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by Chad Dotson on November 21st, 2009 in 2010 Reds, Minors The latest:
The Reds are trying to sign Jonny Gomes; Walt Jocketty is hopeful a deal will get worked out.
We already know that Laynce Nix declared for free agency, but it’s interesting to note that the Reds made an offer to Nix, and that offer remains on the table:
“They still may take it,” Jocketty said. “But they want to see what’s out there. We weren’t comfortable with what the arbitration figure would be. With Gomes, we wanted to keep some protection. I still think there’s a chance we’ll get something done with him.”
The rest of the transactions, you already know about thanks to Greg’s post and the discussion of yesterday. Added to the 40-man roster and, thus, protected from the Rule 5 Draft: RHP Enerio Del Rosario, OF Chris Heisey, RHP Logan Ondrusek, RHP Jordan Smith, IF Chris Valaika, LHP Philippe Valiquette and LHP Travis Wood.
Unfortunately, this is one transaction that hasn’t occurred yet. Keep your fingers crossed.
by Greg Dafler on November 20th, 2009 in 2010 Reds, Minors, Reds - General Friday, November 20 is the deadline for teams to file their 40-man roster reserve lists for the December 10th Rule 5 Draft. Players are not required to be protected on a club’s reserve list until they’ve been under club control for 4 or 5 years, depending on the age they signed. For this year’s draft, minor league college draftees from the 2006 draft class (or earlier) and high school players drafted in 2005 (or earlier) can be selected by other organizations if they are not on the Reds 40-man roster today.
Teams cannot protect additional (minor league) players after today, but they could create roster space to add players in the draft. The worst example of this in recent Reds history is dropping Jorge Cantu in 2007 for the opportunity to select Sergio Valenzuela.
The Reds 40-man roster currently sits at 36 players. The Reds 40-man roster and organizational depth chart is outlined on the Redleg Nation Big Board over in the right sidebar. The only roster change since the last update is that Kip Wells filed for free agency.
Travis Wood, Chris Heisey, and Chris Valaika are the clear favorites to take three of the current four roster openings. Logan Ondrusek made his way through multiple levels this season, finishing in the Louisville closer’s role and was sent to the Arizona Fall League. He’s likely to take the 4th current opening on the 40-man roster.
The Reds talent depth will likely discourage them from participating in the Rule 5 draft this year. We may even see another move or two today to protect additional minor league players.
They could make space by removing Willy Taveras, Craig Tatum, and Laynce Nix from the roster, and protecting additional arms (like Enerio Del Rosario, Alex Smit, and Ben Jukich) or another bat like Daniel Dorn.
UPDATE 3:50pm: John Fay of the Enquirer and many others are tweeting that the Reds promoted 7 minor league players to their 40-man roster:
Travis Wood
Chris Valaika
Chris Heisey
Logan Ondrusek
Enerio Del Rosario
Jordan Smith
Philippe Valiquette
To make room for these players, the 40-man roster was reduced from 36 to 33 by waiving Craig Tatum (claimed by Orioles) and Daryl Thompson. They also non-tendered Laynce Nix, who elected to become a free agent.
by Bill Lack on November 18th, 2009 in Minors From Baseball America:
Top-10 Prospects:
1. Todd Frazier, of/2b/3b
2. Yonder Alonso, 1b
3. Mike Leake, rhp
4. Chris Heisey, of
5. Juan Francisco, 3b
6. Yorman Rodriguez, of
7. Travis Wood, lhp
8. Matt Maloney, lhp
9. Brad Boxberger, rhp
10. Zack Cozart, ss
My only problem with this list is that Leake and Boxberger’s professional experience is a total of 28 1/3 innings. I wouldn’t list anyone on my “top prospects” list until they had a season of minor league baseball under their belt. I have a bit of a problem with Francisco at #5, but he had a great offensive season last year; hopefully it’ll continue.
Best Tools:
Best Hitter for Average: Yonder Alonso
Best Power Hitter: Juan Francisco
Best Strike-Zone Discipline: Yonder Alonso
Fastest Baserunner: Theodis Bowe
Best Athlete: Yorman Rodriguez
Best Fastball: Brad Boxberger
Best Curveball: Mike Leake
Best Slider: Mark Serrano
Best Changeup: Travis Wood
Best Control: Matt Maloney
Best Defensive Catcher: Chris McMurray
Best Defensive Infielder: Miguel Rojas
Best Infield Arm: Juan Francisco
Best Defensive Outfielder: David Sappelt
Best Outfield Arm: Yorman Rodriguez
So, what are your thoughts?
As an update from MLB.com:
On Thursday, Mike Leake put an exclamation point on a year in which he led the nation in wins for Arizona State University, was a Golden Spikes finalist and was selected by Cincinnati in the first round of the Draft.
