The Cincinnati Reds Are the Most Disappointing Team in Baseball

Even though the Cincinnati Reds' beat the Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday night, they are the most disappointing team in baseball as we approach the 1/3 mark of the season.

Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz (44) gets his gloves on in the second inning of a baseball game against the San Diego Padres, Tuesday, May 21, 2024, at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati. / Kareem Elgazzar/The Enquirer / USA TODAY

Heading into the season, I wrote countless times that the Cincinnati Reds were among the most hyped teams in baseball for 2024. No, they didn't have the Dodgers level of expectations, and they didn't acquire Juan Soto like the Yankees did. They didn't have the most pressure, but they had a ton of hype because of their stable of young players.

With Elly De La Cruz, Matt McLain, Noelvi Marte, Spencer Steer, Christian Encarnacion-Strand, Hunter Greene, Andrew Abbott and Nick Lodolo, this was supposed to be the year that the Reds made the playoffs for the first time since the COVID 2020 season. In the NBA, when a team is fun to watch, they are called "League Pass Worthy," as in you'd be willing buy NBA League Pass to watch them. That was supposed to be the Reds: "MLB.TV" worthy.

Because of that hype, and because of that excitement, it's incredibly disappointing to see the Reds sitting at 21-30 and in last place in the National League Central heading into play on Saturday.

De La Cruz has been outstanding with his nine homers, 23 RBI and 31 steals, but Steer is hitting .227, former Rookie of the Year Jonathan India is hitting .223, Encarnacion-Strand is hitting just .190 and McLain has been out all season with a shoulder injury. Furthermore, the team spent $45 million on Jeimer Candelario in free agency and he's hitting .220 with five homers at age 30. Marte was popped for a PED suspension in spring training and is still serving his 80-game suspension. Frankie Montas, signed this offseason to help the pitching staff, is 2-3 with a 4.61 ERA.

The Reds have the talent to turn it around, but now they need to start playing to the hype.

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