As we wait for the Reds to embark on another Spring Training, something curious caught my eye on the Twitter-verse. A question posed to Reds beat writer John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer asked him to grade the Reds offseason. He replied "solid B." I have to admit I was slightly taken aback. I was thinking B+, maybe an A-.
Perhaps I can't see the forest before the trees, but to me few teams in MLB addressed their needs and improved themselves on paper like Cincinnati. They needed to improve the rotation--check, acquiring hard-throwing Mat Latos from San Diego. They needed a closer--check signing Ryan Madson at a bargain basement price. In addition they solidified the bullpen by trading for the Cubs Sean Marshall. That left an outfielder and a reserve infielder on Walt Jocketty's shopping list. He responds by inking OF Ryan Ludwick--check, and trades for the Phillies Wilson Valdez--check.
Granted not one of these moves is as flashy as signing an Albert Pujols (Angels), Prince Fielder (Tigers), or Jose Reyes (Marlins). However, the Reds didn't need Pujols or Fielder (they couldn't afford either of them) and the same goes for Reyes. But with SS Zack Cozart ready, Reyes didn't make sense.
Sure one could point to the team not addressing third base as an issue, but if Scott Rolen is healthy, he's still one of the best in the game defensively and is still more than capable at the plate--even at age 37. Plus the organization signed and drafted Juan Francisco and Todd Frazier respectively. While each has only a small Major League sample size, they project to be above average players.
Getting back to Fay, someone else on Twitter pressed him to explain his offseason grade. He said it had to do with what the Reds traded away in the Latos and Marshall deals. Sure the organization depleted much of its minor league system, but how does that minimize the team's offseason grade? Don't you have to give up quality to get quality? I'm not following Fay's logic.
Let me hear what you think though. Am I not being impartial enough? Has my fandom gotten the better of me? Only time will reveal the truth.
The Reds went all in as well they should have. They traded a lot of young talent, but much of it is not proven. This is the way things work when you make a hard play to acquire top talent (Latos & Marshall). They added one of the premier closers in the game (Madsen), who has a ring and has pitched in a small ballpark in Philly. They added solid outfield depth with Ludwick, who is due to rebound playing have his games at Great American Ballpark, and best of all, they still have the steady hand of Dusty Baker (yeah I said it). Oh, having Votto, Bruce, Phillips, & Cueto doesn't hurt either. The Reds will be contenders in 2012. Book it. Boom!
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