Loading ...From John Fay and the Enquirer:
Krivsky didn’t exactly spill any front-office secrets and he did dance around a couple of questions, but he was as forthcoming as he’s been since the season ended.
Here’s what the fans got out of him:
On starting pitching beyond Aaron Harang and Bronson Arroyo: “You’re always looking for pitching. (Kyle) Lohse and (Eric) Milton, we’re pretty happy with them to be two of the five starters. For the fifth spot, there’ll be competition in spring training. We’ll look to add depth there. I think we’re pretty well set at four spots.”
So much for any thoughts of the Reds non-tendering Lohse. Guess we’re looking at $6M+ for one and $8M+ for two pitchers that are below league average. Can a team with a limited payroll compete spending money in this manner?
On the possibility of trading Adam Dunn for a young pitcher: “I appreciate the question. When you get into talking trades – no matter who – it’s difficult to do. As a general answer, we’re looking at anything that makes our team better. Right now, I feel pretty good about pitching. You can say we don’t have a closer but we have guys on our team that have closed. I know it’s not ideal. We don’t have a Mariano Rivera or Joe Nathan but not many teams do. It’s my job to give Jerry as many good arms as possible. It might be a different guy each night.”
Doesn’t really say anything clearly, but it seems to me like he’s saying it’s less likely they’ll trade Dunn.
On the possibility of signing Aaron Boone or Shannon Stewart: “Shannon Stewart’s a free agent. He had a serious foot injury. The last I heard he was contemplating retiring. We have to wait and see. Aaron Boone is also a free agent. We are looking for a right-handed bat to complement Scott Hatteberg. He’s on a long list of players to be considered for that.”
First I’ve heard Boone’s name mentioned. Krivsky hasn’t seemed to have the “bring back the old Reds” gene that has been so prevalent in recent GMs. Boone’s career numbers are headed in the wrong direction.
And Fay reported this from Jerry Narron:
Speaking of Griffey, Narron said the possibility of moving him to right field has been discussed: “We’re going to do whatever we can to keep him on the field.”
I’ll believe this when it happens, not before.
There seems to be a regular amount of complaining by some of the leaders of this board on the salaries being paid, which is easy to do when you are not looking into the market and answering the simplest of questions:
Who would you replace them with?
I’m not saying Milton or Lohse are worth $14 million, but I am saying it’s an awful market for free agents. When Adam Eaton gets $8 million a year and look at the overall cost of pitching (middle relievers are out of control!) you have to understand what it costs for these players today.
We complain about the cost of gas. But that’s what we will have to pay if we want to drive our cars. IN baseball, if you want a starting player, chances are you’re beginning at about $4 million.
It’s the way it is.
As non-spectacular as Lohse and Milton are, their money seems pretty much in line with the out-of-line salaries being handed out so far this offseason.
Is Aaron Boone the righthanded hitter we need to spell Hatteberg at first? Please, that would only give Narron an excuse to use him at third when Edwin has a bad day. Leave Encarnacion alone – he’s our cleanup hitter of the future.
I’m not sure who I’d replace Lohse with, but I do know that he’s a below average pitcher with a history of being a clubhouse cancer, who I don’t believe is worth $6M per season. I didn’t like the trade that brought him to the Reds and don’t believe he’s worth the money we’re talking about.
Milton’s money is gone and that’s on the previous management. I do wonder though if this salary is now reasonable, would he be tradable?
Teams with limited payroll cannot afford to spend money foolishly, I believe current management making the decision to pay a below average pitcher somewhere around $6M make no fiscal sense for this team, even if it means waiting to build a team from inside in order to be competitive.
I repeat the question: WHO do you put on the mound in place of Lohse?
Again and again, $6 million for a starting pitcher is the going rate.
If you’re gonna say get rid of someone, then have the replacemenbt in mind. That’s what managers and GMs must do, so should armchair managers and GMs.
Aaron Boone’s best days are behind him offensively.
I don’t think this team can afford anyone any better in FA, but that doesn’t mean Lohse is worth $6M.
Inside the organization? I’d try Claussen, Belisle, Ramirez..Bailey is on the horizon somewhere. Dumatrait, I’d even look at Steve Kelly.
I’d rather have a failure at a low salary than one at $6M.
Then you are having to find a number 4 and number 5 starter among these scraps you mentioned. Looking at them is one thing, counting on them is another.
Plus, Lohse is a young guy who pretty good stuff. let the new pitching coach see what he can do with him.
But I do agree about Belisle. It’s time they find out if he is a legit starter. I’d like to see him win the number 5 slot.
Estaban Yan has good stuff. Want to see him back in the bullpen?
Eaton’s career numbers and recent history are better than Lohse’s. I listed a bunch of pithcers toward the end of the season who were in “Eaton’s class” that are available in FA.
What’s the probable going rate on someone like Suppan? I’d save Lohse’s $6 million and apply it to getting someone like Suppan. That’d give the team a legit #3, Milton slots in to #4, and you then have Claussen, Ramirez, etc battling for #5.
file this under never-gonna-happen, but looking for creative ways for the reds to get better, i saw that minaya is rumored to be looking to deal milledge and heilman for a front line starter.
i’m in the camp that thinks we’re in for a wicked-bad regression from arroyo this year, and if we could convince minaya that he’s as good as last year’s ERA, it could be a way for us to add offense without taking a hit in pitching or raising costs.
heilman has been pushing to start for years and deserves the chance. He’s maintained all of his minor league rates, which are good, and should be able to put up a sub-4 ERA in someone’s rotation.
Millage had a rough year last year, and is immature, but he’s only 21 and has a .380+ minor league OBP. He’s not a raw power guy, but he’s also got pop and could be a right OF for us for the future.
I’d like to see the Reds sign Eduardo Perez for the right handed portion of the 1b platoon.
The Arroyo for Milledge-Heilman proposition has already been posted and discussed on Mark Lancaster’s blog.
And no one is getting Jeff Suppan for $6-$8 million.
I didn’t say that Suppan would go for $6 million. I said, I’d apply that $6 million toward Suppan’s salary instead of spending it on someone who is a below average starter.
IMHO there is a big difference between Harang-Arroyo and hoping 3 spots work out and Harang-Arroyo-Suppan (or whoever the legit #3 is) and hoping that 2 spots work out.
per espn.com…
Reds and Weathers are close to signing a two-year 5 million $ deal….