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It was not that long ago that people began giving up on the Cincinnati Reds’ chances of winning the National League Central division. With three teams all within grasp of clinching the division, the Reds appeared to be the one that was faltering. However, the team has put together a solid run that has them two and a half games out of first place with over a month to go.
“It’s funny how you get written off when you’re seven games out, and now we go on a little run and we’re back,” Reds third baseman Todd Frazier said, according to Reds.com. “That’s baseball and that’s how things go. You just got to bear with yourself, bear with your team, bear with your city, and that’s just the way it goes.”
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On July 30, Cincinnati was six games back of the Pittsburgh Pirates for first place in the division. They still controlled the second Wild Card spot behind the St. Louis Cardinals, but the Reds are not interested in the Wild Card. They want to have the feeling of winning a division once again, and avoid playing a one-game playoff.
So, how exactly has Cincinnati been able to win 11 of their last 16 games?
“For the most part lately, we’ve been coming together, and from top to bottom, putting together some good at-bats,” catcher Ryan Hanigan told Reds.com. “We had nine walks [Sunday at Milwaukee] and we had nine runs with no homers. The pitching has been there. The bullpen has been there. If we can keep at it, keep grinding, this is definitely a good team. I feel like we’re ready to make a push and really put together a good string. If it doesn’t go that way, we have to grind it out a little more.”
With the Pirates only winning three of their last 10 games and looking like a team ready to collapse once again, the Cardinals could be the big road block as usual. The good news is Cincinnati still has seven games against St. Louis, with four of those contests occurring at home. Meanwhile, they still have six games against Pittsburgh, with the last series of the season coming against the Pirates at home.
There is no question Reds fans better buckle in from here on out because it is certainly going to be an exciting ride to the finish line.
