How others view the trade(s)

[Matt700wlw]

CNNSI.COM
Hooray for Wayne Krivsky! The new Reds' GM has been one of the most proactive executives in the game this summer, an animal unbeknownst in Cincinnati since Jim Bowden left town. Krivsky knows that the Reds, even with a flawed pitching staff, can find a place in what will be a weak NL postseason lineup.
Both Lohse and Cormier figure to pitch from the bullpen, making the game shorter for starters like Bronson Arroyo and Aaron Harang. In the past month, backed by new Reds ownership, Krivsky has added Eddie Guardado, Gary Majewski, Bill Bray and these two pitchers to what is now a sturdy pen.
"They stepped up here. We took on some extra payroll. They're standing behind some of the statements they made when they took over the club," Krivsky said of ownership, including new top man Bob Castellini. "I can't emphasize that enough."
Bottom line: Lohse wants to return to the rotation eventually, but he'll be fine in the pen in his switch to the NL, for now. And veteran Cormier must feel like he stepped onto the cliff's edge just as the bridge collapsed behind him. The Reds are players.

Ken Rosenthal, FOXSPORTS
Reds-Winners
In a market almost devoid of pitching, Reds GM Wayne Krivsky overhauled almost his entire bullpen, acquiring five...count 'em, five....relievers. His trade with the Nationals drew criticism from almost every corner of the industry, but Krivsky identified his team's weakness and attacked it relentlessly.
The Reds, 10-6 since the trade, continue to lead the NL wild-card race. It still seems illogical to swap two 26-year-old position players, shortstop Felipe Lopez and outfielder Austin Kearns, for two middle-inning relievers, right-hander Gary Majewski and left-hander Bill Bray. But let's see how it all turns out. Both Lopez and Kearns are flawed. And if the Reds make the postseason, Krivsky will be Executive of the Year.

CBS Sportsline.....Standing ovations
Cincinnati: Maybe the Reds don't catch St. Louis in the NL Central. Maybe they don't even hold onto their current wild-card playoff slot. But rookie general manager Wayne Krivsky, after waiting years to get his chance to run a big-league club, has done a phenomenal job in completely overhauling a bullpen that was leaking more than BALCO grand jury testimony.
A few weeks ago the Reds bullpen ranked last in the NL. In short order, Krivsky added Bill Bray and Gary Majewski , Eddie Guardado and, on Monday, Rheal Cormier and Kyle Lohse. Krivsky was criticized in some quarters for overpaying in the Bray/Majewski deal, but that chorus was braying mostly because their pants were too tight. Krivsky has watched a huge problem develop this summer and he's attempting to do something about it.
If Krivsky remodels this well at home, his wife undoubtedly has the nicest kitchen in the state.

[Heath]

To heck with that - what about Siskel & Ebert?

[keeganbrick]

But rookie general manager Wayne Krivsky, after waiting years to get his chance to run a big-league club, has done a phenomenal job in completely overhauling a bullpen that was leaking more than BALCO grand jury testimony.

Lovin that statement.

[CySeymour]

To heck with that - what about Siskel & Ebert?

Or those two old guys in the balcony on the Muppets

[Spring~Fields]

Krivsky deserves a lot of credit and it is nice to see some of the media recognizing his determined efforts. He certainly has given his coaching staff tools to work with, now we will have to wait and see if his staff can apply the tools and use them correctly in a presssure cooker situation when the guys on the other side are really coming after them in the last two months.

[OldRedBuck]

Count me in as one who is strongly in favor of all the trades. The club basically gave up nothing:

-Kearns: It really was just a matter of time before he fell asleep on the field.
-Lopez: One of those P guys that Jim loves...Trust me I know (look through my previous posts). However; the bad vastly outweighs the good with Lopez.
-Germano: Dime a dozen type. Does just enough to raise ones eyebrows, but is most likely a two or three year guy at the bottom of the rotation.

The one thing that I feel people are missing on is that by greatly strengthening the bullpen with solid depth, Krivsky has improved the starting pitching as well. Heading into the break, Narron was "forced" (by the horrible bullpen) to leave both Arroyo and Harang in the game much longer than was appropriate.

