The Cincinnati Reds have traded starting pitcher Tyler Mahle to the Minnesota Twins for prospects Spencer Steer, Christian Encarnacion-Strand, and Steven Hajjar. Jon Heyman of the New York Post was the first to report the deal.
Tyler Mahle has spend his entire career with Cincinnati. He was their 7th round draft pick in the 2013 draft out of high school and worked his way up through the system before making his debut in August of 2017 as a 22-year-old. He’s now pitched in parts of six seasons with the Reds, going 31-38 in 114 games where he’s thrown 593.2 innings with 637 strikeouts and a 4.35 ERA.
In this season he’s made 19 starts and posted a 4.40 ERA while throwing 104.1 innings with 39 walks and 114 strikeouts. The Twins may be looking at his home road splits over the last few years and think that they might have just landed a pitcher who could perform quite well once he’s out of Great American Ball Park for good. And they’ll get a chance to see how that plays out for the rest of the 2022 season, as well as the 2023 season before Mahle would become a free agent. Mahle will join former rotation mate Sonny Gray in Minnesota.
The Prospects
Baseball America rates shortstop Spencer Steer as the Twins 4th rated prospect, while left-handed Steven Hajjar was their 11th rated prospect, and third baseman Christian Encarnacion-Strand was their 14th rated prospect.
Spencer Steer has split time this season between Double-A and Triple-A with the Twins organization and has hit .269/.361/.528 between the two stops. He crushed the ball in Double-A Wichita, but has taken a step back at Triple-A St. Paul where he’s hit .242/.345/.485 in 48 games. He can play shortstop if you need him to, but he profiles better at second or third base from a defensive standpoint. You can see his career stats here.
Steven Hajjar has made 12 starts this season for the Low-A Fort Myers team in the Twins organization and he’s been dominant. He posted a 2.47 ERA in 43.2 innings while allowing just 25 hits and striking out 71 batters. The lefty has walked 22 batters in that time and that’s a number that will have to come down as he continues to move up the ladder. You can see his career stats here.
Christian Encarnacion-Strand has split time between High-A Cedar Rapids and Double-A Wichita this year. In 74 games with Cedar Rapids he hit .296/.370/.599 with 23 doubles and 20 home runs. In his 13 games since moving up to Double-A he’s hit .333/.400/.685 with another two doubles and five home home runs. The 22-year-old has plus-plus raw power and he’s been able to really show off his power in games. Defensively he’s at third now but could wind up having to move to first base. You can see his career stats here.
Good luck to Tyler Mahle. Guess I will be rooting for Seattle and Minnesota this fall.
I’m happy with the trade. Got some pretty good prospects again and Both Castillo and Mahle both get to rejoin former team-mates.
No outfield prospects and no top 100 prospect. The Reds probably could have gotten a better comp pick than anybody they got. I would have kept Mahle around for next year with his veteran presense to help get the youngsters ready. Krall didn’t drive a very hard bargain.
There’s always Mike Minor to provide that veteran presence. Enjoy fourth place while we can.
The scary thing is that we’ll likely be seeing a whole lot more of the $10M man.
I could readily see the Bull extending him while letting Drury go.
Plenty of Minors and Dunns in the dustbins around MLB.
It’s going to be rugged for a while.
Reds have at least 4 outfield prospects. They are fine.
Again they are prospects.. like the 9 prospects Reds have received just prospects for now
How does that translate into ‘fine’?
Underwhelming trio received for Mahle.
Reds already have prospects in their minor leagues
Should say outfield prospects in their minor league system
Steer is a very solid headliner. Probably not far off from the top 100. He’s the one I hoped would be included. Should be the starting 3B next year
Steer recently moved into Baseball America’s mid season top 100, he’s a legit prospect.
Shortstops are typically the best athletes on the field and with EDLC’s tools (elite speed, elite arm) I would expect a move to RF. Marte, acquired in the Castillo trade is largely expected to move from SS, as he has had some struggles defensively. They’ll be fine in the OF and have a deep pool of quality prospects in order to work a trade if necessary.
