2018 MLB SHOWDOWN SET -- Cincinnati Reds

The final National League team is here and, all thanks to Matt (follow him @greatestshowdowncup on Twitter), "I" beat Bob in finalizing my half of the set. What a dramatic and unexpected comeback! But seriously, all credit to Matt and his dedication to finishing off these "meh" Showdown teams... which the Reds sadly are (but should be much improved from a Showdown perspective in 2019). However, there are some definite bright spots in the lineup and a surprising number of highly draftable relievers too! So as we wind down the 2018 set (hope you've been printing them off as you go), here comes the Cincinnati Reds!

Lineup:

Despite his low OB, I had to start them off with the massive speedster himself, Billy Hamilton. It's been strange not seeing him roam the OF in Cinci, and I'm bummed he never could get that OB high enough to do REAL damage. He's followed up by a declining Joey Votto, who sadly doesn't HR off his own chart in this set thanks to only hitting 12 HRs. He just missed out on another OB 11 season, but stay tuned for his 2010 card before long, which is well over 600 points and represents the 1B stud we all love. He's followed by the upstart best hitter on the team in 2018, Eugenio Suarez! Dude can absolutely mash it and his 34 dingers earned him a powerful 3B card that'll definitely be drafted early. I've got the solid Jesse Winkler batting in the clean up... all the guy does is get OB, he really deserved more PAs... his power is up this season too, so look for some HRs on his chart in 2019. Then there's the beloved player cut by the Brewers only to have a career season in rival Cinci -- SCOOTER! Guy put up an OB 9 season and while the outs on his chart will scare folks, he's the rare 2B OB 9 with some pop! Then comes four solid, albeit unspectacular, OB 7s to round out the lineup. I was about to say the Reds were one of the rare teams to not have a player under OB 7 in their lineup and then realized Billy is leading off.... now I understand why they let him walk (first time he's walked since 2015, rim shot)! Anyway, Casali is my favorite player of the bunch here, with doubles at 13 and a decent enough arm. Not a big fall down to Barnhart, but noticeable. I really like Peraza as a fantasy player, and his card reflects the speed and bases he gets, as well as his uptick in OBP during 2018. Schebler is solid, but not surprising he's had a much reduced role in 2019. Overall -- a fun and interesting lineup to end the 2018 NL set on! How would you use the two OB 10 hitters with no HR? 

The Reds only have one bench guy in this set, as they got 10 pitchers/10 hitters. Honestly, Ervin is nothing to write home about and I see why the Reds barely used him in 2019, although now he's got a red hot .394 OBP so he's playing to prove me wrong!

Rotation: Brutal stuff in this rotation, and it really, really hammers home why the Reds invested so heavily in starting pitching over the offseason (Sonny Gray, Tanner Roark, etc) and traded for Trevor Bauer midseason. Of course, they've also been helped in 2019 by Luis Castillo taking a big step forward from his Tier 4 gives up a HR card in 2018. Sadly, that's the ace of this rotation by a long shot. In total, the rotation gives up HRs in 4/5 starters, including former Mets' ace Matt Harvey. It really is tragic how far his star has fallen from the Control 6 on at 17, Tier 1 glory days in 2013-15. Homer Bailey is ironically living up to his name as well. Sal, what a great and loveable name btw, is the lone guy letting hitters smack bombs off their own charts only... which he'll do plenty of with that Control 1. Seriously, this is a woeful rotation and the low IP counts will put a significant strain on the bullpen. I'm excited to see how much they improve in 2019!

Bullpen: Quite possibly the strength of this team! Iglesias is a solid Tier 3, but because he gives up a HR, he's extremely affordable... and extra risky. Managers will definitely experience some tense ninth innings with him on the mound. Then come the two guys who'll get drafted in any 8 team or higher league: David Hernandez and Jared Hughes. A pair of Tier 2 relievers, Hernandez will undoubtedly go first with his coveted Control 6, but Hughes will be a great set up man for somebody. Then Lorenzen adds some much needed IP to the bullpen to help with the starters, despite not being a significant upgrade from them (at least no HRs), and pre-fight Amir brings solid control but a rough chart. Overall, a decent and deep enough pen to (usually) hold a lead.... if the Reds get many of them behind those rough starters! 

And there you have it -- the 2018 National League!!! I hope you've been enjoying the cards and posts and blogs, we've had an absolute blast making them! Bob should be posting the Mariners any day now to round out the 2018 set in its entirety. Good news -- the Showdown cards will not stop with this set :) I've got some fun "all-decade" teams planned, Bob has some future type cards and podcast ideas, Matt is always making new and exciting cards (Reds fans, keep an eye out for some BIG RED MACHINE players in the near future), and so many other card creators have big stuff coming.... especially Bradley with his new design cards, more "All Time" teams, and much, much more!!!!