Arroyo's current slump, IMO, is the result of being over worked for a span.

Also, to the Clayton haters on the board. Simply, this is a much better team with Clayton as opposed to Lopez. For this year.

[justincredible]

Also, to the Clayton haters on the board. Simply, this is a much better team with Clayton as opposed to Lopez. For this year.

I think this would be a much better team with Castro as opposed to Clayton and Lopez.

[redsmetz]

To heck with that - what about Siskel & Ebert?

Two Thumbs Up!

[Matt700wlw]

To heck with that - what about Siskel & Ebert?

Siskel is no longer with us...

[Rob Dicken]

I think this would be a much better team with Castro as opposed to Clayton and Lopez.

That it would be....defensive wise.

Clayton was a downgrade, to be honest. He's mediocre at best fielding wise (which was an upgrade over Lopez, somewhat), and atrocious at hitting (obviously a downgrade). Especially when he's moved to the 8 spot in the order, then we might as well count him done.

[Johnny Footstool]

Count me in as one who is strongly in favor of all the trades. The club basically gave up nothing:

-Kearns: It really was just a matter of time before he fell asleep on the field.
-Lopez: One of those P guys that Jim loves...Trust me I know (look through my previous posts). However; the bad vastly outweighs the good with Lopez.
-Germano: Dime a dozen type. Does just enough to raise ones eyebrows, but is most likely a two or three year guy at the bottom of the rotation.

The one thing that I feel people are missing on is that by greatly strengthening the bullpen with solid depth, Krivsky has improved the starting pitching as well. Heading into the break, Narron was "forced" (by the horrible bullpen) to leave both Arroyo and Harang in the game much longer than was appropriate.

Arroyo's current slump, IMO, is the result of being over worked for a span.

Also, to the Clayton haters on the board. Simply, this is a much better team with Clayton as opposed to Lopez. For this year.

I agree with you that Arroyo's slump has to do with him being overworked and that Germano was cannon fodder. Apart from that, I agree with nothing else.

Kearns "fell asleep on the field" to the tune of an .843 OPS prior to the trade -- 10th best among qualifying MLB right fielders and 28 among all outfielders. His OPS has actually improved since then -- it's .873 with Washington.

Lopez has struggled this season compared to last season, but his OPS prior to the trade was 10th best among qualifying shortstops. His defense is bad, but his offense outweighs it by a fair margin.

Neither of these players were as worthless as some stone-throwing Reds fans would lead you to believe.

Narron managed the starting rotation in July just like he did prior to the All-Star break. He leaves starters in too long, even with the revamped bullpen. That's just his thing. I bet he keeps doing it.

Royce Clayton was a great defender in the 1990's. Those days are gone. Now he's old and has very little range. His bat has always stunk, and despite his two-week flurry of decent offense, it will start stinking again soon.

[buckeyenut]

I think that the amazing thing in all of this is that since I believe the allstar break or just before, Krivsky has taken a bottom 3 bullpen in the MLBs and turned them into maybe a top 5.

[TeamBoone]

I agree with you that Arroyo's slump has to do with him being overworked and that Germano was cannon fodder. Apart from that, I agree with nothing else.

I agree with everything you said except the above. In fact, I applaud the fact that someone is actually defending Kearns and Lopez who quickly became the local whipping boys following the trade.

The reason I disagree with the above is that:

- IMHO, Arroyo is not in a slump. He got bumped a bit in one inning and had a bad game or two in addition to that (but not recently). IMHO, that does not translate to a slump.

- Germano never got the chance to be considered cannon fodder. He pitched a decent game last Saturday, not stellar, but decent for the young rookie's first attempt at the big league level. We will never know how he might have turned out for the Reds.

[HBP]

His defense is bad, but his offense outweighs it by a fair margin.

How do you figure this? Is it through stats or your opinion? I'm not disagreeing or agreeing with you, just want to know if there's a formula or something.

[Matt700wlw]

I think that the amazing thing in all of this is that since I believe the allstar break or just before, Krivsky has taken a bottom 3 bullpen in the MLBs and turned them into maybe a top 5.

Bullpen ERA of 3.10 since...


It was 5 something before.