The Reds

Last season I predicted the Reds to win the NL Wildcard. Instead they finished 78-84, 4th place in the Central Division, 13-games out of first place. My prediction was based on some of the talented young players the Reds had, such as Joey Votto, Jay Bruce and Brandon Phillips with good young arms in Johnny Cueto and Homer Bailey with veteran pitchers Bronson Arroyo and Aaron Harang.
Well, I guess I was one year too early with my prediction.
The Reds are 26-19, tied with the underachieving Cardinals for first in the division. I'm pulling for Cincinnati, not so much because I like the Reds (I don't) but because I think it would be a good story. You know, small market team makes good. Perhaps the Pirates could be inspired. Or not.
The Reds are still a long shot to win the division. Once the Cardinals get their act together they will run away from the field. At least they should. But the Reds could make things interesting as far as the Wild Card race goes.
By the way, their home field, Great American Ballpark, bugs me. I hate the gap in the upper deck and the stupid smokestacks in the outfield. The stadium looks disjointed and unbalanced. It looks as if it could have been a really sharp park but as far as all the new stadiums go, I wouldn't rank this one near the top. Still, an improvement over old Riverfront Stadium, maybe the most boring park in the history of baseball.