Reds in midst of tough stretch

After a 5-2 homestand that culminated with a 2-2 series split against the Philadelphia Phillies, the six-game road trip awaiting the Cincinnati Reds presents even more challenges. The Reds embarked on a journey to Arlington, Texas on Friday night for a three-game weekend series versus the world champion Rangers, before flying to San Diego to face the Padres for three games Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.

If that weren’t enough, the Reds return home to meet a couple of more contenders, with three games against Baltimore, and three more against the Arizona Diamondbacks. If my Norwood High School math is correct, that means the Redlegs will be facing premier competition for their next 12 games.

But that isn’t all.

Just consider that following the aforementioned 12-game stretch, the Reds return to the West Coast for 10 games. History has not been kind to the club when it ventures out west, but perhaps this team will turn that around. They will play three in San Francisco, three in Phoenix and four in LA against the big-spending Dodgers from May 10-19.

We will certainly learn more about the Reds over the next month or so but also keep in mind, there will still be a lot of baseball to be played. If they can hold serve, the Reds could be in position to make a big move in the NL Central, with three games apiece versus the Cardinals and Cubs looming from May 27-June 2. At this early point of the season, the division looks to be up for grabs and promises to be a dogfight.

But hey, let’s not too far ahead of ourselves.

The immediate focus is on the current road trip, which opened last night in Arlington. The Rangers haven’t exactly set the league on fire in the early going and began the three-game set against the 14-11 Reds with a 13-13 record. Likewise, the Padres are sitting at .500 with a 14-14 mark, but everyone familiar with the Reds is aware of the team’s struggles in San Diego.

However, the optimist in me says the Reds can and will be division contenders for the rest of the season, and there are several reasons for feeling that way.

At the top of the list has to be the play of the talk of baseball, one Elly De La Cruz. The 22-year-old Dominican with the omnipresent smile went into the series at Texas hitting .306 with an incredible 1.051 OPS, seven home runs, 18 RBI and 15 stolen bases. Those numbers, as amazing as they are, don’t come close to telling the complete story and value of EDLC.

His speed and all-out hustle on the base paths is a sight to behold, and carries over to his teammates, who also play with intensity and enjoy taking the extra base at every opportunity. That makes Elly a leader in a sense by example, despite still being a neophyte at a game that does not come easy for anyone.

Ask any veteran big leaguer, and they’ll tell you the same thing: Baseball is hard.

De La Cruz plays the game with a flair seldom scene in the annals of the great game of baseball, and if he can stay healthy, there’s no telling what he may accomplish throughout his career. His defense, which was a bit shaky earlier in the season, is improving each and every day, and one thing EDLC possesses

– unbelievable speed — cannot be taught. His speed and quickness helps him overcome any deficiencies he may have at shortstop, and his arm is as good or better than anyone in the game.

As terrific as De La Cruz has been in the Reds’ first 25 games, he’s not the only Red deserving of some praise. Even though he’s run into some tough luck recently, Spencer Steer is always a tough out in the Reds lineup, and he’s getting more acclimated to playing left field as well.

Once the team overcomes an illness bug that has taken turns affecting various players, including Jake Fraley and Jonathan India, the lineup has the potential of giving the Reds a shot of putting together a run. The Reds feel it’s only a matter of time before a few other bats heat up as well, especially Jeimer Candelario, Christian Encarnacion-Strand and Will Benson.

The ultimate test of putting together a run will (as always) come down to how consistent the pitching will be, and it’s showing signs of coming around. The starters for the most part have been effective, and the bullpen has been a pleasant surprise with its recent positive performances.

The Reds also remain a team that’s hungry to accomplish its goals and the sooner that TJ Friedl and Matt McLain can get healthy and back into the everyday lineup, the better the team will play down the stretch. That’s the hope anyway, and don’t forget, there’s still a long, long way to go until October.

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BENGALS GO BIG WITH TOP PICK – The NFL Draft began on Thursday evening with its rather long, drawn out announcements of the first round selections. As is always the

case, the supposed experts on both ESPN and the NFL Network yammered on and on about which teams made an excellent choice, and questioned the picks of other teams.

