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Thread: Reitsma Traded to the Braves.

  1. #241
    Big Red Machine RedsBaron's Avatar
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    Re: Reitsma Traded to the Braves.

    This thread has been an example of the very best of RedsZone, an insightful analysis of a trade by people much more knowledgable that the average hack writing for a newspaper. I've really enjoyed the thread and I've been convinced this was a good trade for the Reds. There is never any guarantee with a trade, but I like what the Reds have received.
    "Hey...Dad. Wanna Have A Catch?" Kevin Costner in "Field Of Dreams."


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  3. #242
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    Re: Reitsma Traded to the Braves.

    Quote Originally Posted by RedsBaron
    This thread has been an example of the very best of RedsZone, an insightful analysis of a trade by people much more knowledgable that the average hack writing for a newspaper. I've really enjoyed the thread and I've been convinced this was a good trade for the Reds. There is never any guarantee with a trade, but I like what the Reds have received.
    I agree completely. Reasonable discussion, some of both sides of the argument, friendliness to one another, the required board down caused by the trade, and in general, well thought out posts rather than blatant homerism (although you gotta have some of that too).

    Now if it could just always be this way.

  4. #243
    Maple SERP savafan's Avatar
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    Re: Reitsma Traded to the Braves.

    http://www.daytondailynews.com/sport.../0329reds.html

    As for traded pitcher Chris Reitsma, major-league scouts continue to shake their heads over why the Reds would trade him for what they did — 23-year-old Bong and 22 year-old Bubba Nelson.

    Said one scout, "We wanted him, and I know we offered better than what they got, although Nelson has a very good arm." Industry sources say in addition to the Philadelphia Phillies, the Minnesota Twins, Cleveland Indians and Seattle Mariners also had interest.

    During the winter meetings December in New Orleans, one Reds official said, "The No. 1 name that kept coming up from other teams was Chris Reitsma."
    My dad got to enjoy 3 Reds World Championships by the time he was my age. So far, I've only gotten to enjoy one. Step it up Redlegs!

  5. #244
    breath westofyou's Avatar
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    Re: Reitsma Traded to the Braves.

    BP's TA report had this today.

    http://premium.baseballprospectus.co...articleid=2717

    Acquired RHP Bubba Nelson and LHP Jung Bong from the Braves for RHP Chris Reitsma. [3/26]

    Optioned LHP Brandon Claussen to Louisville. [3/28]

    It isn't often that you'd tab a March move as a white flag, but swapping out Reitsma for future-oriented goodies certainly resembles exactly that. Although I'm not a big fan of guys like Brian Reith or Todd Jones or Todd Van Poppel, the Reds' pen is stocked with arms of in all sorts of flavors: talented, prospect-y, established, or journeyman. So they had depth to deal from.

    Despite the change in leadership, this deal actually fits in pretty handily with last summer's mass acquisition of other people's young pitching, although the swag is a little more promising than last year's deals. Jung Bong might get typecast into a lefty bullpen role after the miserable camps that Mike Matthews and Phil Norton have had, but he could also slip into the rotation when the need arises. As a franchise, the Reds blew it with Dennys Reyes; here's hoping that they let Bong pitch, instead of wishing he'll be the new Eddie Guardado. Nelson is arguably less of a prospect, but in a year or two, he could wind up being more valuable than Reitsma, either as a starter or reliever. Getting both Bong and Nelson may not make a major difference for your 2004 Reds, but it ought to mean something in 2005 and beyond.

    What's a little more surprising is the decision to run off Brandon Claussen. Thirteen spring strikeouts in 14 innings may not mean much in the grand scheme of things, but Claussen has obvious promise. Hopefully, the season's early fascination with guys like Jesus Sanchez and Jimmy Haynes will peter out, and the Reds can get into the business of looking at the good stuff that's nearly ready.

    ======================

    The Braves need big league-ready arms if they're going to be able to push Larry Bowa into tripping all over himself on the way to a pennant race. The question is whether or not you think John Schuerholz is targeting the right pitchers to shore up his staff. I like that he's taken on two guys with risk and up-side in Juan Cruz and Chris Reitsma, but the key word is 'risk.' Both could merely be useful relievers, at which point you got something you can normally find on waivers (as the Braves have in the past) for some of your few upper-level goodies. As decisions go, I don't disagree with the philosophy: the Phillies might be ten-game favorites, but I'm one of those skeptics who think that they'll find a way to keep things interesting. So gearing up now makes sense.

    The question is whether the Braves have fed their need, or whether their problems remain as thoroughgoing as they appear to be. As Opening Day approaches, on the back end of a rotation stocked with the mostly functional, they're wishcasting Jaret Wright into the fifth slot. That's on top of their hoping that John Thomson works out, and while I'd consider that appropriate optimism, a slow start by the team and by Thomson might get the hounds baying for blood. Paul Byrd might be ready in early May, but if the Braves are falling back that soon, it strains credulity to assume that Byrd will fix a rotation that might have problems with quality and reliability by then.

    But just as I already wondered about Cruz, let's take Reitsma. He was very effective as a reliever last year, rating well in Michael Wolverton's relief metrics. Over his big league career (the last three years), he's posted a relief ERA of 3.26 while striking out seven guys per nine. That's tasty. If he's a starter, he's got a 4.91 ERA in 53 starts, and 5.8 runs allowed per nine innings. As a starter, he's homer-prone, his strikeout rates drop to middling. Sure, some of that might be the normal mayhem associated with trying to work for Bob Boone, but some of it may also be that Reitsma just isn't going to be a great starting pitcher someday. To have given up two highly-regarded arms this early for a good big league reliever isn't a terrible exchange on the face of it, but the Braves don't have a lot of pitching talent above A-ball to peddle at this point. If the Braves can't make big solutions in-season for lack of an extra bargaining chip, it wasn't because they lost it in the couch.


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