 
With the Reds' staff this year and some astute free agent pick-ups this put them in a very good spot to legitimately challenge for the NL Central.
Absolutely. Could be like the strike season when the Reds had the best overall record, but didn't win either half of the season so didn't make the playoffs - Reds could get screwed! ;)
 
but he wasn't even slotted to start the season on the big team roster.

I noticed that. I think there is a wrinkle in the rules about if a player starts a season in the minors with a call up after a month or so free-agent eligibility would be delayed by a year. Since Kopech already pitched some in the majors, I don't know if he qualifies or if that was even the plan. Kopech was throwing in the high 90's during ST.

edit:

Louis Robert was primed and ready to go. Keeping Abreu was huge for him.
 
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Absolutely. Could be like the strike season when the Reds had the best overall record, but didn't win either half of the season so didn't make the playoffs - Reds could get screwed! ;)

Suarez's off-season shoulder injury could be a problem if it hasn't healed completely. The extra time could be a definite benefit for him.

Losing Jose Iglesias to Baltimore, however, may prove to be the biggest loss. Freddy Galvis is not the answer at shortstop. Iglesias had a good season. Losing him to free agency could be huge.
 
I noticed that. I think there is a wrinkle in the rules about if a player starts a season in the minors with a call up after a month or so free-agent eligibility would be delayed by a year. Since Kopech already pitched some in the majors, I don't know if he qualifies or if that was even the plan. Kopech was throwing in the high 90's during ST.

edit:

Louis Robert was primed and ready to go. Keeping Abreu was huge for him.

IMHO, Roberts is the REAL star of the future but he's going to need a year or two of seasoning. By then, Abreu may be a DH only on the way out and Andrew Vaughn will be the next young guy who needs to prove himself. Abreu has been such a calm and steadying presence for the Sox. Hope they compete deeply while he is still there.

IMHO, Dylan Cease is more likely the guy to take the big jump this year than Kopech. MK needs to get another year removed from surgery before he starts to really be right. That's why I think they are taking it slow with him. I wouldn't have expected to see him up with the big club before end of June. They've got Giolito, Keuchel, Lopez, Cease, and Gio to hold things down until he is right and they've got other mid-level minor league depth for spot starts if they need support for one of those guys. They need Kopech to come along slowly and stay healthy for the prime contention years.
 
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No baseball. While baseball has had its history of various problems, it has managed to put on an appearance of a game without a lot of accompanying BS. Having read "K" I was ready for the season.

This was going to be a White Sox year. Their free agent pickups, the maturation of young players, and solid managing and coaching were going to make them fun to watch after several years of mediocracy. The worst part of the season that might never be is the death of Ed Farmer; the Sox play-by-play guy. I loved the way he described the game. He had a unique way of describing what was in the heads of the pitcher, batter, and runners. His understated description of a big plays and dead pan sense of humor were a great way to listen to a game. RIP.

Just finished a book so decided to read David Halberstam's October 1964 which I have heard over the years is a very good baseball book. Though it's primarily about the Yankees and the (detestable) Cardinals as long as it spends a good deal of time on Bob Gibson, in my list of five all-time favorite players, then it will be palatable. Gibson was/is the best pitcher I've ever seen. It still astounds me that in '68 his ERA was 1.12, he completed 28 games and threw 13 shutouts. Without looking it up I doubt there were 28 CGs and 13 Shutouts in the entire National League in 2019. And he coulda/shoulda been a Hoosier.
 
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No baseball. While baseball has had its history of various problems, it has managed to put on an appearance of a game without a lot of accompanying BS. Having read "K" I was ready for the season.

This was going to be a White Sox year. Their free agent pickups, the maturation of young players, and solid managing and coaching were going to make them fun to watch after several years of mediocracy. The worst part of the season that might never be is the death of Ed Farmer; the Sox play-by-play guy. I loved the way he described the game. He had a unique way of describing what was in the heads of the pitcher, batter, and runners. His understated description of a big plays and dead pan sense of humor were a great way to listen to a game. RIP.
Summer’s not Summer without Baseball
 
Just finished a book so decided to read David Halberstam's October 1964 which I have heard over the years is a very good baseball book. Though it's primarily about the Yankees and the (detestable) Cardinals as long as it spends a good deal of time on Bob Gibson, in my list of five all-time favorite players, then it will be palatable. Gibson was/is the best pitcher I've ever seen. It still astounds me that in '68 his ERA was 1.12, he completed 28 games and threw 13 shutouts. Without looking it up I doubt there were 28 CGs and 13 Shutouts in the entire National League in 2019. And he coulda/shoulda been a Hoosier.

The author of K wrote about Gibson's slider which was the wicked pitch for his career. It was so painful for him to throw that he used a banned substance (but wasn't banned in his day) to be able to pitch. Good sliders these days comes from the wrist, not so painful. Gibson's was hard on his elbow.
 