One of the most trusted sources when it comes to grading each team’s first round pick comes from Pro Football Focus (pff.com). Instead of an A, B, C, D or F grade, they use Very Good, Good, Average, and Below Average designations when describing the selections.

Despite some grumbling among Cincinnati Bengals fans as well as some so-called draft gurus, they gave the Bengals’ top pick, right tackle Amarius Mims, a massive human being out of the University of Georgia, a “Good” ranking. They noted how Mims will beef up its pass protection with the addition of the 6-foot-8, 340-pounder.

The website added, “He’s a fantastic athlete for his size but struggled with injuries. Regardless, he allowed just six quarterback pressures across 402 career pass blocking snaps and should start very soon, as Trent Brown is only a short-term solution at right tackle.”

Brown, who is also a rather large individual (6-8, 370) was signed as a free agent in March after his second stint with the New England Patriots. He was signed to a two-year deal, and at the age of 31, he will likely begin the season as the starter and serve as a mentor for Mims.

My opinion on the Bengals taking an offensive tackle with their first pick is that you cannot have enough quality linemen on both sides of the ball. Only time will tell if he was the best choice with the 18th overall selection. That is, of course, true

with any draft selection, which makes some of the instant reactions laughable and lacking any merit.

Rounds 2 and 3 were slated for Friday night, after this was written, but it’s expected that the Bengals, who have the 49th pick in Round 2, and the 80th and 97th picks in Round 3, will be looking for a defensive tackle, a cornerback, and a wide receiver.

Cincinnati has six more picks in rounds 4-7, and another offensive lineman, an edge rusher and a running back will be likely targets.

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POPE HOSTING FIVE POTENTIAL CATS – Kentucky basketball head coach Mark Pope continues to be the busiest man in Lexington. There’s no rest for the former Wildcat, who is facing a challenge that no previous UK bench boss has ever taken on, that is, building an entire roster from scratch immediately after taking over the program.

To that end, Pope is reportedly hosting five players this weekend in the hopes that several will commit to UK in the near future. The point guard position has taken on more importance in college basketball than ever before, and Pope is hoping to land one (or two) soon.

One of the most sought after point guards in the portal, Utah’s Deivon Smith, is visiting this weekend, along with Aidan Mahaney of Saint Mary’s. Smith, a fifth-year senior, had a breakout season last year, averaging 13.3 points, 7.1 assists and 6.3 rebounds per game for the Utes. The 6-foot Georgia native also had a remarkable five triple-doubles, breaking the Pac-12 single-season record. Mahaney, who also visited UConn

recently, is a 6-3 combo guard who will have two seasons of eligibility remaining. He averaged 13.9 points while starting all 34 games while shooting 35.5 percent from deep.

Pope and his staff will also be hosting 6-10 Andrew Carr of Wake Forest, 6-5 Otega Oweh of Oklahoma, and 6-7 Andrej Stojakovic of Stanford this weekend. Carr, who averaged 13.5 ppg and 6.8 rpg as a senior, can also step outside and shoot the three on occasion. Oweh played two years as a Sooner, and scored 11.4 points per game as a sophomore. Stojakovic has three seasons of eligibility remaining after averaging 7.8 points and 3.4 rebounds as a Cardinal.

Those five are the confirmed weekend visitors, but there could be more, with likely more coming to Lexington in the near future. One recent visitor, BYU’s Richie Saunders, a 6-6 swing player, announced he will be staying in Provo after visiting UK last week.

As of this writing, three players are committed for next season. They include 6-11 Amari Williams of Drexel by way of England, who has one season remaining, and a pair of freshmen guards, 6-4 Collin Chandler and 6-2 Kentucky Mr. Basketball Travis Perry.

That trio should be meeting a few of their future teammates any day now.

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“Way, way, way ahead of probably 90 percent of players his age that have had the experience level that he has. It’s incredible what he’s doing. He’s going to be developing for years to come and for him to handle himself the way he does – with a lot of attention – we couldn’t be happier. And what he’s doing every

day to get better.” – Reds manager David Bell describing Elly De La Cruz’s early season play

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“The right word may be effective, but no word was ever as effective as a rightly timed pause.” — Mark Twain