3 Radical Ways the Cincinnati Reds Can Solve Their Left Field Problem
By Adam Hughes
Jul 28, 2014; Cincinnati, OH, USA; Cincinnati Reds left fielder Ryan Ludwick (48) is hit by a pitch from Arizona Diamondbacks relief pitcher Oliver Perez (not pictured) in the 13th inning at Great American Ball Park. The Diamondbacks won 2-1 in fifteen innings. Mandatory Credit: David Kohl-USA TODAY Sports
Ask any Cincinnati Reds fan to name the team’s biggest problems, and left field is sure to come up within a sentence or two. In 2014, Ryan Ludwick manned the corner for 92 games and slashed a lackluster .246/.309/.382/.691 in those games. Chris Heisey and Skip Schumaker were even more lacking in luster, so, yeah, the Reds could use an upgrade. But how to go about it?
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During the season, we all speculated about Ben Zobrist and Marlon Byrd and bringing Rickey Henderson out of retirement, but the fact is that the Reds probably won’t make that much of a splash. It’s just not their thing, and they don’t have the bucks to do it, anyway.
Nope, general manager Walt Jocketty will have to get creative if he’s going to improve this Reds’ offense and/or left field situation. Here are three unusual approaches he might take to fix left field.