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Reds sign Hairston...to play shortstop?!?!

By Jeff Gentil | January 7, 2009 | Redlegs Rundown

According to this at MLB.com, the Reds have re-signed Jerry Hairston Jr. The interesting thing in the article is Hairston is expected to become the everyday shortstop. Huh? I could understand if Gonzalez isn't going to be healthy they would play Keppinger at short and take their chances. But, putting Hairston there everyday kind of puzzles me. However, now that I think about it, it might keep him healthier than putting him in the outfield where he'd for sure get hurt more often. The better news is the contract is only for a guaranteed $2 million and it's just one year so the Reds are not on the hook for a big contract. He can earn up to $4 million if he meets incentives, which is fine. If he performs well, I have no problem giving him more money. So, Kepp is without a position again. What about putting him in left? He's played it before (ok 3 games), so why not? Unless you want more pop in your lineup, which I'm sure they need. I'm not totally against the re-signing of Hairston. I know I devoted an entire thread to it once, but that was when I thought he was going to want a multi-year deal for bigger money. I think he can help, and keeping his salary down will help as well. OK, Walt. Left fielder is next??? ...

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Initial Thoughts of MLB Network

By Alan Smodic | January 6, 2009 | MVN Outsider

Much like DirecTV's MLB Extra Innings package, the MLB Network is more baseball than one can handle. -- programwitch/Flickr.com

On January 1, Major League Baseball followed in the footsteps of the NFL and NHL by unveiling its own channel -- the MLB Network.If you don't already know what this exactly is, MLBNetwork.com's about page helps:MLB Network stands for Major League Baseball Network, which means access to more baseball than America's ever seen! This new 24-hour network delves into the world of baseball, going far beyond the field. Fans can tune in at any time for fresh perspectives, current news, the latest trade rumors, pre and post-game banter, highlights and more.Again, if you've seen the NFL or NHL networks, just picture those and think baseball. I wasn't sure if I'd receive the channel (I get the NFL network, but not the NHL), so I was surprised to see it coming in through my satellite. Obviously, I checked it out.I was impressed with my first viewing. The first show I saw...

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Discussion Thread: The Dusty Factor

By Erik | January 5, 2009 | Redlegs Rundown

I'm going to try something new on here, inspired from my last post (wasn't a bad way to get people to comment huh?). I would like it a lot better around here if we had even more comments, just have things for people to back and forth for awhile, so I decided to try out a discussion thread. You guys got on me after saying no one reads this blog, now's the time to put your money where your mouth is.Basically I'll throw out a few topics for discussion every once in awhile. Come here if you want a site you can actually have an intelligent back and forth with other Reds fans, without getting overrun by 200 other comments. That is...unlike this site. That, by the way, has to be the funniest blog post I've ever read on there. I wish the moderators luck, but it highlights how dumb the blog is. Not because of the content, but because of the commenters (the idiot ones). Anyway, on to the topics.#1 - The Dusty factorQuestion - Did Dusty use the players given to him correctly last year? Hard question I know, makes your head explode coming up with that answer. No matter what player we suit up for the Reds, Dusty is the one controlling how they are used. He is prone to using the wrong players wrong and the right players...well...wrong, this is what I would term as "the Dusty factor". Simply you have to work against our managers tendencies in order to get things to work right. You have to sign guys around what our manager's strengths and weaknesses are. I sure hope Jocketty realizes this, he seems like a pretty smart guy, I bet he.........sh*t nevermind.I guess I just notice a lot of times when someone is talking about who the Reds should pick up, they stop themselves when they come to the thought of how Dusty would use them. I know I do. So what will Dustbag do this time around? Close games with Weathers instead of Burton (if Coco is unavailable)? Pitch Pettyjohn because "he just wins no matter how good his stuff is" (yeah, ok)? Start Patterson in CF for his defense and lead him off for his speed? Call up Rosales and never play him? Pitch Adkins because he's "experienced" even though none of it is in the majors? Bat Votto 7th because...

