Welcome to Wittenmyer & Williams – a point/counterpoint column from Enquirer Reds reporter Gordon Wittenmyer and sports columnist Jason Williams. Here, the long-time friends, reunited after covering baseball together in Minnesota earlier in their careers, pick a hot baseball – or sometimes, non-baseball – topic and debate it.
Wittenmyer: Hey, man. I’m glad I got hold of you. I’m here in Seattle. Looking around, I don’t see anybody I know. Where are all the Reds?
Williams: At home, resting up for the second half of the season. Would you rather have a bunch of guys in the All-Star Game? Or most of your players taking time off to prepare for a playoff run?
Wittenmyer: Now you’re starting to sound like Spencer Steer and Elly De La Cruz − and you should know better. You’ve been around longer. Usually when you don’t have anybody at the All-Star Game, it doesn’t say much about your team. But I will say in this case, there is a real value to what you’re talking about because it’ll be a miracle if these young, first-year players don’t hit a wall at some point.
Williams: Miracle? You said it. They’re young. Getting four days off at the All-Star break coupled with being young should be a recipe for these guys being fresh down the stretch. Look at Juan Soto and Bryce Harper during the first time they played professionally through September, as big-league rookies. They both got better late in the season and finished strong. And don’t discount the energy these young Reds players have. They play for each other. They lift each other up, and that’s really important.
Wittenmyer: Careful drinking too much of that Kool-Aid and driving home, pal. I like what I’ve seen from these guys as much as anybody, and there’s a lot of talent there. But history tells us it’s going to be hard for this young group to sustain success without some help from the front office. That’s probably going to be the bottom line, especially with that gauntlet of a schedule coming out of the break.
Williams: Yeah, the schedule is brutal out of the break. Sixteen games against the Brewers, Giants, Diamondbacks, Dodgers. It’s going to tell us whether this team is a true contender. We’ll talk more after that stretch later this month. Right now, though, I’m leaning towards the Reds sitting tight at the trade deadline. Any team is going to want a top prospect. The Reds shouldn’t give up any of their top prospects, at least those who are close to major-league ready. Stay the course on building for the future. The Reds are ahead of schedule. This season is a bonus no matter what happens. Plus, I think the division is weak enough the Reds can hang around with who they have now.
Wittenmyer: Bonus, my (expletive). Not only are these opportunities rare when you have a chance to do what this team does, but they’ve got twice as many current players and touted prospects as they have positions to play them. That’s why you tank to acquire all that talent, to build your roster – but also to have capital for trades. Otherwise, it’s like those T-shirts your parents would bring you from their vacation: “I tanked for 2 years and all I got was a 12-game winning streak.”
Williams: Well, smart guy. Who the hell do you think you’re going to get for giving up some of this high-end talent? Are you dealing Christian Encarnacion-Strand? Because right now, you’re looking at needing a first baseman in 2024, and CES seems to be a top contender as the heir apparent to Joey Votto.
Wittenmyer: First of all, they have several guys who could play first base, including another guy who came in that same deal with CES, Spencer Steer. The bigger issue is the elephant-sized rotation ERA in the room. Only the Oakland A’s and Colorado Rockies are getting a worse collective performance from their starters. If you thought this team got an energy boost from Matt McLain in May and Elly De La Cruz in June, imagine adding a legitimate starting pitcher to this roster by the Aug. 1 trade deadline. That’s the answer to making this sustainable in the second half. And if it costs you one of your top prospects, you’ve got plenty of talent to make that happen and be better for it.
Williams: I’m not ready to say you’re right. But maybe after we see how this two-week stretch out of the break plays out, I might be willing to talk the right trade.
Wittenmyer: You might want to wipe that red Kool-Aid stain off your upper lip first.
Have an idea for a debate topic? Contact Gordon by email at [email protected] or on Twitter @GDubMLB. Reach Jason at [email protected] or @jwilliamscincy.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: What first-place Cincinnati Reds should do after MLB All-Star break