Loading ...Adam Dunn went from last place to first place in an instant. No wonder he’s happy.
“I’m very excited about the opportunity to actually play on a first-place team in August,” the slugging outfielder said on a conference call after the Reds traded him to the Arizona Diamondbacks.
“Reds move forward after Dunn“:
“We obviously don’t have a lot of pop in the lineup,” Reds pitcher Bronson Arroyo said. “It doesn’t mean we can’t win ballgames. Yesterday, guys were sitting around [saying], ‘we might not win another ballgame all year.’”
“It was one of those pleasant surprises,” the slugger said on a conference call. “To come off the terrible month that we had in Cincinnati, and you get a phone call today saying you’re being traded to a first-place team. As a player, that’s all you could ask for.”
“I am very fortunate to be here,” Dunn said after batting practice Tuesday. “I don’t have the words to describe it. You play the game to put yourself to in position to be in the playoffs and be in a pennant race. Now, I’m fortunate enough to have this opportunity.”
Dunn was playing for a Reds team that had lost six straight and was in last place, 19 1/2 games behind the Chicago Cubs. Now he’s with the NL West-leading Diamondbacks, who had a half-game lead over the Los Angeles Dodgers entering play Tuesday.
Dunn has never played in the postseason.
“I appreciate the chance to play for a ring,” he said….
Dunn acknowledged it was tough to leave Cincinnati, the only franchise he has played for in his eight-year career.
“It was bittersweet,” he said. “I was excited to get a chance to play for something meaningful in August and September. It also meant leaving a place where I met a lot of great people and fans. It was difficult.
Also, did you know this?
Dunn said he took grounders at first just about every day while with the Reds and is willing to play there if Melvin decides to shift things around when Upton returns.
“It’s on the way to left field in Cincinnati,” Dunn said jokingly about first base. “So I’d take some grounders and then head to left.”
For what it’s worth, according to this poll, 81% of Arizona fans like the Dunn trade. No doubt. On the other hand, Reds fans are cheering for this.
From Hal McCoy:
It was Sunday, long after the Cincinnati Reds lost their sixth straight game, long after they lost for the 14th time in 16 games.
Most of the players were dressed and gone, fleeing the scene of the carnage.
There were, though, five players gathered in a corner discussing the mess the team made this year, the embarrassment of losing, what it would take to improve the stifling situation.
The players were: Paul Bako, Jerry Hairston, Josh Fogg, Jolbert Cabrera and …
And …Adam Dunn.
Yes, Adam Dunn. So many fans misread Dunn. They thought him lazy. Have you ever tried moving 6-foot-7 and 275 pounds of muscle and bone? Ain’t easy, pal.
We know he was a defensive liability. We know he struck out too much. But to label him as a guy who didn’t care was unfair just because of his easy-going demeanor.
Nobody was more embarrassed than Dunn when he botched or bungled a play. Nobody was more embarrassed than Dunn when he struck out with two on and two out in a one-run game.
He said it, admitted it. He told the media he was awful at times. In 36 years of covering the Red, I never met a more honest or self-deprecating guy. He never made excuses. He took the blame, sometimes blame he didn’t deserve.
So it wasn’t surprising that Dunn was one of the players holding a post-game koffee klatch to discuss the many woes of the team.
What!? Dunn never took grounders at first base.
Good one, Bill. I was going to post that article under “Credit Where It’s Due.” Excellent piece by McCoy. Of course, his reader comments are ripping him.
Sample: “I was always told that you can’t hit enough to make up for bad defense.” Or, “A 2-out single is worth more than a HR.”
I am afraid that Reds fans are getting the team they deserve.
Maybe you should post that on the front page, Chris. We hammer McCoy enough; we should give him credit when he is right.
And Deaner, how do you know? Gates don’t open until after the Reds take infield practice. You may be right, but I’m not sure why Dunn would lie about that.
McCoy looks particularly good right now in the wake of the ugly Daugherty column about Dunn’s departure.
Funny that you guys left out this quote from the Cincinnati Enquirer.
“He was going to be moved no matter what,” Arroyo said. “I don’t know if he told (the media), but he made it no secret to us that he was looking for a $100 to $120 million contract. I don’t think this franchise is going to give out that kind of contract.”
If any of you think Dunn is worth that kid of money I have some swamp land in Florida to sell you.
Wait, I thought this guy hated baseball?
Agreed. Small market teams cannot succeed with a non-pitcher making that kind of bread (think A-Rod in Texas). It could never work, so all this navel-gazing is wasted energy.
Don’t under estimate swamp land. It is now called wetlands and has become quite valuable to environmentalists.
Maybe some day Adam will be considered a superstar and be worth $120 million just like a swamp.
The same people complaining that Dunn is gone would be the same people complaining in 5 years that they are paying a guy with diminishing skills $20 million/year. I wish we could have kept Dunn. I think he is great to have on the team. You cant argue that his 100 runs, 100 rbis, 40HRs and .400 OBP arent something positive in a line-up but not at 5yr/100mil or 6yr/120mil. I dont see Dunn keeping his pace up for more than another 2 or 3 years. So if he was indeed seeking a contract of more than 3 years then it would have to be at a huge discount or loaded with incentives or team options and Arroyo would probably know… it wasnt going to happen. I’ll take what we got… A 5th starter/long reliever and right handed bat off the bench. The only way I will be fully satisfied though is if they apply the freed up money towards something valuable… make a trade and get someone under contract for the next 3 or 4 years… someone really good who could contribute immesurably to this core of good young players.
Justin-I agree. I was not an Adam Dunn basher, but some people on here are acting like we traded Babe Ruth.
I don’t think any of us who are frustrated with the trade are arguing that the Reds should’ve shelled out 120 million. No way, Jose. The guy’s not worth that much. The things that I’m bummed about are:
-just the sheer fact of Dunn leaving, good decision or not, because I liked the guy on our team
-the timing of the trade and the return we got for him. I know there was little interest but I still think we could have played our hand better with our outgoing players before the deadline.
also, I’ll be surprised if any organization actually gives done 120 million dollars. I’m keeping my fingers crossed that he comes running home after he finds that out this winter. But that’s just me clinging my irrational hope like being a Reds fan has taught me to do.
“done”…oops “gives Dunn 120 million dollars.”