Good grief, I hope this turns out to be a false alarm, but…
Ken Rosenthal is tweeting that the Reds have agreed with left fielder Ryan Ludwick on a one-year deal, with a mutual option for 2013.
I guess it could be worse, but friends and neighbors, Ryan Ludwick isn’t as good as you think he is. Likely to be below average in 2012.
No reason to get upset about it; I think Chris Heisey is likely to be better in 2012, but the difference isn’t going to be huge. I just think it was an unnecessary signing…and I think people remember the Ludwick of age 29, not the current age 33 version. Not the same player.
UPDATE: One year for $2.5 million, according to reports.
UPDATE 2: Chris Heisey, age 26: 113 OPS+
Ryan Ludwick, age 32, 90 OPS+
Only way I really like this deal is if Ludwick is really just a glorified fourth outfielder on this team.
UPDATE 3: File this under “It could be worse”: Best thing about Ryan Ludwick is that he doesn’t spell his name “J-u-a-n P-i-e-r-r-e” or “R-i-c-k A-n-k-i-e-l.”