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Why I'll give Taveras a chance

By Jeff Gentil | December 27, 2008 | Redlegs Rundown

So the Reds have signed light-hitting Wily Taveras to a 2-year deal today. And the reaction from Reds Nation hasn't been so great. I will give this a shot until Taveras proves just why he was a bad signing. Until then I'm going to be positive. Sure, it's not Baldelli, my first choice, but Taveras IS a leadoff hitter. He hits better than Cory Patterson (already a big plus). He stole 68 bases last year, so he's a threat on the base paths. Another thing I like about Taveras is he doesn't think he's a power hitter like so many others in our lineup. Taveras is a slappy, yes, but I don't care how he gets on base as long as he gets there. Something else to consider: hopefully this is another one of those "change of scenery" type moves. The only thing about that is, you already have another guy behind the plate who is a "change of scenery" hopeful. You can't have too many of those on your team and be really good. Ultimately, you're going to run out of luck. But, for now, I will give this a moderate thumbs up. The Reds are TRYING, and I'm fine with that. So many times in years past, we hope and pray for something to happen or "maybe everyone will stay healthy". Castellini wants to win, and they're trying. It's not always going to work out, but as long as they keep trying and trying and trying, I'll be ok with it. Now...are the Reds done? Do they platoon Dickerson and Hopper in LF? Could a third baseman be brought in and EE go to LF? What's next? ...

Read more | 16 Comments | Tags: Castellini, Dickerson, Hopper, Reds, Taveras

Larkin passes on Reds return

By Jeff Gentil | December 23, 2008 | Redlegs Rundown

This is something I pushed for last summer badly. I thought it would happen. It was only natural for the Reds to bring Lark back to his ONLY organization once his contract with Leather pants was up. Nope...according to Reds.com, Larkin has turned both teams down to become an analyst with the new MLB Network which launches January 1 (I can't freakin' wait!!!). This is really not that surprising. This gig will allow him to be more flexible which is what he wanted. And if you've ever heard Barry do games, he's VERY good in my opinion. I think he's a natural behind the mic. We all know he's very articulate and bright, so I think this is a good move for him. Of course, I would have loved for him to be back with the Reds, but this is better for him right now. Good luck, Barry! We'll be watching...

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Jocketty's Offseason Plan

By Erik | December 20, 2008 | Redlegs Rundown

So..........what is Jocketty's plan? I'll throw that one out for discussion, that is, for the 3 people that actually read this thing. Sometimes I feel like writing here is the equivalent to writing something and showing it to a wall. But anyway, seriously...what is Jocketty's thinking so far from what you can tell?Truthfully I'm with the the rest of you on the basic stuff. Such as he's being patient, careful, sly, making calculated moves, all that. The moves he's made are ones you can't openly be too excited or too angry about (well.....except for Jeff and his good buddy Freel). Let's take a small look at the so-far stuff:- The Hernandez trade - Personally I had no problem with it. We allocated some salary from a frustrating player to a need, it's hard to get too worked up against that trade. It gives us depth, another decent lower order bat, some more experience (don't let Baker confuse you into thinking that's never a good thing), and provides a signable FA down the road (by that I mean a guy who could be cheapish and/or gives us a type B player later on, no way Freel helped us in the future). It also brings in a guy to give Hanigan some breathing room. Hernandez is easily a guy Hanigan could be better than in a few years, so it opens a door for him somewhat. Turner and Waring may have been useful down the road, but given our IF system depth they may not have gotten past bench players anyway.- Rhodes - I think Jocketty's only mistake so far was letting Affeldt go, however I don't think it's that big a deal for 3 reasons: 1 - We already have a good LH in Bray (be nice if Dusty would notice). 2 - Having a few LH in the pen is required. if you think of it in an overall sense, it doesn't really matter how good they are so long as they can get some LH hitters out.3 - The supplemental pick (see: Todd Frazier)I think Jocketty looked at Bray and thought, "Well, we can allocate the salary needed for Affeldt elsewhere," especially given what Affeldt's value seemed to be shaping up to at the time (being called a cheap closer candidate and all). I too am very afraid, but I'm willing to give Rhodes a chance.- Weathers, Lincoln, Hopper,...

