CINCINNATI — The Cincinnati Reds have fired manager David Bell due to a combination of poor baserunning, poor defense, and a young roster that failed to meet expectations. President of baseball operations Nick Krall cited multiple reasons for the decision during Monday’s news conference.
Krall acknowledged that the team had brought up many young players last year, which inevitably led to some mistakes. While some players showed improvement, others took steps backwards and displayed sporadic effort. Krall emphasized that these issues needed to be addressed and fixed.
With a record of 76-81 and no chance at a winning season, the Reds will now search for their next skipper while bench coach Freddie Benavides serves as interim manager. In addition to Bell, Jeff Pickler, the team’s co-bench coach/infield and game-planning coach, was also let go.
The Reds were expected to improve this year after their surprising 82-win season in 2023. However, their defense fell short despite strong pitching performances. Advanced metrics revealed fundamental problems within the team.
Cincinnati ranked near the bottom in various advanced stats compared to other Major League Baseball teams. Their fielding run value was particularly concerning with a score of -25 compared to division rival Milwaukee Brewers’ +26.
The Reds also struggled on the bases despite being second in steals (205) and fourth in extra bases taken (47%). They led the league in outs on the bases with 64.
Krall acknowledged that there were philosophical differences within the team regarding baserunning decisions and undisciplined plays. The new manager will be tasked with addressing these shortcomings in 2025 while helping young players develop at this level.
As for who will fill Bell’s shoes, Krall did not provide any insight but mentioned several potential candidates such as Terry Francona, David Ross, Skip Schumaker, Barry Larkin or someone from within the organization.
Despite making changes at managerial level now instead of waiting until after season ends allows them time for meetings during last road trip giving them an early start on finding new manager before offseason begins
While there may not be significant changes made to the roster itself as they plan on relying on homegrown talent going forward; it is crucial for future success that these young players thrive at this level since Cincinnati is considered a small-market club.
