The First Annual Riverfront Honors

Handing Out the Reds' 2022 Season Awards

If you’re like me, you regret wasting three hours of your life at a theater watching the reissue of “Avatar.” What a mess of a movie. Who were those blue guys?

Also, if you’re like me, you’re a sucker for awards season. Whether it’s the Oscars or the annual MLB awards, I always get drawn into the debates around who should win and who got snubbed. So why not hand out our first annual Reds awards? I’ll handle the awards; you can come up with a witty name for these. Drop your suggestion in the comments.*

*Please, I beg of you, don’t suggest “The Chaddies” or anything like that.

Chad Dotson @dotsonc

During the 1984 Topps era, my favorite player was Mario Soto. An absolute stud. And Ron Oester led the team with a .264 batting average, if you're wondering why Soto never won 20 games in a season.

Without further ado, I present the first-ever Riverfront Honors (that’s our placeholder name until you come up with something better):

Hitter of the Year: Brandon Drury

Yes, it’s indicative of the sad state of this organization that the hitter of the year will be playing for the San Diego Padres in this year’s playoffs, but here we are. Drury actually played more games for the Reds than all but three other players, and he posted a sweet line of .274/.335/.520 with a team-leading 20 home runs. (Drury’s 59 RBI are second on the team, behind Kyle Farmer’s 78.)

Pitcher of the Year: Luis Castillo

Yes, it’s indicative of the sad state of this organization that the pitcher of the year will be playing for the Seattle Mariners in this year’s playoffs, but here we are. Castillo was dealt away at the trade deadline, but his half-season here was simply dominant: 4-4, 2.86 ERA in 14 starts, 3.0 bWAR (which leads the team), 90 strikeouts in 85 innings. Godspeed, Luis. We’re going to miss you.

Rookie of the Year: Alexis Diaz

What a year for the 25-year-old reliever. Leads the team in wins (6) and saves (10), posting a 1.88 ERA in 46.1 innings. Diaz looks like a back of the bullpen stopper for years to come. Plus, he’s better than his brother.

This was a competitive category, by the way! With Hunter Greene, Nick Lodolo, Graham Ashcraft, and Michael Papierski in the mix, this wasn’t an easy choice.

Best Hair: TJ Friedl

Okay, I’m getting cute here. It’s really Jonathan India, an all-time inner circle Reds Hall of Hair honoree. But Friedl came out of nowhere to challenge the legend, so I’m going to pick the underdog, because I have questions for India.

Most Improved Player: (tie) Hunter Greene and Nick Lodolo.

These kids just got better and better with every start. Just look at their numbers in September:

Eric Cross @EricCross04

Nick Lodolo and Hunter Greene since 9/1. Lodolo: 6 GS, 36.1 IP, 2.48 ERA, 0.88 WHIP, 7.1% BB, 34.8% K, .176 BAA, 2.71 xFIP, 2.50 SIERA, 12.9% SwStr Greene: 4 GS, 23 IP, 1.06 ERA, 0.94 WHIP, 8.7% BB, 42% K, .164 BAA, 2.15 xFIP, 2.17 SIERA, 21.2% SwStr #ATOBTTR

Broadcaster of the Year: Joey Votto

He’s simply a natural in the booth.

SBR Sports Picks @SBRSportsPicks

Give me all the Joey Votto in the booth!

Biggest Surprise: Alexis Diaz

I didn’t see that coming.

Biggest Disappointment: Nick Senzel

If you had told me that Senzel would play more than 100 games for the first time in his big league career, I would have guessed that he’d have been at least an average hitter with elite defense in center field. For whatever reason, Senzel has never been able to figure it out at this level.

Honorable mention to Jose Barrero, another elite prospect who has failed to produce with the Reds.

Top Future Obscure Former Red: Taylor Motter

Did you know that there is a baseball player named Taylor Motter, and that this baseball player named Taylor Motter played for the Cincinnati Reds this season?

Most Valuable Player: Brandon Drury

I really wanted to give this honor (as well as the Hitter of the Year award) to catcher Tyler Stephenson. Ty Steve actually had a higher batting average and on-base percentage than any other Red, and he was second to Drury in slugging percentage. Their overall numbers look similar, including adjusted OPS+, where Stephenson (130) barely edged out Drury (128) for the team lead. But Drury had more than twice as many plate appearances as Stephenson.

Honorable mention: Castillo, Diaz, and (why not?) Kyle Farmer, who was somehow the only Cincinnati player to play more than 110 games this season.

Least Valuable Player: Mike Moustakas

I hate to do it to the guy, but Moose “hit” .214/.295/.345 with 7 homers in 78 games while earning $16 million. Destined to go down in history as the least productive free agent signing in the history of the Cincinnati Reds.

This week’s Cincinnati Magazine column: Here’s a plan for the Reds’ off-season

Kids are back in school, the leaves are falling all around us, and temperatures are dipping at a similar pace. Communities gather under the lights at high school football games each Friday. Big league baseball teams are preparing for playoff excitement and glory. Autumn is here.

For fans of the Cincinnati Reds, however, the long, hard winter is upon us. The team looks likely to lose 100 games for only the second time in franchise history and the future is hazier than it has been in a generation. The Reds will finish the season with the lowest attendance figure in the history of Great American Ball Park.

Last week, in my season review, I observed that there are reasons to be optimistic if you so choose. The Reds have a good (though small) young core at the big league level already. Among everyday players, Jonathan India and Tyler Stephenson have bright futures, while the dazzling triumvirate of Hunter Greene, Nick Lodolo, and Graham Ashcraft seem destined to be the heart of the starting rotation for the foreseeable future. Add in uber-talented Alexis Diaz at the back of the bullpen, and you have something to work with.

I also noted that the Reds have a boatload of minor league talent on the horizon. There is a clear path to Cincinnati being able to field a winning franchise within the couple of years. The question is how do we get from here -- triple digit losses, one of the worst teams in franchise history -- to there?

Continue at Cincinnati Magazine

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What I’m reading

• Mike Santagata uses the example of Steph Curry to discuss the effect of having an elite wide receiver like Ja’Marr Chase. “The gravity that Chase has on the field is not measurable by statistics and he’s not having a slow start to his season. Nearly every play on film is an example of Chase’s gravity.”

• Wick Terrell asks whether 2023 will be a bridge year, or another tank year for the Reds. “The thing is, you don’t have to squint too incredibly hard to see that 2023 should, by gods, be better than 2022 even if they do stay as brutally austere all winter like they did last year.”

• Justin Williams describes UC’s ‘Blackcats’ defense. ($) “Five games into the 2022 schedule, Cincinnati is 4-1, ranked No. 24 in the latest AP Top 25 poll, and the patented ‘Blackcats’ defense is alive and well.”

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You can follow me on Twitter @dotsonc, if you’d like. The Riverfront is on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube too. You know, if you’re into that sort of thing.