Loading ...From CNNSI on the Reds:
Since they didn’t have the money to overpay for stars, they settled for overpaying for non-stars. It’s hard to imagine Mike Stanton being worth a two-year deal or Jeff Conine being deserving of a guaranteed contract. Does Josh Hamilton have any chance to pan out (though at 50 grand, the price was right)? Alex Gonzalez (the one who comes from Boston) can pick it like almost no one else, though.
Grade: C-.
In other words, they didn’t get much help.
Chicago Cubs
Their outlay and effort were spectacular, with GM Jim Hendry completing the $40 million deal for Ted Lilly from his hospital bed, where he was undergoing tests on his heart. While the Cubs probably overpaid for Lilly, Jason Marquis, Henry Blanco and, of course, Alfonso Soriano, and probably should have made sure Carlos Zambrano was signed to a multiyear contract before Zito blew open the starting-pitching market, they made some very good deals (Kerry Wood for $1.75 million guaranteed, Aramis Ramirez for $75 million, Mark DeRosa for $13 million and Lou Piniella for $10 million) and improved more than anyone else. With $300 million spent, they better be close to 20 games better. If they aren’t, Hendry’s bosses won’t take pity on him; he’ll be gone.
Grade: A-.Houston Astros
Lee is going to hit a ton of home runs into the Crawford boxes. But by the time his $100 million contract expires, it’s going to look as bloated as he will. Jennings is a decent replacement for Andy Pettitte, but Jon Garland would have been better and they came within a finger of getting him (the White Sox had questions about Buchholz’s health, including what effect the tendonitis on his middle finger would have on his pitches). I’d be surprised if Roger Clemens goes back now that his buddy Pettitte has returned east.
Grade: B-.Milwaukee Brewers
Maybe I’m crazy, but Jeff Suppan for $42 million looks almost like a bargain in this free-agent market. He won 44 games the past three years and starred in the Cardinals’ improbable postseason. Estrada is an upgrade at catcher, and they have some special young hitters. Too bad they couldn’t upgrade their outfield. No one apparently wants Geoff Jenkins.
Grade: B.Pittsburgh Pirates
It took months, but they finally landed Adam LaRoche from the Braves, a move that significantly improves the lineup. Their other big switch was in the front office, where one newspaperman, Bob Nutting, took over as managing partner for another, Kevin McClatchy. That means they’ll probably go from cheap to just as cheap.
Grade: B.St. Louis Cardinals
They won the World Series after doing nothing last winter (Juan Encarnacion was the big signing) and being barely better than a .500 club in the regular season, so it’s hard to keep knocking them. If Mark Mulder looks like a risk and Adam Kennedy a reach, extending Chris Carpenter for $65 million over five years makes the overall effort a success.
Grade: B.
Every team in the division grades out better than the Reds….Another reason to be concerned about the direction this team is headed….or the lack of direction.
Position by position, they ain’t the worst. They didn’t bus tthe bank. There’s alot of medioctiry out there getting some pretty stupid money. Glad not to be part of it. The Reds have potential to surprise while talent waits in the wings. I much prefer going into this season hoping for pleasant surprises than the past few where I built up unrealistic expectations.
“Off-season report cards” are naturally biased towards free-agent movement, a market which not all teams can take advantage of. The Cubs graded high simply from the sheer number of dollars they threw out there – Lilly and Jason Marquis were silly signings and will offset any short-term gains made with Soriano, etc. If they expect to improve by 20+ games they’re going to be sorely disappointed.
Good move to re-sign Oswalt; but the Astros have (likely) lost half of their rotation, and that merits a B-? You’ve got to be kidding me.
The Brewers did upgrade slightly, no doubt, and they’ve got young talent in their lineup that could carry them through as long as their bullpen improves (and really, it couldn’t get much worse…). They’re the exception that proves the rule.
Pittsburgh made exactly one move of consequence. Replacing Mike Gonzales with Adam Laroche does not add up to a B, especially for a year-in, year-out 95-loss team.
St. Louis in 2006 was a downright poor club with a veritable truckload of good luck, and have not improved.
I find it amusing that for Cincinnati, the examples of “overpaying for non-stars” were Conine (1-year, $2mil) and Stanton (2-year, $5mil). This while the DeRosa and Suppan signings get the thumbs-up? Yikes. And to ridicule the Josh Hamilton Rule 5 deal just because he’s a risk is completely offbase – as they note, the cost of that move amounts to less than 1/1500 of the Reds’ salary budget for this year. Make no mistake, the Reds have not had a great offseason, but none of their moves have been ridiculously bad and some of them (trading LaRue!) are notable improvements. And they liked the Alex Gonzales signing! C- is low, even considering that alone.
I was going to reply and then I read DevilsAdvocate’s post. No need to at this point. Well said.
I would say that this article gives more cause to worry about CNNSI than it soes about the Reds.
CNNSI’s grades seem extremely arbitrary and inconsistent.
Sometimes the best moves are ones you don’t make (as CNNSI concedes in St. Louis’ section). The Reds probably could have done more – don’t get me wrong – but this free agent market was EXTREMELY inflated and was full of many mediocre players. Perhaps the Reds planned on doing more in free agency this off-season, but reconsidered when the market became overly inflated.
There are still trades to be made. 07 isn’t over yet. I’m glad the Reds avoided the hysterical free-agent money splurge. Just one favor; get Harang signed long-term!
We’re better off with Gonzales, Bray and Majewski. Much better defense at a key position and more depth in the bullpen.
It may be wishful thinking, but I’m hoping that Hamilton is the big surprise of the year. That would make up for the loss of Kearns. If Hamilton can play centerfield, all the better.
Conine and Stanton were good additions to help stabilize the team. Both have playoff experience.
The pitching depth is far better now than before. There is room for optimism.
Just add Widger and Alomar Jr and I’m sure Big K will consider us a playoff lock for the upcoming season.
Conine and Stanton were good additions to help stabilize the team. Both have playoff experience.
I’m sure that will come in handy guiding this team to 5th place in the central.