Believe me, I'd love to talk about other things, but it's impossible when front office difficulties are constantly in the news, for valid reason. This time it's Felipe Lopez and a lack of communication:
Once with Cincinnati, Lopez bounced between the majors and Triple-A Louisville. By the end of last season, everything clicked. Despite finally being comfortable and consistent at the major-league level, the shortstop job was up for grabs with Anderson Machado."Once Anderson got hurt, I knew (the front office was) going to go out and get someone else to compete with me," Lopez said. "That's just how it goes."
That would be Rich Aurilia, who in spring training outplayed Lopez for the starting role.
"I wasn't mad or anything like that. I was more upset that there wasn't any communication in the process," Lopez said. "They gave him the job and told me I did good in spring training, and basically didn't tell me anything else. But everything worked out. I kept working hard, I really care about that."
Perhaps the problem there was Miley, and it may now be fixed, but Reds players have talked about communication problems with the front office since the days of Bowden. How hard is it to sit a player down and tell him what's going on with his role and with the team?
Also, Felipe Lopez rocks. I genuinely hope he's a Red for at least the next decade. He's fast becoming my favorite player.