Cincinnati Reds fans are cooked. Not medium-rare level cooked. They are not gently simmering either; they are full-on red, oven toasted, and roasted angry. Ten games into the season, and nothing has changed. It all seems to be the same old fate. Now, even columnists are ranting over the team and the one managing it, like Jason Williams.
“Meet the new boss, same as the old boss. Tito has not twisted the dials in 10 games, worth a crud. Too much hype for him and the talent (the Reds have). Simply horrible ownership,” said Williams. Is it harsh? Yes! But untrue? Not really.
Fans are simply annoyed with the déjà vu moment. They have already watched sloppy base running, one-run heartbreaks, and more last year. They wanted some change with the new manager, Terry Francona, in charge. Williams summed it up, “If you see any difference between this year and last year other than starting pitchers, let us know.” But not everyone is pressing the eject-out-of-the-team button just yet.
Kirk Herbstreit, who has seen plenty of teams spiral out and be back, gave his vote of confidence for Francona. “Could listen to Tito talk baseball all day! Lucky to have him and his perspective!” Herbstreit tweeted after he had a conversation with Tito. And well, truth be told, Francona did sound like a man with perspective after the Reds won over the Giants 1-0 in San Francisco.
Could listen to Tito talk baseball all day! Lucky to have him and his perspective! https://t.co/b8XQNISvNw
— Kirk Herbstreit (@KirkHerbstreit) April 9, 2025
Tito mentioned, “I think that’s a first win, astronomical for this time of the year. We didn’t smash the ball off the field, but we had some hits… we still played good baseball, and we pitched really, really well.” One guy who stood out was Nick Lodolo—he was electric. Tito also praised him, saying, “Once he started getting that off-speed change, under the barrel… really nice and tough.” But one thing is for sure— their win wasn’t just a win; it was a sigh of relief. It was a slice of MLB history. Because the Reds have now played four 1-0 games in their first 12. Something that’s only happened twice before.
Right now, though, the offense is still finding its way. Elly De La Cruz and Spencer Steer are finding the rhythm, though. It’s too early, though, and things might not be this way. But while this win is great, they have another thing to worry about.
Nick Lodolo helps Cincinnati Reds win, but another problem looms now
The Reds did take the win, but also suffered a gut punch—Matt McLain is back on the injured list. The 24-year-old hasn’t suited up since April 4, and while he was seen doing some light running drills earlier this week, the team has decided not to risk anything. Francona, in fact, called the move precautionary: “He can come back next Tuesday. It just didn’t seem like it made a lot of sense to try to push through this right now.”
This, however, is a tough pill to swallow for the team because McLain was heating up. Yes, his average was at .214, but if you look past it, he had a crisp .571 through 31 plate appearances. Three of his six hits were home runs. Not bad, right? Especially not for a player getting his feel back after missing all of 2024 due to surgery.
McLain was on track for a rebound season. Now, one can’t forget that he was a first-rounder in the first place. In 2023, he slashed. 290/.357/.507 with 16 homers and 14 steals in just 89 games. That’s cornerstone performance! But since he is on the outs, the Reds will simply have to patch things up. Gavin Lux is in at second base on Tuesday. And Will Benson and Noelvi Marte rejoined the big club.
If all goes well, McLain is expected to be back next week. So, do you think there will be much of a difference with him there? Let us know.
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