And LF is probably the easiest position to fill on the field.
Disagree. I love this move, based on what the Reds are doing right now as an organization. We tend to overrate our own players, especially guys who came up through the organization. I like what we got in this move better than what the A’s got in their deal with the Yankees even. Steer looks like a kid who has worked hard and might be better than he was ever thought to be, and isn’t getting credit from the scout rankings yet. I’d like to see him up with the Reds right away. I personally am shocked they did this well with a Mahle trade.
Think again….Encarnacion Strand is outperforming Jay Allen who was our comp pick last year who I actually really like. I would take Hajjar over Sal Stewart who was a undersold pick too.
Spencer Steer is already a top 100 by Baseball America.
Spencer steer was top 100 @ baseball America mid-season updated rankings
They have acquired a lot of shortstops in these trades, the lack of outfield prospects doesn’t matter to me as much because usually shortstops can transfer to a different position. They’re usually the most athletic people on the field. Billy Hamilton was a short stop and was amazing defensively he just couldn’t hit. Denzel was an infielder and I don’t think anyone playing about his defense. Having too many Short stops is never a bad problem to have
Eric Davis was drafted as SS. Reggie Sanders was drafted as SS.
Both turned pretty darn good as OF. Heard Jeff Brantley say this on WLW 700 radio tonight.
Steer was rated as #100 in BA’s top 100 prospects in their mid-season updated list announced in July.
Saw Encarnacion-Strand and a Kernals game in late May. He’s a bit of a wild card on defense and struck out twice. When he did make contact it was pretty solid.
I just looked at the stats in the write up and I see that in the current draft of 20 rounds, none of them would have been drafted. They have decent stats but no prospect pedigree. They were very low draft picks.
I think you are looking at the picks out of HS. Steer was a third-round pick for Minnesota.
Actually, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th round.
Leroy, they all were fairly high draft choices, and all are performing well in the minors.
And Tyler Mahle was a 7th rounder (out of HS).
I am not sure how you arrive at this statement. Hajjar was the 65th player taken (2nd Round) in the 2021 draft pick and CES was the 128th player taken (Round 4) in the 2021 draft. Steer was the 90th player taken (Round 3) in the 2019 draft.
Far inferior to the Castillo deal but think Seattle overpaid for Castillo. Inferior to the return the A’s got for Montas but not by a wide margin.
My rating on Krall so far:
Castillo trade: A+
Naquin trade: A
Mahle trade: C+
All A’s in my book, and I think this deal is better than what the A’s got in the Yankee trade.
I’m very happy with the Castillo and Naquin trade, this one not so much. I hope I’m wrong, just feels like Krall deviated from his strategy. I can’t see either of these 3 equaling the value the Reds would have got for a season and a half of Mahle, plus a compensation pick.
These are all very solid older prospects (22-24 yrs old) that played college ball. They should dovetail nicely with the much younger prospects from the draft and the Castillo and Naquin trades.
Time will tell, but I’m encouraged by the return. This is going to be a much younger team in a year or two.
I’d rate the Naquin trade as a B+
(Though too much TBD to really give a true grade I like the move)
Castillo trade an A
Pham trade an A (addition by subtraction)
Mahle trade a B
Drury trade a B+
Stock – why do you think this trade was inferior to the Montas trade? I didn’t see much in the Montas trade other than quantity (4 players), but maybe I’m missing something. I also have a very low opinion of Yankees prospects (seen too many fail) but that is my bias and I admit it.
Yeah this group doesn’t move the ball forward much, but one or two of them may at least find a role to play on the big league team.
I think Krall would have been better off trying for a better package in the off-season. Maybe the shoulder injury scared some teams off. Everyone trying to acquire Soto probably didn’t help much.
Oh well, definitely no wear to go but at now.
