Not mentioned in any of the articles about the Reds hiring Bryan Price as pitching coach is that he takes charge of the entire farm system’s pitching philosophy–instituting a clear and singular program from the big leagues to the lowest rung of the minors. I’m not sure the Reds have done this in the last 30 years but if they have, it has ef’n failed miserably. Price begins work immediately with the Reds’ instructional league and mapping out an offseason program for Reds pitchers. 

Just what is his philosophy? 

He’s big on conditioning, working quickly and proper mechanics. In fact, he’s a master at mechanical analysis and instruction. He likes for his pitchers to throw aggressively to their strengths and attack the strike zone. You’ll also see a big emphasis on learning and using the changeup. 

On the major league side, Price is a take-charge coordinator. The pitching staff is his domain, so the days of Coco Cordero pitching six straight days or Johnny Cueto throwing over 100 pitches after coming off the DL are probably over. 

Ode to Power, Soto: We told you here Oct. 9 that Price was at the top of the Reds’ wish list and we carried that theme pretty much throughout the process. Jocketty wanted to act fast, we also told you, and the reason was because of so much interest in Price. He turned down two other jobs. But inside the Reds blogosphere, the reaction to his hiring has been about 50 percent negative, 35 percent positive and 15 indifference. Why? 

Pining for in-house candidates Mario Soto and Ted Power. 

First, Soto was never getting the job. Never. He could have paid for the job and he still wasn’t going to be hired. Soto has done well in his brief appearances to work with Cueto and Voltron, and some of the kids in Florida, but the overall impression of him on the development side is not great. The word “lazy” keeps popping up as well as some difficulties in attitude. Plus, he just didn’t want the job. 

His candidacy was a figment of fans’ imagination. 

Power certainly was a viable candidate who deserved consideration. But the Reds hired the best available pitching coach out there, someone every team with a vacancy was trying to acquire. Power has no big league experience as a coach and in any other Reds situation he would have been given the job because of low salary. 

But Price has nine-plus years as a major league pitching coach and in seven of those years his staffs have been below league average in ERA. The Reds are rumored to have given him a multiyear (believed to be three years) contract worth more than $1 million. Here’s a case where the Reds didn’t go cheap, they didn’t go obscure. They hired the very best available coach and yet Reds fans aren’t happy. 

Go figure.