DannyB
02-08-2008, 05:26 PM
http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/AB/20080208/SPT04/302080065/
Reds general manager Wayne Krivsky recently spoke with Enquirer reporter John Fay about the team as it prepares for spring training.
Question: How do you see the rotation shaping up?
Answer: “It’s (Aaron) Harang, (Bronson) Arroyo, everyone’s got to compete. Matt Belisle is in a good position. But nothing is going to be handed to anybody.
"Everyone knows they’ve got to go down there to win a job. That’s a good thing. We’ve got a lot of choices. There’s going to be a lot of competition. That’s how we like it.
"You’re going to need depth. You don’t put everything on spring training performance. I don’t believe in that. But at the same time guys should go down knowing jobs can be won. It’s a good opportunity to show Dusty and staff what they can do.”
Question: Will signing Francisco Cordero stabilize the bullpen?
Answer: “It should. Anytime you add a guy like that – this is nothing against David Weathers because he did a good job last year – but we struggled getting the ball to the ninth with some leads. I think it’s an area we were concerned with going into the off season.
"Signing Cordero was huge. But it takes more than one guy. I think we’ve got a lot of depth. We’ve got a lot of pitchers coming to camp. We’re at 31 or 32. It’s a challenge to give everyone an equal look. But it’ll play itself out.”
Question: What impact do you think Dusty Baker will have?
Answer: “Dusty’s a winner. He’s got instant credibility. He has a presence about him. I think it will be good in a lot of ways.”
Question: How do you see center field shaping up?
Answer: “It’s the same thing. Let them go out and complete. It’s (Ryan) Freel, (Norris) Hopper, (Chris) Dickerson and Jay Bruce. Again, open competition for the job. We’ve got capable guys. I’m anxious to see all the guys who are in camp for the first time – whether it be Bruce, (Johnny) Cueto or (Matt) Maloney.”
Answer: Do you think Joey Votto’s the guy at first base?
Answer: “We’ll see. Let them go out and see how they do. We’ve got (Scott) Hatteberg. I’m not taking anything away from Hatteberg. He might have something to say about it. Joey Votto had a good year at Triple-A and a good September. We like him a lot, but we like Scott Hatteberg a lot, too. We’ll see how it plays out.”
Translation: Blah Blah Blah,Blahhh Blahh
Projected 25-man roster
The starting eight*
1B Joey Votto: He showed a lot in September (.321, four homers and 17 RBI).
2B Brandon Phillips: If he can up his on-base percentage (.331 last year), he can be a superstar.
SS Alex Gonzalez: Here’s hoping he has none of the distractions of his son’s illness.
3B Edwin Encarnacion: A Reds insider thinks he’ll benefit more from manager Dusty Baker’s influence than any other Red.
RF Ken Griffey Jr.: We’ve got May14 in the 600-home run pool.
CF Jay Bruce: This is a long shot. But the kid did have 80 extra-base hits last season in the minors.
LF Adam Dunn: He added 30 points to his average from ’06 to ’07. He’s hit exactly 40 home runs each of the last three years.
C David Ross: Team ERA was a half of run better with him behind the plate. But he’s got to hit better than .203.
*– We’ll leave the batting order up to Dusty Baker
The bench
INF Jeff Keppinger: The surprise of 2007. The guy hits no matter where he plays.
OF/INF Ryan Freel: He could end up starting in center if his knee is healthy.
OF Norris Hopper: He hit .296 as a pinch-hitter last year.
C Javier Valentin: He hit .310 with runners in scoring position and can really turn on the fastball.
1B Scott Hatteberg: He’s a very good back-up plan at first base.
The rotation
Aaron Harang: He was 10 games over .500 for a team that finished 18 games under.
Bronson Arroyo: His ERA was 4.84 in the first half and 3.55 in the second half.
Matt Belisle: The Reds need a breakthrough year from him.
Jeremy Affeldt: The Reds didn’t sign him for $3 million to relieve. They want him in the rotation.
Homer Bailey: Opponents only hit .257 against him. But he’s got to work on that strikeouts-to-walks ratio – he had 28 of each last year.
The bullpen
Francisco Cordero: That’s one of the big questions of the year: Will the $46 million man fix the bullpen?
David Weathers: He should make the seventh and eighth innings a lot easier to watch.
Jared Burton: Opponents hit .187 against him last year.
Bill Bray: Needs to stay healthy to realize his potential.
Mike Stanton: The Reds have $3million reasons to keep him. But he’s got to be better to last long into the season.
Todd Coffey: His ERA went from 3.58 in ’06 to 5.82 last year. Which was the aberration?
Edinson Volquez: It’s too close to call between him and Bailey for the fifth spot in the rotation. But with an arm like his, we see him making the team.