Leake allowed two hits and struck out four over four shutout innings as the Peoria Saguaros defeated the Mesa Solar Sox, 8-1, in the final game of the Arizona Fall League regular season.
Leake ended up with 9 1/3 scoreless innings after finishing his junior season with the Sun Devils with a 16-1 record.
Also:
Reds prospect Yonder Alonso doubled and drove in a pair of runs…
by Chad Dotson on November 18th, 2009 in 2009 Reds, 2010 Reds Kip Wells is gone! The sky is falling!
Wells is the only Red to file for free agency, but the Reds still have some decisions to make. They’ve already made the questionable decision to bring back Ramon Hernandez. Next up: Jonny Gomes and Laynce Nix.
Should the Reds bring either of these guys back? You know I love Gomes and his sombrero, but I’m still wavering on whether the Reds should get him signed, and if so, how much they should spend to do that.
What about Nix? He isn’t as good a hitter as Gomes, but he’s more versatile; he can play all three outfield positions credibly.
Heck, maybe the Reds should just give the LF job to Chris Heisey.
by Chad Dotson on November 16th, 2009 in 2010 Reds According to Ken Rosenthal:
The Reds have re-signed catcher Ramon Hernandez to a one-year contract, according to a major-league source.
The deal also includes a vesting option for 2011 that will become guaranteed if Hernandez appears in 120 games next season.
The Reds had declined an $8.5 million option on Hernandez and bought out his contract for $1 million.
Hernandez, 33, hit .258 with five home runs and 37 RBI in 287 at-bats last season, his first with the Reds. He missed nearly two months after undergoing surgery on his left knee on July 20, appearing in only 81 games.
The knee injury also had hampered him earlier in the season, but Hernandez is expected to be 100-percent by spring training.
Hernandez, an 11-year veteran, has a career batting average/on-base/slugging line of .262/.327/.417.
Make of that what you will.
Updated: Again from Fox Sports…
The Reds have re-signed catcher Ramon Hernandez to a one-year, $3 million contract, according to a major-league source.
The deal also includes a $3.25 million vesting option for 2011 that will become guaranteed if Hernandez appears in 120 games next season.
So, if he plays 120 games next year, the Reds are on the hook for $6.25M/2 years.
by Chad Dotson on November 16th, 2009 in 2010 Reds John Fay’s column yesterday was an attempt to list reasons why the Reds shouldn’t trade Brandon Phillips and/or Bronson Arroyo. It’s all based on the premise that the Reds might be able to compete in 2010.
Personally, I think that’s silly; I don’t think there’s any way the Reds can compete next year. This is not a good team. So go ahead and trade Phillips and Arroyo, right?
Well, I don’t trust the powers that be to get a good return for either guy. This is a front office that evaluated Willy Taveras and decided he was worth a two-year contract, when everyone else in the world knew that was insane. So don’t trade Phillips and Arroyo, right?
Who knows? I bet you guys and gals have an opinion, though.
by Bill Lack on November 13th, 2009 in 2010 Reds Saw this link on Lance McAlister’s site (don’t know anything about the mlbfanhouse site):
The Reds’ need to slash payroll, according to a major league source, could lead them to explore trading second baseman Brandon Phillips as well as right-handers Bronson Arroyo and Aaron Harang.
Cincinnati’s 2009 payroll was about $71 million. General manager Walt Jocketty said during a break Tuesday at the GM Meetings that he “might” have to move some high-salaried players to meet the 2010 goal.
snip…
The source above said the Reds plan to cut back to $65-70 million, which is a challenge in part because of raises due Harang ($11 million to $12.5 million), Arroyo (from $9.5 million to $11 million) and Phillips (from $4.75 million to $5 million).
With their salaries and so-so 2009 seasons, the pitchers would be hard to trade without the Reds taking on some of their pay. So Cincinnati’s best bet could be finding a taker for Phillips, who last season hit .276 with 30 doubles, 20 homers, 98 RBI and 25 stolen bases.
The source said the Reds would prefer to keep closer Francisco Cordero, who has two years and $25 million left on his deal.
I have no problem with moving high salaries, including Brandon Phillips. But where does it make sense to trade Harang or Arroyo or even Phillips and to keep Cordero?
And this is the second place I’ve seen talk of trading Votto. The only way the Reds should consider trading him is IF (and this isn’t my thoughts or beliefs) they believe they’re going to have to deal with his mental health issues (I don’t know what else to call it) every season.
When he plays, he’s a stud and I sure would hate to see him go.
UPDATE:In addition to the blurb in the comments from Fay, this was on Foxsports.com:
The Reds are not cutting payroll, but they are looking to free up dollars and create flexibility for other moves.
Thus, everyone on their roster is available except first baseman Joey Votto, outfielder Jay Bruce and third baseman Scott Rolen, according to one source with knowledge of the club’s thinking.