While you might think Krall should have gotten more for Mahle, you don’t know what he was offered. I wouldn’t suggest you just take the best offer no matter what, but you also have to guess what his trade value would be in the off season or next year. I would think the thing about trade deadlines is teams that are fighting for a playoff spot are more willing to spend prospects than in the off-season.
Assume some of these infielders profile OF arm strength …
Also think the return was ‘light’ considering the year of control that he offered.
Hopefully it works out. Definitely some things to like about each prospect, and some questions too. A bit on the light side on the return IMO. The BA ranking for Steer is the highest I’ve seen for, others I’d seen had him 7/8th range.
Had my heart set on E Rodriguez, that’s what I get for scrolling other team’s prospects.
Yes.
This is not a trade to get excited about the return.
The Bull had an itch he had to scratch.
Clear message sent to Greene, Lodolo, Ashcraft et al.
Yes, I agree JTV. I think we could have gotten more in the offseason. Definitely an itch he felt a need to scratch. I worry about no significant major league experience on the staff next year.
Drury to the Padres? Maybe we’re getting Soto 🙂
#6 prospect but I don’t know what list.
Acosta ss from Padres is what I am hearing
MLB trade rumors confirming Acosta now.
Good, I was concerned we didn’t have enough shortstops
Some of These INFers could be used to trade later for a need or learn to play outfield, Geez
My only guess is Bob told him Mahle must be traded. These are older prospects compared to what Kral got in the other 2 trades. I wasn’t expecting a big return for Mahle, but this is too low. Should have kept him. Maybe the lefty will turn into a bullpen arm. The middle infielder has so many better qualified prospects ahead of him, and the corner infielder seems like the most dubious of the group. We’d be lucky to get any of them to make it up to the big club, much less become a regular.
I don’t think Steer is as high-caliber as someone like Jonathan India but his trajectory is in the right direction. In partial seasons in AA, he lifted his 2021 ops of .774 to .976 in 2022. His OPS is .830 in his partial season in AAA. His power output has been high relative to his K ratio. Biggest obstacle will probably be his arm at 3rd. It will be interesting to see how he, India, McClain, De La Cruz, and Barrero will be utilized.
I like the return. You get a solid potential major league starter for 3rd base and 1st base/DH plus a good young lefty 2nd round. All are performing well. Glad they didn’ t go for Austin Martin. Hopefully, Drury will yield a solid OF prospect.
The Trade Rumors commenters all give props to Cincy on return.
The idiots over at Redszone crapping on this trade is why I no longer post there. This is a really good haul for Mahle.
Some people crap on everything and anything. Miserable way to live life …
Looking at the stats these prospects are putting up this year and past seasons so far, I don’t care what round they were drafted or what school they came from. Numbers don’t lie. These players all look like they have some good potential. I don’t know why we loaded up so much on IF’ers though. Like others have said some will probably be moved around the field to get them more playing time.
Also, I’m a big Mahle fan. I think he will be a strong playoff starter and would like to see him come back down the road but in the context, this had to happen.
I like the return and if it were me the 2 position players would be getting some at bats as soon as they could get here as would Barrero Friedl and others.No sense to play Farmer or Reynolds or Solano and Moose.Other then Moose they will not be back next year.Play those youngsters and lets move on.
If only.
Bell will be playing Moose, Farmer and Reynolds night after night.
In 2023 as well.
It’s going to get way worse before it gets any better.
My gut feeling is that they didn’t even talk to Drury.
We’ll find out once he gets to SD.
Not really seeing Moose getting much playing time the rest of the way, unless he loses a few pounds and finds his swing.
I don’t think this move and the Drury move will result in a top 5 Farm system, maybe not even a top 10 Farm. Steve-O, or others that follow the minors more, what do you guys think? After the deadline where will our system rank?
They are easily a top 10.
I’m not sure what you are expecting, but these guys are all very solid ++ prospects, including the young kid from the Padres. I’m betting top 5 farm system. I’m loving what we have picked up over the last few days. Terribly sad that the organization chose to go this route, but it’s the first time I can recall the organization actually doing it right though.