- John Fay
Translation:The young guys had great springs but they all have options........
Reds general manager Wayne Krivsky recently spoke with Enquirer reporter John Fay about the team as it prepares for spring training.
Question: How do you see the rotation shaping up?
Answer: “It’s (Aaron) Harang, (Bronson) Arroyo, everyone’s got to compete. Matt Belisle is in a good position. But nothing is going to be handed to anybody.
"Everyone knows they’ve got to go down there to win a job. That’s a good thing. We’ve got a lot of choices. There’s going to be a lot of competition. That’s how we like it.
"You’re going to need depth. You don’t put everything on spring training performance. I don’t believe in that. But at the same time guys should go down knowing jobs can be won. It’s a good opportunity to show Dusty and staff what they can do.”
Question: Will signing Francisco Cordero stabilize the bullpen?
Answer: “It should. Anytime you add a guy like that – this is nothing against David Weathers because he did a good job last year – but we struggled getting the ball to the ninth with some leads. I think it’s an area we were concerned with going into the off season.
"Signing Cordero was huge. But it takes more than one guy. I think we’ve got a lot of depth. We’ve got a lot of pitchers coming to camp. We’re at 31 or 32. It’s a challenge to give everyone an equal look. But it’ll play itself out.”
Question: What impact do you think Dusty Baker will have?
Answer: “Dusty’s a winner. He’s got instant credibility. He has a presence about him. I think it will be good in a lot of ways.”
Question: How do you see center field shaping up?
Answer: “It’s the same thing. Let them go out and complete. It’s (Ryan) Freel, (Norris) Hopper, (Chris) Dickerson and Jay Bruce. Again, open competition for the job. We’ve got capable guys. I’m anxious to see all the guys who are in camp for the first time – whether it be Bruce, (Johnny) Cueto or (Matt) Maloney.”
Answer: Do you think Joey Votto’s the guy at first base?
Answer: “We’ll see. Let them go out and see how they do. We’ve got (Scott) Hatteberg. I’m not taking anything away from Hatteberg. He might have something to say about it. Joey Votto had a good year at Triple-A and a good September. We like him a lot, but we like Scott Hatteberg a lot, too. We’ll see how it plays out.”
Translation: Blah Blah Blah,Blahhh Blahh
Projected 25-man roster
The starting eight*
1B Joey Votto: He showed a lot in September (.321, four homers and 17 RBI).
2B Brandon Phillips: If he can up his on-base percentage (.331 last year), he can be a superstar.
SS Alex Gonzalez: Here’s hoping he has none of the distractions of his son’s illness.
3B Edwin Encarnacion: A Reds insider thinks he’ll benefit more from manager Dusty Baker’s influence than any other Red.
RF Ken Griffey Jr.: We’ve got May14 in the 600-home run pool.
CF Jay Bruce: This is a long shot. But the kid did have 80 extra-base hits last season in the minors.
LF Adam Dunn: He added 30 points to his average from ’06 to ’07. He’s hit exactly 40 home runs each of the last three years.
C David Ross: Team ERA was a half of run better with him behind the plate. But he’s got to hit better than .203.
*– We’ll leave the batting order up to Dusty Baker
The bench
INF Jeff Keppinger: The surprise of 2007. The guy hits no matter where he plays.
OF/INF Ryan Freel: He could end up starting in center if his knee is healthy.
OF Norris Hopper: He hit .296 as a pinch-hitter last year.
C Javier Valentin: He hit .310 with runners in scoring position and can really turn on the fastball.
1B Scott Hatteberg: He’s a very good back-up plan at first base.
The rotation
Aaron Harang: He was 10 games over .500 for a team that finished 18 games under.
Bronson Arroyo: His ERA was 4.84 in the first half and 3.55 in the second half.
Matt Belisle: The Reds need a breakthrough year from him.
Jeremy Affeldt: The Reds didn’t sign him for $3 million to relieve. They want him in the rotation.
Homer Bailey: Opponents only hit .257 against him. But he’s got to work on that strikeouts-to-walks ratio – he had 28 of each last year.
The bullpen
Francisco Cordero: That’s one of the big questions of the year: Will the $46 million man fix the bullpen?
David Weathers: He should make the seventh and eighth innings a lot easier to watch.
Jared Burton: Opponents hit .187 against him last year.
Bill Bray: Needs to stay healthy to realize his potential.
Mike Stanton: The Reds have $3million reasons to keep him. But he’s got to be better to last long into the season.
Todd Coffey: His ERA went from 3.58 in ’06 to 5.82 last year. Which was the aberration?
Edinson Volquez: It’s too close to call between him and Bailey for the fifth spot in the rotation. But with an arm like his, we see him making the team.
- John Fay
Translation:The young guys had great springs but they all have options........