Bauer, Iglesias stay spotless, Moustakas & Castellanos thrive in new threads

You may want to sit down for this one: it’s April 2 and the Cincinnati Reds are still undefeated.

The Reds, who last made the playoffs in 2013 and have only made the playoffs 15 times in their 109 seasons as a Major League Baseball franchise, stand atop the NL Central leaderboard as they still have yet to lose a game.

The Reds spent big money this season to bring in former Royals and Brewers infielder Mike “Moose” Moustakas and former Tigers and Cubs outfielder Nick Castellanos.

Those two signings sure haven’t disappointed, as both Moustakas and Castellanos have yet to record an out this season. They’ve added pop to the lineup, hitting a medley of majestic bombs out of sight into the Ohio River.

Trevor Bauer, who struggled upon being acquired from the Indians last July, has a whopping 0.00 ERA. and a sub .500 WHIP. Looks like his Driveline Baseball workouts are finally paying off.

What makes the Reds undefeated start that much sweeter is the fact that the division rival St. Louis Cardinals have yet to pick up a win, and neither have the Cleveland Indians, who sit winless after moving on from ace Corey Kluber during the offseason.

Possibly the only downside for the Reds so far has been the struggles of Aristides Aquino, or “The Punisher,” as some like to call him.

Aquino came up last season and provided a spark for a Reds team that didn’t have any playoff aspirations. This year he’s entrenched in a massive slump, as he’s yet to record a hit en route to a .000 batting average.

Aquino struggled in spring training by hitting .077, and his hitting woes have clearly carried over into the regular season. The only thing he’s punished this year is the bat rack after smashing his maple against it repeatedly. No seriously, that thing is wrecked.

In addition to Bauer’s perfect ERA, Raisel Iglesias has also stepped up from last season and has a similarly spotless 0.00 ERA to anchor a Reds bullpen that has been one of their many bright spots this season.

With the Reds hot start, fans are already speculating about a potential deep run in the postseason.

This is especially ringing true because the team is playing exceptionally well, even without the services of star third baseman Eugenio Suarez, who is out with an ambiguously-worded injury.

He probably talked to Yoenis Cespedes about that one. Word through the grapevine is he’s taking some good ole’ R&R as the team is performing so
well, his talents aren’t needed.

Needless to say, if the Reds keep up this level of play through October, there could be parade floats coming down Fountain Square before we know it.