They are already a top 5…maybe a top 3 now.
According to Baseball America, widely recognized as the gold standard for prospect rankings (and theirs were actually updated midseason), the Reds have six players in the Top 100. 2020 draft picks are not included in their list. I would expect Collier will also be in the Top 100. Keith Law at The Athletic updated his Top 60 list today and the Reds have 3 on the list and another on the list of 10 honorable mentions–so 4 of the Top 70.
The Farm is definitely in the Top 10, likely Top 5. Most importantly, it’s much better than it was 2 weeks ago.
This comment wasn’t meant as a hit against the trades. I really the vast majority of them. My view is from 10k feet as I do not follow the minors of any other team. I hope we are top 5, and am glad to hear the positive reaction from people who follows the minor league system much closer than myself.
really liked the vast majority*
I’m thinking right around 5. I think Bal, NYY, LAD, Clev are ahead of us. Was. might also be ahead because we’ll take a hit in a couple of weeks when Lodolo graduates from prospect status. If an update is done after this deadline, Steer might sneak into the top 100.
kind of depressing. we finally have figured out how to develop pitchers. we have 2 very good pitchers in Mahle and Castillo which i feel were really starting to master the art of pitching. I think the rest of this year and next year could have been pretty special with these 2 at the top of the rotation.
now we have to hope these prospects pan out. Likely though if we are really going full “rays way” these prospects will be traded for other prospects over the winter or next year.
Agree 100%..
I mean I get it yes, however I can name a few can’t miss prospects who can’t hit mlb pitching now.
I say maybe 4 prospects reds got will make it, rest will be traded or not make it. Time will tell of course but “where you gonna go”
Yeah, I think this past off-season was the year to have added big league talent. They could have kept Sonny Gray, added a couple of bull-pen pieces and signed a middle of a line up bat. They could have fielded a competitive team this season. Especially with the additional WC spots.
I think they chose the wrong direction. But after the moves last fall their fate was sealed.
Hopefully, these prospects will pan out before India, Stephenson, Greene and Lodolo become too expensive.
I know it’s heresy on here, but I am not that optimistic about it, someone doesn’t develop as planned, a key injury or two and we start all over again in three years.
Bingo
Sonny Gray can barely get you 5 innings a game or 150 innings a year. He’s hardly a keeper, particularly with his back issues.
I’m not interested in “fielding a competitive team”. Give me a team that is built for a sustainable period of success.
The rookie arms will need a couple of years to mature. When they do there should be plenty of position talent hitting the MLB roster.
The Reds aren’t putting all of their eggs in one or two prospect’s baskets. There is now a slew of talent in the pipeline with hardly any veterans blocking them. 1B, SS, 3B, RF, and LF are or will all be open shortly.
Instead of a half hearted rebuild they’re doing it right. And there will be a ton of $ available to re-sign/extend India and Stephenson.
Give me a WS Champion, not a fringe WC team.
You need to aim higher V4L. Finishing around .500 and the 8th seed is not desirable in my book….Maybe in the off years. Resetting allows them to aim higher.
Exactly E-Arm
In what world would the rest of this year or next year been special with Castillo and Mahle??? We are 41-61 this year and this team isn’t going to be out shopping for big name free agents this offseason.
Well Tommy Pham said we were only a couple of players away …
Injuries or not, this was far from a championship team.
Sign a couple of stopgap guys in the offseason on 1 year deals for any positions that seem unlikely to be manned by the youngsters in 2023. Play the youngsters that are on the cusp and get them some valuable experience/weed them out.
Prepare for an onslaught of talent going forward. It’s the TB Ray way.
I don’t agree. We could have been competitive, but we left 2021 with an aging roster that was below average defensively (Suarez, Winker, Castellanos, Votto, Moustakas) and on the basepaths. We had lots of dollars tied up in Moustakas, Votto and Suarez. Even if the Owners didn’t have to deal with COVID losses we were well behind teams like the Dodgers, Cardinals, Padres and Braves and others. Moreover, we used several of our higher end prospects to acquire Puig, Wood and Bauer–all shorter-term pieces. There was not a lot at AAA, particularly on the position player side.
