The Stats Behind the Reds’ Roller-Coaster Season in the NL Central

The Cincinnati Reds are currently 27-25 and in fourth place in the NL Central, four games back of first place. The journey to this above-.500 record has been a roller coaster, with lengthy winning streaks and stretches filled with losses.

However, when you look at where the Reds stack up compared to other teams, you might scratch your head and wonder how Cincinnati is still competing in the NL Central at two games above .500. The Reds’ pitching and hitting numbers are consistently in the lower half of the league, and we will break down some of the most notable ones below.

Hitting:

Batting average: .227 (No. 26)

Runs per game: 4.40 (No. 13)

Hits per game: 7.62 (No. 25)

Home runs per game: 1.27 (No. 5)

Walks per game: 3.85 (No. 8)

OPS: .703 (No. 14)

Extra-base hit percentage: 7.6% (No. 7)

Strikeouts per game: 9.13 (No. 26)

Pitching:

Earned run average: 4.78 (No. 25)

WHIP: 1.468 (No. 29)

Now, I’m no analytical nerd, but I feel like these stats paint a pretty clear picture for the Reds: They are a timely-hitting team whose pitching staff has greatly disappointed. You can’t really say they are a good-hitting team with a .227 team batting average, but the walks per game and extra-base hit percentage both being top 10 in MLB, while the strikeouts per game rank in the bottom 10, tell a complicated story.

It can also make you wonder what this team’s record would look like if its so-called power hitters were delivering more consistent power. Elly De La Cruz and Sal Stewart have delivered, but Eugenio Suarez struggled when he was healthy and then obviously missed a significant chunk of time on the injured list.

Then you look at the pitching numbers, and it looks like a staff missing its ace and battling depth issues because of injuries. The Reds’ No. 3 and No. 4 starters for the majority of the season, Brady Singer and Rhett Lowder, have posted well-below-league-average earned run averages of 6.26 and 5.40, respectively.

Fortunately, Chase Burns has emerged, Nick Lodolo is battling back from his blister issue, and the season continues to move closer to an eventual Hunter Greene return in July. When the rotation is Greene, Burns, Lodolo and Andrew Abbott, with either Singer, Lowder or Chris Paddack filling the fifth spot, those stats have a much better chance of moving closer to league average, which would do a lot for a high-ceiling Reds offense.