Barring a big-money offseason signing, second base at Great American Ball Park will be manned by a combination of Freddy Galvis and Josh VanMeter. Fine players, but perhaps not All-Star quality.
Brandon Phillips, is unquestionably the Reds star second baseman of the 2000s. In 1,614 games, DatDude hit 191 homers with 196 stolen bases while playing magnificent defence. It was a tough decision, but he failed to get the nod as our second baseman of the decade.
It is often forgotten (by moaning Reds fans) that Jose Peraza is still only 25-years-old. The Venezuelan was at risk of being non-tendered, but I feel he still has a lot to offer. He needs more seasons like 2018 and fewer like 2019 to win back the love of the Cincinnati faithful.
I’m not sure any player in Reds history made as much impact in such a short time as Derek Dietrich, yet he left the club with an underwhelming stat line.
Dietrich led the league with 12 home runs in May, he swagged his way to first base after getting plunked, he donned a bee-keepers suit and he enjoyed watching his homers as much as we did. The good work of his first half .893 OPS was undone by hitting just .071 AVG in reduced playing time after the All-Star break.
The possible probable controversial choice for the Reds second baseman of the decade is Ryan Joseph “Scooter” Gennett.
2019 was an injury-hampered campaign for Gennett as he battled with a groin strain that impacted the whole year and it was heart-breaking when the Reds cut ties at the trade deadline, sending him to San Francisco for a player to be named later.
Embed from Getty ImagesHe was immense during his breakout 2017 and 2018 seasons. Over those two years, he hit 50 home runs with 52 doubles while batting over .303 with .351 OBP and .508 SLG.
Still disagree? Look at it this way, Joey Votto with eight and Eugenio Suarez with two, are the only other Reds hitters this decade with multiple seasons of at least 123 wRC+.
And obviously, the highlight of his spell with Cincinnati was the four-homer game against the Cardinals.
One of our Christmas wishes is that Scooter regains his fitness and gets a job back in baseball in 2021. After all, he will still be in his 20s on Opening Day.
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Photos by Mike McGinnis and Michael Hickey
4000 miles from Ohio 