First, the truth. When Nation editor Steve Mancuso asked for a quick 100-word prediction of the 2016 Cincinnati Reds, I almost wrote: “I hope these Reds aren’t as bad as the team in 1982.”
The train wreck in 1982 resulted in a record of 61-101. The Engineer of that debacle was General Manager Dick Wagner.
The current 2016 disaster, 55 games into this current season is worse, record-wise but not by much. The 1982 Reds were 23-32 at this juncture, the current Reds on Saturday morning were 20-35, just three games to the south. And while pitching injuries are a part of this equation, one simply can’t look past how brutal the bullpen has been.