Reds: 3 players who must improve in order to make playoff push

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CINCINNATI, OHIO – JULY 04: Amir Garrett #50 of the Cincinnati Reds reacts during a game. (Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images) /

The Cincinnati Reds are in the thick of the playoff race in the National League. Cincinnati trails NL Central Division-leader Milwaukee by just four games, and play three games against the Brewers coming out of the All-Star break. The Reds are also 3.5 games back of the Wild Card. In order to get into the postseason, these three players must improve in the second half.

All-Stars Jesse Winker and Nick Castellanos have carried this Reds’ ball club all season. When the chips were down, it was usually Winker or Castellanos who came up big and willed their team to victory.

The Reds have also received solid contributions from some some unexpected sources. Tyler Naquin has been a huge shot in the arm for this year’s team, and rookies Tyler Stephenson and Jonathan India have injected life into some of the veteran players. You also cannot overlook the spectacular start to the 2021 season from southpaw Wade Miley.

Still, if the Cincinnati Reds hope to make a playoff push, some of the players David Bell had hoped to rely on prior to the start of the season must show up in the second-half. Which three players must play up to their potential down the stretch in order to help secure a spot in the 2021 postseason?

1. Reds must get more out of reliever Amir Garrett.

Prior to the 2021 season, the Reds traded Raisel Iglesias and non-tendered Archie Bradley. This may have been foolish on the part of the Cincinnati’s front office and ownership. But I also believe that Nick Krall and the coaching staff had faith in Amir Garrett filling the role of closer.

That idea couldn’t be further from the truth this season. While AG does have six saves, David Bell has not shown complete trust in Garrett to close out games; nor should he. Garrett’s 2.60 HR/9 the highest it’s been since his rookie season in 2017. While Garrett’s strikeout-rate is still high, his 13.9% walk-rate is not acceptable.

However, the Reds cannot just abandon the idea of turning to Amir Garrett against tough left-handed hitters. Bell’s only other options are Cionel Perez and Sean Doolittle. Neither of those options should fill the Reds’ skipper with much confidence.

The bottom line is, Cincinnati is not going to make a playoff push if Josh Osich is their best left-handed option out of the bullpen. Amir Garrett has always relied heavily on his slider, but locating his fastball is key during the second-half of the 2021 season. The Reds must be able to count on AG when a left-handed hitter is in the batters’ box late in games.

KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI – JULY 05: Eugenio Suarez #7 of the Cincinnati Reds celebrates his three-run home run. (Photo by Ed Zurga/Getty Images) /

2. Reds infielder Eugenio Suarez must play better in the second-half.

Every time that Eugenio Suarez seems to be turning the corner, the Cincinnati Reds’ infielder inevitably falls back to earth. The fact that this team is even in contention with one of their best players struggling as bad as Suarez has is a testament to the job that David Bell has done and how much support this team has received from unexpected places (Jonathan India, Tyler Stephenson, etc.).

Did the position change negatively affect Suarez? Has Geno not fully recovered from his offseason surgery from a year ago? We can throw darts at a board all day long trying to figure out why Suarez isn’t playing up to his potential, but at the end of the day, Cincinnati needs Suarez to be better than a .175 hitter. Period!

This isn’t revolutionary. Geno’s already lost his spot in the batting order and is typically hitting sixth and sometimes even lower. In 2019, Suarez clobbered 49 home runs, but don’t forget that he led the league in strikeouts that season as well.

What we’re seeing from Suarez is not all that surprising. Geno has always been a free-swinger, but pitchers know that as well. For his career, Suarez has a 25.5% strikeout-rate, meaning that 1-in-4 when Geno steps to the plate, he’s going to go down swinging. This season, however, his strikeout-rate is hovering around 30%.

Geno needs to be more patient at the plate, reduce that strikeout-rate and increase his walk-rate back to his career norms. The most disturbing stat may be Suarez’s wRC+ which is sitting at a career-worst of 68. Even last year, Suarez posted a 104 wRC+.

Eugenio Suarez is one of the easiest players to root for in the game of baseball. His smile and positive attitude are contagious, and his teammates genuinely like him. However, Geno needs his bat to do the talkin’ in the second-half of the 2021 season. I’m predicting a big second-half for Suarez, and this team is going to need him to show up in order to make a playoff push.

MINNEAPOLIS, MN – JUNE 21: Lucas Sims #39 of the Cincinnati Reds looks on. (Photo by David Berding/Getty Images) /

3. Reds reliever Lucas Sims must cut down on his walks.

It shouldn’t come as any surprise that two of the three players on this list are relief pitchers. And let me be very clear, you find too many people who are bigger fans of Lucas Sims than me. I advocated for Sims to be the team’s closer prior to the season, and I still maintain that he’s the best option. However, he must improve heading into the second-half of the season.

First of all, Sims must get healthy. The right-hander was placed on the IL in June and looks to be on track to return to the mound later this month. That will be welcome news for David Bell who’s had to deal with a patchwork bullpen for most of the season.

Michael Lorenzen’s return will certainly take some of the pressure off Lucas Sims. Outside of Tejay Antone, no one had been counted on more than Sims during thee first-half of the season. With both Antone and Sims shelved over the past few weeks, Heath Hembree has stepped up.

But, for this Reds’ pen to be successful, Bell needs Lorenzen, Antone, and Sims healthy. That alone will help balance the workload. In eight of Sims’ 28 appearances, he’s gone more than one inning. On four occasions, Sims has worked two innings, and 11 times Sims has gone over 20 pitches.

Lucas Sims’ K/9 (13.81) and strikeout-rate (34.9%) are at career-highs for the former Braves’ prospect. However, Sims’ 4.71 BB/9 and 11.9% walk-rate are the worst they’ve been since the 27-year-old joined the Reds.

There’s also a fair amount of luck involved in Sims’ outings this season. The right-hander has a 5.02 ERA and 3.44 FIP. That’s a difference of 1.58. Sims’ BABIP is also sitting at .333 while opposing batters are only hitting .221.

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Lucas Sims has the potential to be a lock-down closer in the ninth inning, and I expect David Bell to use him as such once he returns. The Reds need Sims to be at his best over the second-half of the 2021 season.

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