The New Attitude in Cincinnati

In case you haven't noticed there's a new attitude in Cincinnati. It's marked by confident, hard-working, young talent bearing the names of Votto, Bruce, Volquez, and Cueto, complemented by quality veteran leadership like Hernandez, Harang, and Arroyo. Don't forget Nix, Rosales, and Owings who have stepped up in clutch situations and are worth every penny on the price of a ticket to watch. There's also Brandon Phillips the reining Gold Glove winner at second and the man who has pounded the ball and basepaths in May. Of course I'm leaving a few names out but you get the point, everyone is contributing. Jay Bruce says that when the Reds come back from their roadtrip to Milwaukee and St. Louis, they plan on being in first place. That's confidence that Reds fans haven't heard in the LONG time!

In my eyes the number one reason for this new attitude is the emergence of young leaders like Bruce and Votto. They're confident in their role as major leaguers and have taken ownership over their team. This wouldn't have happened without the exit of two veteran mainstays (you know who I'm talking about).

Hal McCoy is giving Dusty Baker a lot of the credit. That could be some of it, I suppose. Dusty has always managed veteran teams and it's hard to put your brand on that type of team. Maybe this is what Baker brand baseball in its purist form looks like. Whatever it is, the players are having fun, confident, and playing their butts off.