Prospects bring value through repopulating the big league roster and for trades. We need to be more judicious in future trades with our prospects–Puig and Wood were not difference makers. Was the team good enough to justify bringing in Bauer to push us over the edge? I’m not criticizing the trades from a return perspective as much as from a timing perspective.
I want to see sustainable success. Our model should be the Cardinals not the Rays. The strategy involves maintaining a strong pipeline of players coming from the minors and opportunistic free agent signings and trades. Being a small market franchise is a reality, but it can’t be an excuse. The biggest question I have is ‘will the Reds finally stick to a strategy?’
Correct again BK
Good stuff.
Agree Cards should be the model. But what is the Cards payroll/market ratio? Goldsmith and Arenado are pretty long term expensive…but the transition from Pujols to Goldsmith was smooth.
Kind of an interesting perspective which I like. You have the masses out there shouting to give the young studs their opportunity and the experienced guys off to the pasture. Well we have got it in spades. Now if it doesn’t work out, and it isn’t guaranteed by any means, you hear the masses complaining again about trading Luis, Wink, Geno, Tyler, etc.
I am a bit surprised by the No catcher return. We are very weak here both in the majors and minors. The Phillies O Hogge looked like he was available but apparently Krall didn’t pull the trigger. I think this will be a regret.
I agree somewhat Rednat. These aren’t pitchers that have been with us for a couple years. They both have been in minor leagues and MLB for 5-7 years with very good performance. Its not easy to groom starting pitching that actually avoids significant injury and produces results. However, once you trade 1 you almost have to trade all if you can’t get an extension done to your liking. Pray for no significant injuries to our top 3 starting pitcher rookies. If those occur, the rebuild will be severely delayed.
My only hope is that there are negotiations behind the scene with potentially new ownership and they are saying that any sale requires clearing the decks first. Joey and Moose come off the payroll next year and by that point the Reds should have the lowest payroll in MLB. I doubt it, but I can dream, can’t I?
@Bob, I’m dreaming the same dream you are. Hopefully, the new owner is a billionaire willing to spend buku dinero.
This seems a contrast with the prior deals – several years older, past the lottery pick stage, much more in the category of “near major league ready” with Steer, Strand seems to hit all the analytic boxes, and a large lefthanded starter, so far. No teenagers, and all the numbers look good.
If the Castillo deal was about trying to find a future all-star, this is about finding a future regular. If Hajjar develops into an MLB pitcher, they win this deal.
Victor Acosta for Drury. 18 year old SS. May not even have room to start in our stacked AZL team.
How many future shortstops do the Reds need? Looks like these trades inspire me to get my season tickets for the Chattanooga Lookouts next season. They should be really good!
I love what the Reds are doing.Lets clear Solano,Farmer and Reynolds and play ball.No need to watch them play.Would rather watch some younger players play even if we lose and lose a lot.Finally we see a plan developing.Next lock up India and Ty Steve,cut Moose move Joey to DH and lets see what happens.Look out NL Central Reds are coming,
Coming from what? They won’t be competitive for years. Prospects are just that. Maybe 4 will make it to Reds others will be traded and a few will not make it. Just because a player rates high as a Prospect doesn’t mean a thing.
Oh and who is gonna pitch and bullpen is still a disaster.
+10,000
I actually disagree on getting rid of too many of our existing major leaguers. Some of them play respectable defense. What I saw in Chattanooga this weekend showed me that our minor leaguers have no concept yet of how to play defense at a major league defense. Whoever the minor league fielding coordinator either is in over his head or needs replacing. We’re gonna need a couple major leaguers that know how to play defense so our crown jewels (Greene, Lodolo, & Ashcraft) don’t have to throw 30 extra pitches each game.
