Walt is just being diplomatic.
A press person asks him a question about the catching situation.
He really has no idea if it's worth it to trade Hanigan or even Mez.
Why say something that boxes him into a corner?
It's highly unlikely the Reds go with 3 catchers. I would not worry.
Walt got Choo and Parra last season. Parra was not a trade, but a great move. I know it makes the winter more boring, but I kind of like the results that slow, methodical Walt gives as opposed to the constant random, roster churn of Krivisky and Bowden.
[Phil ] Castellini celebrated the team's farm system and noted the team had promising prospects who would one day be great Reds -- and then joke then they'd be ex-Reds, saying "of course we're going to lose them". #SellTheTeamBob
Nov. 13, 2007: One of the greatest days in Reds history: John Allen gets the boot!
Others have addressed this, saying he was being diplomatic or that he's not going to disparage a player and those would be correct, IMO. But likewise, keep in mind that it does no good for your trade position to be talking about being in a bind now that you have three catchers signed. Conceivably, they could go into the season with three catchers, although that's unlikely. But, again, it does us no good to say straight up, "I've got to trade one of the other ones."
“In the same way that a baseball season never really begins, it never really ends either.” - Lonnie Wheeler, "Bleachers, A Summer in Wrigley Field"
The Baseball Emporium - Books & Things.
The Baseball Bookstore
http://tsc-sales.com/
http://tscsales.blogspot.com/
http://silverscreenbooks.com/
Here's a story put up on MLB.com on Pena. Interesting stuff.
http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article/cin/...n&ymd=20140203
“In the same way that a baseball season never really begins, it never really ends either.” - Lonnie Wheeler, "Bleachers, A Summer in Wrigley Field"
The Baseball Emporium - Books & Things.
The Baseball Bookstore
http://tsc-sales.com/
http://tscsales.blogspot.com/
http://silverscreenbooks.com/
http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article/cin/...&vkey=news_cin
Although starting catcher Devin Mesoraco will see the bulk of the workload behind the plate, Price doesn't plan on pairing Pena with a specific starting pitcher or two throughout the course of the season.
Price sees the switch-hitting Pena as an offensive weapon against certain opponents. Because of Pena's ability to work with the entire staff, Price won't need to limit Pena's playing days to a set rotation.
"He talks to the pitchers every day, and he knows how to lead," Price said. "He's got very strong leadership abilities. He's an excellent addition to our club. I think he really fits what we're trying to do here."And for Pena, the Cincinnati organization takes on a bit of added significance. A native of Cuba, Pena grew up a Reds fan -- as many Cubans do because of the club's ties with players like Leo Cardenas, Tony Perez and, presently, Aroldis Chapman.
Understandably, it gives Pena a lot of joy to glance down at his chest and see the script "Reds" emblazoned across his jersey.
"The Reds are one of those teams that has a lot of tradition -- especially in my country," Pena said. "Chapman and I, we were talking about it the other day, and we feel like, 'Wow, this is awesome to be playing here with the Reds.' Everybody in Cuba is so excited for us playing together with the Reds. There's a lot of tradition with this ballclub, and I just feel like I'm blessed for the opportunity."
Glad that Pena won't be assigned to certain starters. While I get trying to make the starting pitcher as comfortable as possible, I much prefer the idea of being flexible and not sitting Mesoraco when he's on a tear just because (x) is starting.
“I don’t care,” Votto said of passing his friend and former teammate. “He’s in the past. Bye-bye, Jay.”
bigredmechanism (03-13-2014),Old school 1983 (03-13-2014),Raisor (03-13-2014)
I can understand it if you have only one pitcher who prefers a "personal" catcher, either because he is an elite Greg Maddux/Steve Carlton type, or because he throws a unique pitch like the Niekro brothers, or because of a serious language barrier. I was OK with Arroyo having a personal catcher in David Ross, and then Ryan Hanigan, because he was a "thinking man's pitcher" who felt more comfortable having someone behind the plate who was on the same page as him mentally. If the "personal" catcher is the #2 C, then it also builds in scheduled "off days" for the regular catcher to get some rest. But IMO no more than one pitcher in a rotation should have such a luxury--it handcuffs the club too much.
I agree but there are exceptions.
A lot of pitchers have delicate psyches. With some pitchers, if they think that a personal catcher helps them out, it probably does. But if they are good enough it shouldn't matter. Does anyone believe that if Javy Lopez caught Maddux all the time he wouldn't have the career he had? Just like last summer. Hanigan got hurt and Mes had to catch guys like Bronson. They quickly found out that they pitched just as well, if not better, with Mes than they did with Hanigan.
A couple of stories came out today about Brayan Pena,
one from CTrent:
http://www.cincinnati.com/story/spor...miles/9016085/
one from Sheldon:
http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article/cin/...&vkey=news_cin
They are mostly just feel good, human interest type pieces for an off day, but I thought they were at least decent ones, worth sharing.
"We're in the big leagues. Thank God I have a beautiful family, I'm in the greatest country ever and what's not to be happy about?" Pena said. "The fact that I'm here in the big leagues with a great team, I do have a lot of appreciation for the fans. This early in my career in Cincinnati, it's unbelievable. Things like that keep me very humble. Like I said before, there's nothing fake about me, what you see is what you're get. I'm not a gold coin – not everyone's going to like me. I just try to be the best human being I can be. I try to respect everybody. At the end of the day, we're humans. It doesn't matter how much money you make, your skin color, your race or where you come from, it's what's inside. I try to respect everybody and hopefully everyone respects me."
Pena has taken to the Reds quickly and they, too, have welcomed him with open arms.
"The first time I got here in Spring Training, all these guys embraced me like they knew me forever," Pena said. "The stars like Jay Bruce, Joey Votto and Cueto and Brandon [Phillips], they're always together and joking with each other. That says a lot. No superstars. Everybody is the same. When you see that, you feel like you belong in this clubhouse. It makes it easier for you to be happy."
Pena's signing has paid dividends both on the field and off, especially from his little corner of the clubhouse.
"[Pena is] of extremely high character," Price said. "I think he's not just universally liked on our team, but universally respected. To me, he's very similar to [former Cincinnati outfielder] Jonny Gomes. He was as good of a teammate when he was playing as when he wasn't playing. He was an unbelievable teammate. He wasn't sitting on his hands upset that he wasn't in the lineup. He was embracing his role on any given day of being a support player.
757690 (05-12-2014),Boss-Hog (05-14-2014),Number_Fourteen (05-12-2014),RedlegJake (05-13-2014),UKFlounder (05-12-2014),westofyou (05-12-2014)
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