Francona was entering a pivotal partnership with two new co-workers that he didn’t even really know yet. He trusted them.
Nine months later, he flat out thanked them for the work that they had done to improve the roster at the trade deadline.
“I was kind of happy for Nick and Brad,” Francona said after Tuesday’s win over the Cubs, which clinched a series victory for Cincinnati. “I saw them grinding and the amount of work that was put in. It wasn’t just those two, but they have to answer for everything. In my opinion, they made us better.”
This week, each of the Reds’ new additions has made an impact.
Francona has admitted that dealing for Ke’Bryan Hayes, Zack Littell and Miguel Andujar weren’t the “sexiest” moves. But they’re set up to help what were weaker positions on the depth chart.
The biggest difference maker this week was Littell.
“I was a little nervous,” Littell said. “This was my first time ever going with a new team with expectations to perform… It was a good night.”
He allowed one run in seven innings in his Reds debut on Tuesday. Since he just got here, Littell said that he couldn’t really know just how much the bullpen has been taxed. Fortunately for the Reds, going deep into games is one of his strengths, anyway.
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Littell also showcased a dynamic splitter that had made him an effective starter.
“The splitter was — they were taking the strikes and swinging at the balls,” Hayes said. “It looked disgusting. With how much he was using his split and how effective it was, the four-seam probably felt like 100 (mph).”
Before they acquired Littell, rotation depth was the biggest weak spot on the organizational depth chart. Nick Lodolo landed on the IL on Tuesday. Because the Reds have Littell, they’re in an immensely better position than they would have been — lacking another rotation option who had shown the ability to go five innings, let alone seven.
Andujar had two hits on Tuesday as he played his first complete game with the team, which included a double against an All-Star left-hander where Andujar did exactly what the Reds brought him in to do. Finally, the Reds have a bench/platoon bat who can mash against left-handers.
Hayes made the best play by a Reds third baseman of the entire season on Tuesday, barehanding a slow rolling grounder and getting the out at first. He made a very similar play in the previous game. The Reds shored up their third base defense by adding Hayes and moving Noelvi Marte to right field.
Hayes also has four hits in his first week with the Reds.
The Reds still aren’t the favorites to claim a playoff spot, and the deadline moves don’t entirely win them that race. But the new guys are filling three of the Reds’ biggest needs.
“I get it, if you’re a fan, you want to see Barry Bonds coming here,” Francona said. “We’ll take what we got. The other thing is we didn’t want to disrupt what we have. We’re a team. That’s a strength of ours.”
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