I am not sold on Ashcraft yet. I do feel he has good potential of being a Solid #3. I’ll give it another year before I make a final judgement.
Not sure extensions for India and Stephenson are in the plan. 5 yrs and out.
Betrayal! A legendary franchise gutted. Ownership does not want to compete, let alone win; fans need to respond with their wallets, stay away from Great American ballpark.
Pete, obviously you haven’t drank the required Kool-Aid. The Reds are going to be 162-0 in a couple of years.
Agree. Fans should say “we have a plan too and that’s not spending any money to watch the Reds until they put together a competitive team with these “prospects”. Last year a lot of folks here were ready to hand Jose Barrero the key to the city because he’s a can’t miss prospect. Have not heard a bip about him this year and we’re now hauling a bunch of new SS prospects. Smh
Just want to say I have not been convinced of Barrero at the major league level yet. Guy hasn’t really proved he can hit MLB pitchers.
Padres: We would like to acquire Brandon Drury
Nick Krall: You got anymore of them there shortstops over there?
this team could be really good in 3 years
I am usually captain negative, but I don’t mind what they have done…….they are getting middle infielders with hit tools. They can play anywhere, because they are athletes. Out of all these trades including the Winker trade if we can get 4 to 5 players to contribute I would be happy
I like the kids they have received for mahle. Look promising. Especially the LH pitcher. What exactly do you expect for a middle rotation SP anyway? He throws way too many pitches per inning.
Minors are dartboards…..you hope you get some bullseye’s every once in a while. And until the team has owners that actually want to compete for WC’s, this is what we have to live with.
The Reds started to admit they couldn’t win in 2022/2023 when they started trading bullpen contracts /non-tendering after 2020. They doubled down on that last off-season when they started trading or non tendering/picking up options of over 30 veterans or increasingly expensive arb eligible guys. They stayed on course this week and eliminated any chance of competing in 2023. And for good reason. The Moose and Votto contracts need to be in the rear view mirror before this team can win and Krall is aligning talent with payroll and winning windows. Reds can spend money in 2024 and extend core guys then. The purge was needed
2023 is about Votto’s last lap and developing players. Farmer will likely be a part of it as they need to sell tickets and make commercials.
Votto/India/Stephenson/Farmer and Greene will be front and center in the off-season. Let’s see what the other young players can do now that Naquin/Drury/Pham and probably Solano are out of the way.
Williams built a power hitting, strikeout swinging team with poor defense. The foundation was poor, so we never would have made it far, even with a couple of extra pieces thrown in.
A total rebuild is what was needed. Once Votto and Moustakas are gone, they can build around India, Stephenson, Greene, Lodolo, Ashcraft, and Diaz.
De La Cruz, Marte, McGarry, McLain, WIlliamson, Abbott, and Phillips could all have a chance of making an impact on the 23 season. It would be early, but each one has a chance. By 24 all should be on the team, barring regression or injuries, plus several others like Boyle, Petty, Arroyo etc. trying to push their way onto the team.
I think it will be a fun team to watch develop, and I do have more faith in Krall than I did Dicky W.
Yup, Williams was good the first couple of years but then he went crazy starting with that Dodgers trade and then all the dumb free agent signings. The Bauer trade also made no sense. After all that, the Reds played in all of 2 playoff games and were fortunate to even make the playoffs that all in year.
Krall has been a lot better than Williams.
I’ll still beat the drum for DW. His most important work was starting the restructuring of the organization at the bottom. I have no idea how it is still going, but I haven’t heard that it’s not progressing. Aligning the coaching and player development, investing in analytics, even stuff like nutrition and off-field growth. Foundational stuff that takes years to achieve results. If that is still there, then Krall’s moves should progress rapidly. I think we’re seeing it on the pitching side – this draft and moves this week will show up on the offensive side.
I can’t be mad at Williams. In that deal with the Dodgers, he had to move Homer Bailey. I blame the scouting for not doing a better job, the Reds had too many bad drafts. If Williams made a mistake, he relied too much on a poor scouting department.
