That’s now how Bell, who’s entering his third season as manager, sees the situation.
“I choose to look at the guys we do have,” said Bell, who talked to reporters from Great American Ball Park via a Zoom video call on Monday. “We have the core of our team that really had a great experience last season. Guys were coming together, the team was coming together and there was a lot of success we can build on. There have been a few changes, but the core remains the same. Really that’s what I spend most of time thinking about. Just build on the success we had and the momentum we had at the end of last season.”
The Reds finished 31-29 in the pandemic-shortened 60-game season by winning 11 of their last 14 games. They were one of four National League Central Division teams to qualify for the expanded playoffs. The Reds, Chicago Cubs, St. Louis Cardinals and Milwaukee Brewers combined to go 1-8 in the playoffs. Only the Cardinals won a game.
The Reds failed to score a run as they were swept in two games by the Atlanta Braves. The Reds struggled at the plate much of the season, ranking last in the National League in batting average (.212). The batters did perform better in the final 14 games when the Reds averaged 5.0 runs per game. They averaged 3.8 runs in the first 46 games.
“When I look back at the year, I really believe our offense overcame some great challenges,” Bell said. “I know all teams did. When you look back at the two-month season, as far as I’m concerned, the stats are what they are. At the same time, the way our offense stayed with it through some of the challenges, if that season would have kept going and it would have been a typical six-month season, those stats would have been completely different. The way I see it, our offense came through and got us to the postseason, which was step one of winning a championship.”
While the Reds’ starting lineup should look similar next season, there are question marks in the bullpen and the starting rotation, though Bell still sees that rotation as the strength of the team. The Reds return three starters — Sonny Gray, Luis Castillo and Tyler Mahle — who posted ERAs under 4.00 last season.
Bauer, who was 5-4 with a 1.73 ERA, will be tough to replace if the Reds can’t sign him. Bell said it was a pleasure having Bauer around and he was a great teammate in the clubhouse.
“He’s worked really hard to enjoy this opportunity to become a free agent,” Bell said. “We just have to let it play out. It’s something all players work hard to get to. We’ll see what happens.”
Michael Lorezen, who moved from the bullpen to the starting rotation at the end of the season, could stay in the rotation in 2021. Bell mentioned Jeff Hoffman, who the Reds acquired from the Rockies in November, as another possible starter.
As for the bullpen, it’s too soon to tell how the Reds will handle the loss of Iglesias, who had an ERA under 3.00 in four of his six seasons with the Reds.
“Obviously, Raisel served in that closer role,” Bell said. “He’s a good pitcher. We’ll miss having him as part of our team.”
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