Here Come the Reds / How McKay Can Win the Rays a World Series
(Photos Permission of and Credit To Freek Bouwe of Phrake Photography)
Posted By: Steven Claxton
The NL Central has been tough for many a fortnight. The Cubs and Cardinals have been battling it out long before fortnite. As someone who lives near St. Louis, and to be clear I am not a die-hard Cardinals fan, I can tell you first-hand the rivalry is real.
Despite often being anointed as possessing the greatest fan-base in baseball, Cardinals fans would regularly jab at their northern rival even prior to the Cubs' success in recent years. Maybe that's just how a rivalry goes and a team can still be considered to have the greatest fans in spite of sometimes showing no mercy to another team. I'm not sure.
And then things changed within the division. The Milwaukee Brewers exchanged an aging Jonathan Lucroy for (at the time) a solid prospect in Lewis Brinson. Brinson was then later packaged as a large trade chip in a deal to acquire Christian Yelich.
Once he joined the Brewers, something clearly clicked for Yelich in 2018, especially at home and during the season's 2nd half, and he contributed to both a postseason birth for his team and a new identity for the "Brew Crew". Though the team may not win 96 games again in 2019, the success has carried over to date.
The division then only became more complicated with the disruption in a few other areas.
#1 - Josh Bell has played like a superstar (as we are now) three months into the season. His team has also seen some nice contributions from the likes of Kevin Newman and Brian Reynolds while Corey Dickerson should be solid. If the team can get Taillon healthy, especially, they may be able to remain competitive.
#2 - The Reds made a blockbuster deal in sending away Homer Bailey and, in turn, acquiring Matt Kemp, Yasiel Puig, and Alex Wood...not to mention also signing Great American Ballpark hero, Derek Dietrich.
And though the Pirates are certainly of intrigue, we're mainly here to talk about the Cincinnati Reds.
Here Come the Reds
It hasn't been just one trade and one signing for the organization that has made the difference, resulting in a .055 increase in win percentage. We've seen Luis Castillo maintain elite production - demonstrated by his 2.47 ERA.
Sure, that production will not last, however it doesn't need to for the team to be successful because the rotation also has adequate starters in Sonny Gray, hard-throwing Tanner Roark, and a respectable Tyler Mahle and Anthony DeSclafani.
The major league roster is now, quietly, one of the more well-rounded in terms of offense and starting pitching on paper. Perhaps the biggest piece, Nick Senzel, has now arrived and is performing like a budding star as he is now on pace for what would equate to a 25-25 season (or so). Sweet-swinging Scooter Gennett is also now apparently healthy and Jessie Winker has rebounded after a rough start.
I mean, a lineup such as this is seriously appealing (in no particular order):
Nick Senzel
Eugenio Suarez
Joey Votto
Yasiel Puig
Scooter Gennett
Jessie Winker
Jose Peraza
Tucker Barnhart
And we haven't even discussed Yasiel Puig yet...
If you haven't been paying attention, Yasiel Puig has produced 34 hits in his last 98 at-bats to the tune of a .346 batting average, 10 home runs, 20 RBI, 6 steals, 18 runs, and 5 doubles. He's playing like a superstar right now.
He still acts strangely, but the production is difficult to argue with. The plate discipline - 8 walks to 27 strikeouts - suggests he hasn't permanently changed...but what if he has?
Even so, his floor is good enough in that lineup and ballpark. Suarez may not be able to replicate 2018's numbers, but he should have some nice streaks here and there and, similarly, hold a solid floor. Ultimately, it's an offense that doesn't have as much of the soft spots of which some other lineups may.
They might not have a Christian Yelich, but they have pieces that could create a greater sum capable of going on a run like the Brewers did last year. It'd be difficult to say that this team will win the division considering 4, if not 5, of the division's teams could comically tie with 85-86 wins or so, but this is a team to watch going forward.
Can Brendan McKay Help the Rays Win a World Series?
Early in the year, I bet $6.50 on the Rays to win the World Series just for fun. The odds paid well even though some people laughed at me - and, I suppose, rightfully so. (I made a slew of pre-season bets as I itched for the season to begin).
The Tampa Bay Rays, sans Tyler Glasnow, now sit 2nd in the AL East behind the Yankees - with a very reasonable shot at a (wild card) playoff birth. They've continued to be a good team following last year's success and I'd say they are even better this year than they were the year before.
Charlie Morton, Tyler Glasnow, Brandon Lowe, Tommy Pham, Austin Meadows, and Avisail Garcia have all been huge components of the winning formula. If only Blake Snell could pan out his resurfaced issues - of which we all should expect he has to be better from here...right?
If not, potential reinforcements have arrived in sir Brendan McKay. To quote his parents from his debut - who were quoting a previous coach of Brendan's - "The bigger the stage, the better Brendan performs". And he absolutely performed in his debut as he carried a no-hitter into the 6th inning - demonstrating several key qualities to being an effective pitcher.
