The Reds are getting a decent amount of play on the trade deadline rumor mills. Speculation is already well-chronicled in central locations like our own Baseball Nation and the very aptly-named MLB Trade Rumors, but I thought I'd make a transparent traffic-grab by re-printing them here.
The twist is that I've ranked them in terms of how much the targeted player(s) would impact the Reds' fortunes and assigned them a track from Rumours that fits the thematic backdrop of the possible trade. There is no relationship between quality of track and quality of the player.
And remember, it's all just "Second Hand News" at this point.
"Dreams" - Ubaldo Jimenez
The title makes this pairing irresistible. And the lyric "players only love you when they're playing," obviously has implications for baseball, though I'm not sure what. Stevie Nicks, singer/meteorologist, also teaches us that "thunder only happens when it's raining." Despite the gloomy times in Reds Country, this would be a thunderous acquisition.
"Don't Stop" - James Shields
Bill Clinton's '91 campaign song entices listeners to be forward-looking, not to dwell on the past - something the Rays do pretty well. Getting JIminez would also be a move for now and the future, but Shields gets the edge as his '14 club option is not voidable (which Jimenez's is).
"Go Your Own Way" - Wandy Rodriguez
Wandy wouldn't seem likely to be traded in-division, but the Reds are at least looking him over. A few other Astros have been linked to fellow NL Central teams, so it's not out of the realm of the possible. Does Wandy want to spend another "lonely day" on the Astros? Does Ed Wade want Wandy to go "his own way" or is he willing to let him keep haunting the Central? This one is kind of a stretch. "You make loving fun" has a line about believing in magic and you've got the "wand" in there, but that seemed even worse.
"The Chain" - Koji Uehara, James Johnson and Jason Frasor
Three relievers that John Paul Morosi said the Reds had internal discussions about. All could be a net improvement on the bullpen and hopefully help ease the workload for Masset, Ondrusek and Co. That is, it would improve the quality of "the chain" - which is the principle in modern bullpen usage that roughly prioritizes relievers by leverage situation.
"I Don't Want to Know" - Chone Figgins & Coco Crisp
The Reds are "just trying to survive," so I "don't wanna know why" they'd have any interest in either. Not long a go, these were two players with hilarious names who were also very valuable to their teams. They still have hilarious names, but they're both in their early 30s and are NOT playing good baseball. A bounce-back isn't completely out of the question, but it's not very likely to happen this year. Figgins is signed until '14, but even if the M's at most/all of the salary, the Reds probably have players in their system that could outperform him at any position (though not likely match his versatility).