Spring preview: Reds get no respect heading into season

GOODYEAR, Ariz.  The music softly fills the air in Cincinnati Reds manager Dusty Baker's office, but when a particular song comes on his portable stereo, he cranks up the volume.

"Listen to this cut," he says. "This is my new theme song."

The song, by reggae and hip-hop artist Cham, is called Stronger, its chorus intoning that "every time you knock me down … I get stronger and stronger."

It is an unlikely mantra for the manager of a team that won 91 games and led the National League Central the last 50 days of the season, winning the title by five games.

But Baker and Co. say naysayers abound.

"I know people don't believe in us," Baker says. "They don't believe in me, either. I hear it all of the time. It doesn't really matter. The only thing that matters is we think of ourselves. I love this team. It's a good team."

Good enough to win the division again?

"The division," Baker says. "The league. Maybe the world."

The Milwaukee Brewers, with new starter Zack Greinke in the fold, have become the chic pick and favorites in Las Vegas to win the division. The Chicago Cubs bandwagon is filling again after they added starter Matt Garza.

Baseball Prospectus projects the Reds to finish third, winning 82 games.

"The way we won the division was no fluke, but people treat it that way," Gold Glove second baseman Brandon Phillips says. "It's like, 'OK, they did it once. Can they do it again?' It's kind of sad, but that's OK. We're not going to have a chip on our shoulder. We know where we are and where we need to be. We'll just do it again."

This is the team that led the NL in the Triple Crown categories for only the third time in franchise history. It had its highest fielding percentage in franchise history, making 72 errors — 17 fewer than its previous record. It had three Gold Glove winners. Its young pitching staff ranked seventh in the league with a 4.01 ERA, with closer Francisco Cordero saving 40 games.

The Reds' only major defection was left-handed reliever Arthur Rhodes, who went to the Texas Rangers. Yet with no major acquisitions and the second-smallest payroll in the division, they are, somehow, easy to overlook.

"It's almost like last year," reliever Daniel Herrera says. "Everybody's searching for reasons for us to lose at the end. I guess they're not seeing what we're seeing. We know who we are, and if we play like we can, we can dominate the division. We've got a lot of confidence, a lot more than a year ago at this time."

The Reds aren't being cocky. But a quiet confidence resonates throughout the clubhouse. They think they're the NL's version of the Minnesota Twins, small-market underdogs who have nonetheless dominated the American League Central since 2002.

"We're trying to bring this organization back to excellence," Baker says. "It's been a long time coming."

The Reds, behind general manager Walt Jocketty and Baker, emphasize speed, defense and clutch hitting. They might not be nearly as popular as their instructors walking around Reds camp last week —Joe Morgan, Eric Davis, Barry Larkin and Jack Billingham— but the Reds are convinced they have the next generation of stars.

"People might think we're a flash in the pan," says center fielder Drew Stubbs, who hit 22 homers with 30 stolen bases in his first full season. "We know that's not the case. You look at our team, and except for (MVP) Joey Votto, no one had the kind of year that just jumps out at you. We're all getting better. No one's peaked."

If no one else wants to believe in them, the Reds say, that's just fine. They're convinced they'll be back in the playoffs. If not, something has gone dreadfully wrong.

"It's not an arrogance, but a confidence," Jocketty says. "They're starting to believe. I thought we had the talent to be a winning team last spring, and winning the division proved that. We learned a lot about ourselves."

Now that the Reds have learned to win, anything is possible. They reached the playoffs last year for the first time since 1995 before being swept by the Philadelphia Phillies. They're ready for that next step.

"It's kind of a weird feeling," left fielder Jonny Gomes says. "It had been so long since we won around here, we were hungry to get to the playoffs. But once you get there, you're starving to get back."