I'll say it again: it is a great day to be a Reds fan! This season, the Cincinnati Reds have clinched their first National League Central Division Title since 1995. This is a team that represents patience, youth and a dash of experience within an organization.
I was born and raised a Reds fan from Dayton. I was only a toddler when the Reds won the 1990 World Series, and I didn't understand anything about baseball. So, I grew up with the slumping Reds
the self-destructing-after-the-All-Star-break Reds and the under-.500-for-the-eighth-year-in-a-row Reds. But my patience has been rewarded with an exciting, young and contending team for years to come.
This Reds team was built around drafts, the farm system and trades for prospects that were not too popular when conceived, but really have paid off today. The easiest example is this year's two stud rookies and starting pitchers. With all the focus on Stephen Strasburg in Washington, D.C., people seem to forget that Mike Leake, who was a star at the beginning of the year, has come back to earth. But he and fellow rookie Travis Wood represent the young nucleus that offers so much hope to the Cincinnati sports community.
Other fellow Reds draftees include: Homer Bailey, Jay Bruce (who single-handedly clinched the division), Drew Stubbs, and of course, Joey Votto, the possible National League MVP this year. This Reds team was also built around trades that were very unpopular with fans at the time but really have proven their worth this season.
I remember thinking to myself, We traded Josh Hamilton for who? That who? ended up being Edinson Volquez, one of the strongest pitchers in the Reds' rotation this season. The Ken Griffey, Jr. trade was one that sparked some controversy as well. But with the trade of Griffey, the Reds gained Nick Masset, a cornerstone of the Reds' strong bullpen performance this year.
The Reds are building a team the right way. They aren't spending more than $24 million in one year on players such as C.C. Sabathia. No, these Reds are building a young team by drafting strong players and building their farm system. This is a contrast to most of the powerhouse teams in the league.
The best part is that this team is young. The average age of their pitching rotation is 27 years old, and the average age for their starting fielders is 29 (with outliers such as Scott Rolen and Orlando Cabrera).
So the Reds fan gets to sit back and watch this team grow and get better for years to come. The possibilities in this year's playoffs are endless for this team with nothing to lose.
Andrew Cluxton is a junior studying journalism and columnist for The Post. If you don't think the Reds will make it past the Phillies email him at ac368407@ohiou.edu
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Opinion
Andrew Cluxton