Just finished a book so decided to read David Halberstam's October 1964 which I have heard over the years is a very good baseball book. Though it's primarily about the Yankees and the (detestable) Cardinals as long as it spends a good deal of time on Bob Gibson, in my list of five all-time favorite players, then it will be palatable. Gibson was/is the best pitcher I've ever seen. It still astounds me that in '68 his ERA was 1.12, he completed 28 games and threw 13 shutouts. Without looking it up I doubt there were 28 CGs and 13 Shutouts in the entire National League in 2019. And he coulda/shoulda been a Hoosier.
That would be interesting to hear the best player each person had seen in person play. I saw Roger Clemons pitch when he was with Boston vs the Angels. The guy was a beast. Very intimidating on the mound. My wife let’s me pick one series a year to go watch in California. I picked the Yankee’s when Arod, Jeter, etc were on the team. I got to see Vlad Guerrero catch a ball at the warning track in Right Field and throw out I think Jeter at the plate trying to tag up. I will always remember that. No bounce.... No arc on the throw.... laser throw. Crowd was going nuts!
 
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That would be interesting to hear the best player each person had seen in person play. I saw Roger Clemons pitch when he was with Boston vs the Angels. The guy was a beast. Very intimidating on the mound. My wife let’s me pick one series a year to go watch in California. I picked the Yankee’s when Arod, Jeter, etc were on the team. I got to see Vlad Guerrero catch a ball at the warning track in Right Field and throw out I think Jeter at the plate trying to tag up. I will always remember that. No bounce.... No arc on the throw.... laser throw. Crowd was going nuts!


The throw, IMO the best play in baseball. Deep in the field or from ss, 3b catcher,wherever, it's kind of "do not tug on superman's cape sort of moment".
 
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That would be interesting to hear the best player each person had seen in person play. I saw Roger Clemons pitch when he was with Boston vs the Angels. The guy was a beast. Very intimidating on the mound. My wife let’s me pick one series a year to go watch in California. I picked the Yankee’s when Arod, Jeter, etc were on the team. I got to see Vlad Guerrero catch a ball at the warning track in Right Field and throw out I think Jeter at the plate trying to tag up. I will always remember that. No bounce.... No arc on the throw.... laser throw. Crowd was going nuts!

When you look up "players with a cannon for an arm" there's a picture of Guerrero.
 
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Suarez's off-season shoulder injury could be a problem if it hasn't healed completely. The extra time could be a definite benefit for him.

Losing Jose Iglesias to Baltimore, however, may prove to be the biggest loss. Freddy Galvis is not the answer at shortstop. Iglesias had a good season. Losing him to free agency could be huge.
I was also concerned about both. Galvis isn't bad, but I don't think he's as good as Iglesias. Hopefully, the "Punisher" hits somewhat like he did his first month up last year. ;)
 
When you look up "players with a cannon for an arm" there's a picture of Guerrero.

My dad played semi-pro in Chicago. He had a turn at bat against Satchel Paige on a barnstorming tour. Said he never saw the ball, but managed a foul tip.
 
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Absolutely. Could be like the strike season when the Reds had the best overall record, but didn't win either half of the season so didn't make the playoffs - Reds could get screwed! ;)

I am just more positive, the Reds will be undefeated in April. That is a great start.

I saw the Reds had an online tournament to declare the greatest Red of all time. These things always skew young, more people alive have seen a Joey Votto play than Big Klu. That said, Bench beat Larkin in the finals. I certainly agree with Bench, I am not positive if I would have had Barry #2.

Any other fans want to pick their favorite team's top 2? Or disagree/agree with Bench-Larkin
 
That would be interesting to hear the best player each person had seen in person play. I saw Roger Clemons pitch when he was with Boston vs the Angels. The guy was a beast. Very intimidating on the mound. My wife let’s me pick one series a year to go watch in California. I picked the Yankee’s when Arod, Jeter, etc were on the team. I got to see Vlad Guerrero catch a ball at the warning track in Right Field and throw out I think Jeter at the plate trying to tag up. I will always remember that. No bounce.... No arc on the throw.... laser throw. Crowd was going nuts!

Has to be Bench, but then I'm partial to catchers, thus the "2".

He was a cat behind the plate and he gunned down runners. And with as demanding as being a catcher can be he could still crank it at the plate. Not many players can say they changed how a position is played.
 
I am just more positive, the Reds will be undefeated in April. That is a great start.

I saw the Reds had an online tournament to declare the greatest Red of all time. These things always skew young, more people alive have seen a Joey Votto play than Big Klu. That said, Bench beat Larkin in the finals. I certainly agree with Bench, I am not positive if I would have had Barry #2.

Any other fans want to pick their favorite team's top 2? Or disagree/agree with Bench-Larkin

I'll cheat. Top three - Bench, Morgan, Rose. Larkin had more natural talent than Rose but nobody got more out of what God gave him than Rose.
 
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I was also concerned about both. Galvis isn't bad, but I don't think he's as good as Iglesias. Hopefully, the "Punisher" hits somewhat like he did his first month up last year. ;)

I'm not sure Aquino makes the team. Wouldn't be surprised to see him start in AAA.
 
I'm not sure Aquino makes the team. Wouldn't be surprised to see him start in AAA.
He certainly tailed off after his record breaking start, but I think he's got a great chance to be a very good player for the Reds.
 
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