Red Dead Revolver

Here we are, nearly two months in to the MLB season and just when you thought things were going according to plan, the Cincinatti Reds come to town and kick you square in the McNutts.  I mean, really?  The Reds?  They're terrible, right?

Well, they're in first freakin' place is what they are.  After coasting through the month of April and winning their first five series, my beloved Cardinals have struggled in the month of May, going 7-9.  Amid that slide, the Cincinnati Reds have climbed toward the top of the divisional ranks, and following last weekend's series victory against my Cards, are atop the NL Central.

How does this happen?  The Reds are NOWHERE near as talented as the Cardinals, Cubs, or even the Brewers, who are hanging out in fifth place with a 15-23 record.  What they are doing, however, is matching solid hitting with decent pitching performances - something the Redbirds haven't managed to do.  In the month of May, the Cards have been outscored 63-61.  So, while they have been able to play teams close, they are not matching their best hitting with their best pitching, resulting in the losing record. 

But what makes me the most worried is not the record - that should come around - it's the poor offensive output in general.  I understand it's only been two months-ish, but the Redbirds are really struggling to get guys in.  They have two, you heard me, two guys hitting over .300 (Pujols and David Freese) and are sitting around 10th in the league in nearly every offensive category - not where you should be if you are hoping to go for the big one.

We need guys like Holliday and Ludwick to step it up in support of Big Albert.  Currently, Holliday is hitting .293, which doesn't look terrible.  But to get a better picture, you have to look behind the scenes a little bit.  Holliday is only hitting .163 with runners in scoring position, which might explain why he only has 14 RBIs.  Ludwick, while hitting .297, is hitting .379 with runners in scoring position.  But, before you get all excited, he is hitting out of the two-hole - not a lot of people on base there.  So, despite being decent when runners are on in front of him, Ludwick only has 15 RBIs. 

Recently, Tony LaRusa tried to change things up a bit to spark this offense a little bit, moving Pujols to the clean-up spot and moving Holliday to third.  While it worked for the Cards yesterday (6-2 W over the Nationals), I think the Redbirds might be better served moving Holliday up to the two-spot and sliding Ludwick down in the lineup.  The return of Felipe Lopez should serve as a little something extra to the top of the lineup, but I would love to see something like this: Lopez, Holliday, Pujols, Ludwick, Rasmus, Freese, Molina, Schumacher/Ryan, Pitcher. 

And don't even get me started on good ol' Brendan Ryan (.162 BA, 6 R, 6 RBI and 26 Ks.....ugghhh).  The kid is stellar on D, but how long do we sacrifice our run production for one or two extra hits for our opponents a game?  Bottom line, something has to happen or the Redbirds will find out too late that the Reds aren't the only team to worry about.  Tony, I love ya, but let's get something going.