Cincinnati Reds are getting the wrong players on base to score

With the slower runners getting on base for the Cincinnati Reds, the batters further down the line-up can’t get them in.

This is a sign of how important Billy Hamilton and his speed are to the Cincinnati Reds. Zack Cozart and Joey Votto lead the team in batting average with runners in scoring position. That means Hamilton has to get there for them to drive him in.

Left fielder Adam Duvall leads the team with at-bats with runners in scoring position at 89. The almost absurd stat is that second on the team in ABs with RISP is second baseman Jose Peraza. He has batted seventh most of the season, occasionally batting first or second. His .229 average and .270 OBP don’t help the team score many runs.

Third on the team in ABs with RISP is third baseman Eugenio Suarez. He is batting .250, but has an OBP of .386. That means he is getting pitched around plenty.

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Not surprisingly, Duvall is tied for the team lead in RBIs with RISP. Surprisingly, however, is that he is tied with Votto for that number and not Suarez or some other RBI guy. Votto has 33 fewer at-bats than Duvall does this season with runners on scoring position for the Reds.

The Cincinnati Reds may have an issue when it comes to hitting approach with RISP.

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The irony is that the Cincinnati Reds are a weak OBP team and a good slugging team. When there are runners in scoring position these numbers reverse. Suddenly most players’ OBP shoots up and the slugging goes down.

Bad line-up construction could be at play. All of the tough outs are batting second through fifth. That means that teams can wait out the good batters, if the other batters don’t get on base. It makes Hamilton and Peraza very important in the current line-up.

It also makes having both of them in the line-up a detriment. Frankly, Hamilton is too weak offensively to be playing everyday. Peraza needs to shift to center and Scooter Gennett needs to be the starting second baseman in the second half.

The Reds also need someone who can drive in runs in the bottom half of the order. Suarez makes good sense to bat eighth as his hitting has slowed down, but his walk rate has remained solid. That would move catcher Tucker Barnhart to the lead-off spot, which could be interesting in the short term.

Next: How much longer will Zack be in Cincinnati?

The Reds don’t have much going on the rest of the season. The timing and destination of the Cozart lottery may be the most exciting thing left. In the meantime, though, the Reds need to try to solve the RISP dilemma.

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