The team’s highest-priced players — closer Francisco Cordero, second baseman Brandon Phillips and right-handers Aaron Harang and Bronson Arroyo — all are in play.
by Greg Dafler on November 13th, 2009 in Minors, Reds - General, The Brandon Phillips Show No additional Reds roster transactions have been announced yet, but we have more stories on the Reds payroll situation, and player notes on Chris Heisey and Brandon Phillips.
Continue reading Reds Notes, No Transactions
by Chad Dotson on November 13th, 2009 in Reds - General This is fantastic. I’ve never seen a Reds “Scoreboard Stumpers” board game before. Classic.
by Bill Lack on November 12th, 2009 in Minors From the DDN:
As of Wednesday afternoon, Nov. 11, Todd Benzinger knew he would be returning to the Dragons to manage the team for a second season, but he didn’t know who his coaches would be.
“Really? That’s fantastic,” said the Reds’ former first baseman when he heard his new hitting coach would be Ken Griffey Sr., who finished a 19-year major-league career with a .296 batting average and several All-Star appearances, mostly with the Reds.
“I played with him, and even though Tony Perez was the hitting coach then, Kenny was a batting coach, too,” Benzinger said.
Also returning to the Dragons will be pitching coach Tony Fossas. Last season’s hitting coach, Tony Jaramillo, is expected to be assigned elsewhere in the organization.
The surprises to me are a) that Benzinger was back. I thought he was a disaster last year as manager, they got off to a horrible start and never showed any fire on the field all season. b) Griffey coaching at low A ball. It keeps him close to Cincy, but that’s a lot of bus trips for someone that’s been on a major league coaching staff in the past.
by Chad Dotson on November 12th, 2009 in Bring Barry Back!, Hall of Fame I’ve mentioned it here before, and I’ll mention it again (I’m sure), but Barry Larkin is my favorite Red of all time. I think he needs to be brought back to the Reds in some capacity (Manager? George Grande’s replacement on the television broadcasts?), and we’ve even devoted a category to that.
As you probably know (we’ve mentioned it several times), Larkin is going to be a candidate for the Baseball Hall of Fame this year, for the first time. The consensus is that he won’t make it in, which I think is disgraceful.
In another brilliant post, Joe Posnanski (author of this book and subject of one of my favorite podcast interviews) discusses Larkin’s Hall of Fame chances within the context of some players who are becoming eligible for election this year. It’s a must-read.
Posnanski is going to vote for Larkin, he says, but he lays out the reasons why he thinks Larkin’s support will be lukewarm, at least in the beginning. I agree with everything he writes, but I think it’s a shame that Larkin will have to wait to be inducted. And yes, I’m clearly biased on this particular point.
by Bill Lack on November 11th, 2009 in Baseball - General It’s about the new GM in Toronto, Alex Anthopoulos, and how he wants to change his front office.
I thought it was an interesting idea…not sure it’s revolutionary, or that it will work; but interesting.
by Greg Dafler on November 11th, 2009 in 2010 Reds, Reds - General Continuing our discussion on the 2010 season, we’ll take a look at the Reds bullpen. Even with the trades of four relievers last season, the Reds are still looking at a long list of possibilities for the 2010 bullpen. They have a lot of depth, and after Cordero a lot of inexpensive options.
Continue reading Design The 2010 Reds Bullpen
by Chad Dotson on November 10th, 2009 in 2009 Reds, 2010 Reds, Legend of Jay Bruce Yes, we were all a bit disappointed in Jay Bruce’s first full season with the Reds. It wasn’t bad, by any stretch of the imagination, and I’m still excited about his future…but I think we all hoped for a bit more.
Want a reason to be excited about Bruce’s potential for a big season in 2010? Well, you’ve come to the right place. First, Mark Sheldon reports on Bill James’ projections from The Bill James Handbook 2010. Several are interesting:
Continue reading On Jay Bruce
by Chad Dotson on November 10th, 2009 in 2009 Reds, 2010 Reds Shoulda mentioned this earlier:
The Reds announced three minor roster moves on Monday, including agreeing to terms on a Minor League contract with utility man Wilkin Castillo. …
Unlike Castillo, outfielder Darnell McDonald has chosen to look elsewhere for playing time in 2010. The Reds announced on Monday that McDonald, who was outrighted off the 40-man roster on Thursday, has elected to become a free agent.
McDonald appeared in 47 games for the Reds last year, batting .267 with 10 RBIs and 12 runs scored.
The Reds have also lost right-hander Ramon Ramirez, who has been claimed off waivers by the Rays. Ramirez made 11 appearances out of the bullpen for manager Dusty Baker in ‘09, finishing with a 3.65 ERA in 12 1/3 innings. Ramirez went 6-7 with a 4.03 ERA in 31 games (20 starts) for Louisville.
Ramirez is the only one of the three that I would’ve wanted to keep. McDonald and Castillo are AAA-roster-filler.
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