Many fantasy players have likely scooped up the young left-handed two-way player despite the probability that he won't equate to anything close to what Ohtani is as a hitter. That doesn't mean he cannot or will not make an impact, of course.
McKay was superb throughout the minors and earned every bit of his promotion. The promotion may have initially been based on need, but his performance will keep him around at least for a hot minute. This is what most are interested in - is adding him to a fantasy team and reaping the rewards while it lasts.
With McKay, though, it could last for awhile. And with that said, I think people are not seeing the big picture here.
Last year, the Rays popularized the use of an opener and it exceeded expectations. Other teams appear to be following suit, even. The use of an opener has continued to be a part of the Rays' plans which has shined a bright light on Jalen Beeks.
Though recently sent to the minors, Beeks owns a 2.79 ERA on the season. Sure, his peripherals suggest some regression was in his future, but when you use an opener some of that regression can be avoided. Furthermore, given his major league inexperience, he could adjust along the way and improve before some of that regression hits. That's all hypothetical, but stay with me here.
McKay's tendency was to throw around 85 pitches so far this season. To me, that sounds like an arm that could be used to follow an opener, potentially turning 5 innings into 6 innings. Should Blake Snell rebound to be at least formidable, that would give the Rays a 1-2 of Snell and Morton potentially followed by the use of openers in the 3-4 spots in which those openers are followed by Brendan McKay and Jalen Beeks as bulk inning guys, respectively.
I see an interesting window of opportunity for the Rays here to potentially sneak in with one of those classic underdog tales and possibly take home a championship.
I'm not necessarily saying the organization is approaching being a dynasty, although maybe they are considering the talent of Wander Franco with an ETA as early as late 2020, but it's all about circumstance. The Red Sox are a bit of a mess and the Yankees lack pitching (as of now). Astros remain heavy contenders, but you really just never know how the playoffs will unravel.
While I think McKay could be a good or great pitcher for years to come, the window of opportunity is what is important here as the use of openers is only just now taking flight. The Rays have an opportunity to use this to their advantage before openers multiply across the league and potentially become commonplace.
That is all I have for you in this installment of The Catch. Thank you to those of you out there who take the time to read our articles. If there's something you'd like to see us try to cover in an article, it's worth a shot to reach out to us and we'll see what we can do. Have a great day.
If not, potential reinforcements have arrived in sir Brendan McKay. To quote his parents from his debut - who were quoting a previous coach of Brendan's - "The bigger the stage, the better Brendan performs". And he absolutely performed in his debut as he carried a no-hitter into the 6th inning - demonstrating several key qualities to being an effective pitcher.
Many fantasy players have likely scooped up the young left-handed two-way player despite the probability that he won't equate to anything close to what Ohtani is as a hitter. That doesn't mean he cannot or will not make an impact, of course.
McKay was superb throughout the minors and earned every bit of his promotion. The promotion may have initially been based on need, but his performance will keep him around at least for a hot minute. This is what most are interested in - is adding him to a fantasy team and reaping the rewards while it lasts.
With McKay, though, it could last for awhile. And with that said, I think people are not seeing the big picture here.
Last year, the Rays popularized the use of an opener and it exceeded expectations. Other teams appear to be following suit, even. The use of an opener has continued to be a part of the Rays' plans which has shined a bright light on Jalen Beeks.
Though recently sent to the minors, Beeks owns a 2.79 ERA on the season. Sure, his peripherals suggest some regression was in his future, but when you use an opener some of that regression can be avoided. Furthermore, given his major league inexperience, he could adjust along the way and improve before some of that regression hits. That's all hypothetical, but stay with me here.
McKay's tendency was to throw around 85 pitches so far this season. To me, that sounds like an arm that could be used to follow an opener, potentially turning 5 innings into 6 innings. Should Blake Snell rebound to be at least formidable, that would give the Rays a 1-2 of Snell and Morton potentially followed by the use of openers in the 3-4 spots in which those openers are followed by Brendan McKay and Jalen Beeks as bulk inning guys, respectively.
I see an interesting window of opportunity for the Rays here to potentially sneak in with one of those classic underdog tales and possibly take home a championship.
I'm not necessarily saying the organization is approaching being a dynasty, although maybe they are considering the talent of Wander Franco with an ETA as early as late 2020, but it's all about circumstance. The Red Sox are a bit of a mess and the Yankees lack pitching (as of now). Astros remain heavy contenders, but you really just never know how the playoffs will unravel.
While I think McKay could be a good or great pitcher for years to come, the window of opportunity is what is important here as the use of openers is only just now taking flight. The Rays have an opportunity to use this to their advantage before openers multiply across the league and potentially become commonplace.
That is all I have for you in this installment of The Catch. Thank you to those of you out there who take the time to read our articles. If there's something you'd like to see us try to cover in an article, it's worth a shot to reach out to us and we'll see what we can do. Have a great day.
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