-
Hall o' Famer Hal weighs in with his opinion on the Hernandez signing
and he does little to convince me. "Hernandez hit only .258 last year with five homers and 37 RBIs, but...(he) is the kind of guy I want around when I want to have fun and a guy I want to have around when I need somebody to watch my back." Sorry Hal, but this team needs a catcher, not Danny Glover. Hal also tries his hand at a bit o' statistical analysis. He discusses Jay Bruce's LD% and Aaron Harang's DER. It's actually pretty impressive for an old-timer. -
Mark Sheldon wonders if the re-signing of Ramon Hernandez will prohibit the team from signing a LF
He says Jonny Gomes is the better choice over Laynce Nix (duh), but "you have to wonder if catcher Ramon Hernandez's re-signing on Monday for one year at $3 million takes away some of the dollars for left field." He says there are other in-house options, but gives the impression that Gomes would be the superior choice. -
Matthew Pouliot likes the Hernandez signing as well
"He's 33 now and clearly on the decline, but if the Reds give him a fair amount of rest, he should be good for a dozen homers and his typical .330-.340 OBP." -
The Fay has the Boss Man's word on the signing:
"It was an offseason priority. When you look at the alternatives, they’re not great. I think he and (Ryan) Hanigan are a good combination. Corky (Miller) is going to go to Triple-A that that gives us some depth."
Craig Calcaterra says the Blue Jays would seriously consider Brandon Phillips
if the Reds were to make him available. But --get this-- they would want him to play 3B. The very same 3B Scott Rolen used to man. He then quips on the Rolen deal, "given that the trade apparently filled no holes for either team and harmed one financially, I'm tempted to deem the Rolen trade the most pointless trade in recent memory." So this is one of the head-shakingest bits of internews I've read in a while.
Jack Moore at FanGraphs writes about the recent non-rumor of the possibility of the Reds trading Joey Votto
Walt Jocketty retorted, "Oh God, no!" when asked about it. Moore says, "With Votto producing as he has through his career, he is one of the best assets in the MLB. Jocketty’s response was right on the money." This gives me hope. Thanks to Dave from Luhvull for the FanShot.
Long time head athletic trainer Mark Mann resigned his post last week.
He has accepted a job with Morgan Stanley as a financial advisor(?). God speed, Mr. Mann!
FanGraphs lists the best baserunners according to BP's baserunning metrics
and Brandon Phillips comes in as one of the leaders of the pack, up there with such speedsters as Michael Bourn, Chone Figgins, Ichiro, and Dexter Fowler. Ride on, BeeP!
FanHouse takes a look at the Reds' offseason
They do a pretty good job reviewing the roster situation, though they inaccurately say that Joey Votto is arb-eligible for the first time this year. Here's the course of action they recommend:
"I think the Reds' biggest goal this offseason is to simultaneously dump one of their two overpaid starters without weakening the rotation. If money is a problem for them, they at least have a chance to fill their holes in the outfield and shortstop internally, but beyond Cueto and Bailey, there's not much their system has to offer in terms of pitching. The problem for them is that it won't be easy to find someone willing to take Arroyo or Harang without the Reds paying a lot of their salary, and so the amount of money freed up by a trade would probably be minimal."
Which is to say, we're probably boned.