There was a flurry of minor activity on the first business day since the end of the postseason. Today was the deadline to decide on 2012 contract options and the Reds also cleared space on the 40-man roster in advance of open free agent season. The team has until November 19 to protect players from the Rule 5 Draft and until November 23 to decide whether to offer arb to ranked free agents (Cordero and Hernandez, both Type A).
For more info on the offseason than anyone not working in a major league front office requires, check out the "Hot Stove" section of the sidebar or the newly-minted Red Reporter Calendar, which captures key hot stove dates and offseason events of interest.
Here's what happened:
- Matt Maloney went to the Twins on a waiver claim
- Francisco Cordero's $12M option was declined
- Brandon Phillips' $12M option was exercised
- Jared Burton and Daryl Thompson were outrighted off the 40 man roster
With Burton, Thompson, Maloney and Cordero removed, the 40-man roster stands at a meager 34. Maloney obviously isn't coming back, even if he's not crazy about the Twin Cities in wintertime. Burton and Thompson might be opt to become free agents, as they both have the right to be refuse outright assignment. (Burton has over three years of MLB service, while DT has been outrighted before).
None of these moves were surprising, though it's somewhat surprising that Burton and Maloney - both of whom could have factored in the bullpen next season - were both cleared out.