Red Reposter - Zach Cozart's great leap in 2009

2009 Season in Review: Zack Cozart
Doug continues his series on key prospects with a look at the hope at shortstop, Zack Cozart. Definitely worth a read. The graph showing his rate stats throughout the year is interesting as it shows Cozart controlling the strike zone better and better as the season progressed. That is particularly encouraging given he skipped high A and went straight to AA.  If he can demonstrate the same bat and glove at Louisville, he could find himself in Cincinnati late this season. 

CNATI.com is thinking about covering Spring Training
The problem is it costs money. C Trent thinks it can be done on the cheap for 4K, and it sounds like he's going to be passing around the hat. I hope they get it. I've come to appreciate Trent's coverage more this past year (damning with faint praise and all, but he is the best beat writer covering the Reds in the internet era, imo). This could be an interesting test of the capabilities and limits of how extensively the new media can cover sports.  

NYT: As Revenue Plunges, Stadium Boom Adds to Municipal Woes
Linked by Trent, the Times looks at the financial drain of public stadia through the lens of Cincinnati. How the Bengals got such a sweetheart deal (rent owed only through 2009 on a 26 year lease; team keeps revenue from naming rights, advertising, etc.) is beyond me. Were they really that close to moving? Not surprisingly, the Bengals and Reds declined to comment for the story.

OMGreds.com: Well look who's blasting the Reds
Jim Bowden seems to be in the news more since he was fired than when he was running the Nats. This time he questions the re-signing of Scott Rolen. "It's very disappointing to me committing that amount of money without knowing that Scott Rolen can bounce back," Bowden said.   Not an unreasonable opinion, but if I was Walt Jocketty I'd want to strangle Bowden at this point.

Church of Baseball: Did I hear a niner in there?
9 is a significant number for the Reds. Unfortunately, it also represents the number of consecutive losing seasons the team has suffered.

Joe Posnanski: A Christmas Story
This doesn't really have anything to do with Christmas, but it's a nice story about the memory of youth and myth of fame.  This guy can write.

Mark Sheldon recaps 2009 
The injuries were undeniably a major theme of the Reds' 2009 season, but the bottom line was that only three spots in the lineup were average or above average.

Chan Ho Park sues former Dodger Chad Kreuter
Chan Ho Park has sued his former Dodger battery mate Chad Kreuter, accusing him of failing to fully pay off a $460,000 loan.  The Rangers are now considering suing Park after paying him $65 million for failing to fully throw anything other than batting practice.