Loading ...You are the Reds GM. You can only have one outfielder out of these three: Willy Taveras, Jerry Hairston Jr., or Adam Dunn. Who do you choose?
What would the answers be if you opened up this question to the mouth-breathers who call in to WLW?
Discuss.
It’d be a no brainer for Dunn.
Dunn has more power, more discipline and extremely durable.
It ain’t gonna happen but yeah Dunn is the best and I’m sure people would call in and say JHJ because of what he did last year in very limited playing time due to injury.
Between those 3, if I have to choose one, I pick Dunn even knowing it will cost 12ish million/year.
My answer: Dunn
Public at large: Hairston, ’cause he’s scrappy.
But like per, I don’t want to pay 12 mil a year for an outfielder.
uuuuugh
Reds Sign Willy Taveras to 2 years according to Fay. ugh ugh ugh ugh ugh ugh ugh.
I don’t like this one bit but hopefully he can prove my fears wrong.
My pick would be Dunn, without a question.
The WLW cult would be oozing their man love for Hairston because of what he did between his injuries last season, totally ignoring his career numbers.
There would be some WLW types thinking that Tavares is a god based on his steals.
Point just became moot. Jocketty proved he is an idiot by signing Tavares. It Corey Patterson deja vu. No clue how much we blew on this guy.
He may not be as bad as Corey Patterson, but his OBP is not exactly what it should be for a leadoff hitter. I would have stuck with a platoon of Dickerson vs RHP and Hopper vs LHP. Then signed Baldelli to play LF.
What if Tavares is in a platoon role with Dickerson and one more bat is coming to play left? Yeah, I know it is way too optimistic a thought for this organization, but I could live with that. That being said, I do not feel better about the up coming season after this signing.
Why is Dunn even an option? Why not throw in Barry Bonds? He has just as much of a chance to be re-signed as Dunn.
Dunn, Hairston, or Taveras, huh?
Why not ask if I want steak, fish sticks, or a turd casserole for dinner?
I’d take Dunn and the steak any day of the week.
However, with the recent news of Taveras’s signing, it looks like we’ll all have to settle for the turd casserole and may not even get fish sticks to take the taste away.
It’s wrong for fans to allow affection for a player to stand in the way of improving the team. I’m sure a lot of people in Cincinnati would cheer if the team signed Barry Larkin and said he was gonna play shortstop.
Personnel decisions cannot be evaluated without also considering their financial implications. Losing Dunn’s salary did free up a lot of money for use elsewhere. Whether or not managment is spending that money wisely won’t be apparent for several months.
I’m on record here that the Reds won’t keep any offensive players who blossom into the big money ranks after 3-6 years with the team. E.g., if Jay Bruce suddenly becomes the next Albert Pujols, the Reds won’t pay to keep him.
Note that I said “won’t”, not “ought to.”
Umm… “ought not to…”.
“I’m on record here that the Reds won’t keep any offensive players who blossom into the big money ranks after 3-6 years with the team. E.g., if Jay Bruce suddenly becomes the next Albert Pujols, the Reds won’t pay to keep him.”
Not only that, but even the veterans they take chances on who rejuvenate their careers they won’t resign. Gant, Santiago, etc.
I want no part of Dunn being the the Reds again, he’s a proven LOSER. He’s a terrible RBI man when the game is on the line and he’s shown no leadership skills whatsoever. He had a chance to step up and be a leader when Junior was traded, and acted indifferent. Good riddance.
I’d take Hairston when he’s healthy. He’s 100% competitor.
Great post!
Let the Donkey era die……
“Not only that, but even the veterans they take chances on who rejuvenate their careers they won’t resign. Gant, Santiago, etc.”
Benito Santiago, the guy whose career rejuvenation in San Francisco coincided with his hooking up with Bonds’ buddy Victor Conte?
Ron Gant, the guy who played well during his cup of coffee stint with the Reds, then left town and never played as well again?
Dunn, no brainer. Hairston’s first good year was last year (fluke) and Taveras has never had a great year.
Well, I don’t think Dunn ever had a “great” year, either. The strikeouts and the low batting average preclude that.
My take is that the Reds lost Dunn because of over-inflated player salary levels. (Blame that on the owners.) Dunn is worth a lot of money, but he isn’t worth what it would have cost to keep him. He can get it, but he isn’t worth it.
Someone probably made a decision not to pay Dunn the salary he could command, and then found little of value offered for him on the trade market.
If we argue that players are worth any amount of money they can get, then we have to acknowledge that the better players will always migrate to the wealthiest clubs. That leaves down-market clubs like the Reds in the position they are in today, and for the forseeable future.
I would like to hear peoples opinions on Nady and Swisher since the Yankees are look to trade two of their OF of Nady, Swisher and Matsui.
I know that from what I have read the Reds haven’t been mentioned but I think that either Nady or Swisher depending on what we had to give up would make a lot of sense in LF for the Reds.
You would have Bruce, Nady or Swisher in the OF (unfortunately with Tavarez) but Nady or Swisher both also play first base and can hit right handed making it logical that they could give Votto a breather every once in awhile as well allowing you to fill other bench needs than a back up First Baseman.
The question you ask is not nuanced enough – there is a price point at which each of these players can make a valuable contribution, and a price at which they are too expensive for what they contribute. I know you only ask because you think “Dunn” is a no-brainer, and at $7 million a year, that might be true.
But Dunn has negatives, and is a payroll sponge. He’s an inefficient resource at the price level he commands – he’s a player well-designed for a rich team that can spend easily for small parts, but not a small-market team.
So the answer to your query is: Not Dunn.
I like how people who don’t or can’t understand the offensive value that Dunn brings to the team keep trying to fit him into roles that he does not belong and try to convince others that is why is not valuable.
“One thing about Adam is he wants to play every day. He’s played hurt the last couple of years. A lot of people get on him about a lot of different things, but he plays. A whole lot of people look at what he can’t do instead of what he does do for us.” – Jerry Narron on Adam Dunn.
Sound like a guy that leads by example to me.
>>”Sound like a guy that leads by example to me.”
I’m sure Dunn is a nice guy. Ty Cobb was a mean bastard and Mr. Rose doesn’t exactly make people feel all fuzzy inside. But, I’d pay either one of them $12-$14 million per year long before I’d give it to Dunn. That is, assuming I wasn’t at a wealthier club. Measured in terms of percentage of total payroll, players drawing equal paychecks cost more in Cincinnati than in many other cities.
““One thing about Adam is he wants to play every day. He’s played hurt the last couple of years. A lot of people get on him about a lot of different things, but he plays. A whole lot of people look at what he can’t do instead of what he does do for us.” – Jerry Narron on Adam Dunn.”
It sounds like Narron is saying “Don’t criticize Dunn for his feast-or-famine batting or poor defensive skills, at least he’s a warm body out there when he’s injured.” Maybe if Dunn hadn’t played injured so often he would’ve been able to do more for the team than try to get BBs. This gleaming testimonial from a sacked manager really isn’t going to change anyone’s opinion of Dunn.
It comes down to this: What price is optimum to pay for Dunn versus optimum price for, say, the Yankees. They are two different numbers.
What Tampa Bay did last year is fantastic – they showed the league how to game the system and win. While the rich teams are hoarding free agents, young teams are seeking out young talent. That is where the Reds have to go. Dunn is not the future.