Optimist – I agree. I think DW laid a lot of the groundwork that brought the Reds into the modern era of baseball, and set up a lot that should aid in being able to compete with less resources. He set the Reds up well as far as infrastructure. Krall was his assistant GM for a while, if I recall correctly. I don’t think they’re drastically different in philosophy.
I think the Twins have won the Mahle trade for now. That may change in a few years, we will see. I thought we would get a little more but in two years this trade may turn out to have been in the Reds favor. Not a bad trade by any means. Again, I thought we could command a bit more for Mahle.
I think this one was good for both sides. I like all 3 players we got back–barring injury all will likely make it. The question will be how high is their ceiling. In our other trades, we brought in multiple high-ceiling players.
cannnot argue with that.
This tear down was inevitable after going all in and overpaying for guys in the free agent market. On that note, thank god Castellanos signed with the Phillies and not the Reds.
I actually like what the Reds are doing now. Lodolo looks to be pretty pretty good. Greene is coming along. Ashcraft looks at least league average. India and Stephenson are above average regulars. The farm system is probably now in the top 10 with 2 top 20 prospects in EDLC and Marte. What’s not to like?
Yeah, I was disappointed in losing Castellanos and Winker, but it may have worked out for us.
A pipeline full of top SS prospects and pitching is certainly an improvement from the past.
The next few years should be a lot of fun.
How in the world do you fit Encarnacio-Strand on the back of a major league jersey???
How about:
The Grand Strand
(which I’m currently sitting on)
Me: tell me Barrero isn’t progressing as well as you’d like without telling me Barrero isn’t progressing as well as you’d like.
Krall: Let me make a few trades.
I have the feeling on this Mahle’s trade that it was good at a minimum, it has could be better but worse too …
I would like a lot and it ‘d be so appreciated if Mr Doug may write a detailed analysis according to his knowledge on the theme about this return to the Reds from Mahle and Drury trades ….
Hooray – I guess. As a pastime, being a fan of the Reds has devolved (sadly) from the splendidness of being a fan of demonstrated ability on the field into being a fan of prospects. The pastime has now become an almost never-ending exercise in prospect daydreaming. An unending thousand-yard stare into the future. The Reds, like many poorly run mom-and-pop organizations, are caught in a terminal feedback loop of rebirth, death, half-baked renewal, death, half-baked rebirth, etc, etc. There’s no end in sight because there isn’t supposed to be. No chance of sustained excellence. This moribund process has become the point. If the Reds ever become relevant again there’s as much a chance that it happens by sheer luck than anything resembling a smartly executed plan. Someone smart once said “every system is perfectly designed to get the results it gets”. To wit, I present your Cincinnati Reds.
You good people on these boards – I sincerely hope I’m wrong. You deserve a winner. Well, most of you.
Now, cue the Sonny and Cher and let’s do this dance all over again.
what would you like us to do PDX – piss and moan all year about our favorite baseball team? That is no way to follow your favorite team, although we all have our days. Sports are sports, not real life.
Excellent question, sir. Frankly, yes – I think think you’re entitled to some pissing and moaning. I mean, you’re a sports fan – it’s your god-given right. Now the degree to which you piss and moan, well that’s entirely a personal decision.
You do make a good point about sports not being real life, that certainly is true. BUT – it enhances life, yes? It’s the straw that stirs the drink, yes?
I suppose I’ll still follow this team regardless. Even if Krall has decided he will not rest until the Reds corner the market on every available shortstop with human DNA and a pulse.
I would have preferred to get Simeon Woods Richardson in a deal with the Twins. We didn’t get him, and I need more time to review and consider what the Reds got back in this trade.
I believe a better deal could have been crafted with the Cardinals (before they made their deal with the Pirates), but I certainly understand why the Reds didn’t send Mahle to the Cardinals.
Krall has come of age as a MLB GM. He’s got the Reds going in the right direction. If David Bell is still around in a couple years, will he be able to manage a young team without veterans being added?