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Red Reposter - All-Star BREAK (emphasis on "break")

By Charlie Scrabbles

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"Cool."
"Cool."

  • As expected, Francisco Cordero is frustrated with his poor performance
    Not that it makes me feel any better about it. I'm not really mad at Coco, as he's not going to be perfect. And we certainly can't expect him to be when throwing nearly 100 pitches over a five-day span. I'm frustrated with Dusty for his usage of Coco. I don't want to hear Coco apologize for his performance, I want to hear Dusty apologize for his bad strategy. But something tells me I'm not going get satisfaction.

  • The Reds All-Stars spoke to the media on Monday along with the rest of the NL squad
    Joey Votto was, as always, loquacious and insightful: "I think, speaking as a player on the team to the Reds’ fans, we’re frustrated too. We’re frustrated about the inconsistency of the team, not necessarily the players, but the wins and losses. We’re frustrated that things haven’t been easier. I think that if we pull this division out, this will almost be, to us, it might end up feeling more satisfying than last year. Last year, we just felt like ‘this is our season. We’re going to do it.’ This year, we feel like we’re supposed to repeat but we’ve kind of been in a hole the whole time and have to dig ourselves out."

  • Blog Red Machine held a mid-season round table discussion with other Reds bloggers
    Representing Red Reporter were BK and JinAZ. The whole discussion is well-worth a read, as they talk about topics spanning from the division's biggest surprises, the favorites to win the division, to the most underrated players in the division. Give it a click.

  • Scott Rolen is starting the All-Star Game for the National League tonight
    and not because of his .295 wOBA. Jack Moore at FanGraphs bemoans the wretched state of NL 3Bs at the moment, which is punctuated by the fact that our over-the-hill hot-corner handler is the best available.

    This got me thinking though. 3B in the NL is hitting worse than every position but SS. Could Juan Francisco be an above-average 3B in this league? Sure, he's not a strong defender and he can't walk to save his life, but it seems 3B is a real position of weakness right now. Maybe some team out there is taking a 2nd or 3rd look at El Nino Destructor and seeing a potentially decent player.

  • Jay Bruce is enjoying his first time (though not his last time) as an All-Star
    "It’s humbling," Bruce said of his first mid-summer classic. "It’s great to be on the field with my team and all these guys. It’s been great so far. I’m enjoying every second of it. I talked to them (teammates and fellow All-Stars Joey Votto, Brandon Phillips, and Scott Rolen) a little bit about it, but you have to experience all this stuff on your own. You have to take it in, and just enjoy every second of it."

  • Doug Gray took in the Mudcats/Smokies series from June 29-July 2
    and kept an eye on Yasmani Grandal. Personally, I was not overly impressed with the Grandal pick when it happened, but I'm quickly coming around him. There isn't much that can be gleaned from watching a player for just a mid-week series, but Doug came away impressed with his patience, power, and ability to handle just about everything. I'm cool with that.

  • Axe Hal:
    Q I heard a report that the Giants are interested in catcher Ramon Hernandez, and since Hernandez is a translator for the Latin pitchers for mound visits, who would do that if Hernandez is traded? — Rob, Minster
    A Since Hernandez is a free agent after the season and the Giants desperately need catching after losing Buster Posey, I’m sure the Giants are sniffing around. With Devin Mesoraco shredding the baseball at Class AAA Louisville, the Reds could do it. As for a translator, all four Reds Latin pitchers (Edinson Volquez, Johnny Cueto, Aroldis Chapman, Coco Cordero) know enough English that they don’t need help when pitching coach Bryan Price says, "Throw strikes, get this guy out. Now." And they all understand the word, ‘Louisville.’

  • The scuttlebutt is that the Cardinals could be willing to trade Colby Rasmus
    It's highly unlikely that he would end up coming to the division-rival Reds, but moving him out of the NL Central is likely to be a net-positive for us. I think he's going to be one of the top CFs in the league in the long run, and I'm pretty sure the Cardinals think so, too. His relationship with Tony LaRussa must be souring again as the summer wears on. Either way, this is definitely something to keep an eye on moving forward.

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