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Hoping Hairston Signs Somewhere Else

By Jeff Gentil | December 17, 2008 | Redlegs Rundown

Am I allowed to do that? Can I say that I don't want Jerry Hairston Jr. back? I believe I can...so I will. Count me in the group that, no matter how many outfielders we need, doesn't want Hairston to return, especially at the money I'm sure he's wanting. Yes, the guy had a great 2008, but that was all of 80 games. 80 games!!! It's not like he played 150 and was a candidate for MVP. He played 80 games, batted .326 (OBP of .384) in 261 at bats and stole 15 bases. And he was hurt a large part of the time. Big damn deal! Yes, the Reds played well while he was in the lineup, but you cannot pay upwards of $4 million for a part time player...especially since they just got rid of a guy who plays half the season for that exact amount of money. Let's do some research real quick. 2007- batted a whopping .189 in 159 at bats for the Rangers 2006- batted .206 in all of 170 at bats for the Cubs and Rangers 2005- batted .261 in 380 at bats for the Cubs His most stolen bases was just 29 way back in 2001 His highest batting average prior to last season was .303 but that was back in 2004 and in just 86 games for the Orioles That was also the same year his OBP was at its highest at .378 Sorry, but I'm very skeptical he'll be able to duplicate his 2008 success. In fact, I was hoping the Reds would trade him while he was healthy and on fire because sure enough, he'll sign for a much bigger contract this year and then either get hurt or he'll go back to being Jerry Hairston Jr - career underachiever. Save the money, Walt!! Go get someone else! ...

Read more | 1 Comment | Tags: Hairston, Jocketty, Reds

The Trades That We Could Have Done Without

By bheikoop | December 12, 2008 | The Outsiders Look at the Insides of Baseball

The 2008 MLB Winter Meetings have wrapped up and while there was some action, many of the headlines were either predictable or were not the ones everyone was looking for. This entry will review three trades that went down in a little over 24 hours in Las Vegas-three moves which were largely unheard of prior to being finalized.The first move occurred late Tuesday evening, as the Cincinnati Reds shipped Ryan Freel and two prospects to the Baltimore Orioles for Ramon Hernandez. This isn't a move that I particularly agree with for the Reds and one I feel as though they sold themselves short on. While the return is fine, it is the direction of the return that I question.First, Ramon Hernandez has had some success as a Major League catcher, he is only two years removes from posting a park adjusted .367 weighted on base average(wOBA*). In fact, 2006 marked...

Read more | 2 Comments | Tags: Baltimore Orioles, Cincinnati Reds, Detroit Tigers, Edwin Jackson, Jason Jaramillo, Matt Joyce, MLB, Philadelphia Phillies, Pittsburgh Pirates, Ramon Hernandez, Ronny Paulino, Ryan Freel, Tampa Bay Rays, The Hot Stove League, The OLIB, Trade Reflection

Initial Thoughts of MLB Network

By Alan Smodic | January 6, 2009 | MVN Outsider

Much like DirecTV's MLB Extra Innings package, the MLB Network is more baseball than one can handle. -- programwitch/Flickr.com

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MLB Power Rankings

By Daniel Rathman | September 22, 2008 | MVN Outsider

The MLB Power Rankings will run on Outsider every Monday night until the conclusion of the regular season.� This is the second-to-last edition of the Rankings; next Monday's edition will be the last.� The final week of the regular season is upon us.� Yeah, already.� Hard to believe, isn't it?� The Halos, Rays, and Cubs are into the playoffs.� The Dodgers and Red Sox are, for all practical purposes, in.� Two of the Mets, Phillies, and Brewers will make it, as will either the White Sox or Twins.� All the other teams will be hitting their La-Z-Boys when the final outs of their games are recorded on Sunday.� Here's how the league stacks up in the penultimate edition of the Power Rankings. Note: some of the statistics and records below are through SATURDAY's games. 1.� Los Angeles Angels, 95-59 With the AL West division locked up and home-field advantage essentially...Read more

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Being the GM: 2009 Cincinnati Reds

By Evan | September 21, 2008 | MVN Outsider

This series is predicated on educated guesses, past history of the team/general manager, rumors that have been out there for a while, and actions that I feel could be taken. It does not reflect what I feel the team should, in actuality, do, or reflect what I think the team will do. It�s simply me playing GM to inspire conversation and a new way of approaching things. Moves that I complete as previous GMs of teams will carry over here. The Cincinnati Reds had a disappointing campaign under Dusty Baker, who was hired to lead the Reds back to the promised land. Unable to do so, the Reds shed the two biggest question marks the team had in Ken Griffey Jr. and Adam Dunn. Does it mean the Reds are embarking on a rebuilding project? On the contrary. They're still looking to contend; it's just that Griffey and Dunn were...Read more

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