Kearns rips Cincinnati fans...

[Matt700wlw]

Huh? Kearns has a very good arm and makes plays on the balls hit near him. But he doesn't cover a lot of ground. When Freel took over in right field last year, it was obvious that he was getting to many more fly balls than Kearns did.

Indeed I'm sure that one of the reasons Krivsky obviously wanted to move Kearns was that an outfield of Griffey, Dunn and Kearns was, collectively, just too slow.

Hamilton has more power, a better arm, and better speed. If he pans out as a big leaguer, he'll make us all forget about Austin Kearns.

And that's not a shot at Austin Kearns.

[cacollinsmba]

Its so funny how much Washington is Reds EAST. I didn't know Boone was the Nats' director of player development... who's next? Uncle Carl?

Let's see who I can name...

Kearns, Lopez, Wagner on the 40 man
Michilak, Jiminez, Dmitri, Womack and Josh Hall as non-roster invitees
Bowden, Boone, Larkin and Rijo in the front office

And a couple blasts from the past on the current coaching staff...

Who'd I miss??

[Joseph]

Its so funny how much Washington is Reds EAST. I didn't know Boone was the Nats' director of player development... who's next? Uncle Carl?

It's sad when you are looking for castoffs from the organization we've had the last few years.

That said, I like Kearns and wish he was still here. I liked Lopez, but once he was gone I took off my 'reds blinders' and saw all his short comings as a player.

[cacollinsmba]

Let's see who I can name...

Kearns, Lopez, Wagner on the 40 man
Michilak, Jiminez, Dmitri, Womack and Josh Hall as non-roster invitees
Bowden, Boone, Larkin and Rijo in the front office

And a couple blasts from the past on the current coaching staff...

Who'd I miss??

I forgot to mention Rich Aponte, who although I don't believe played for the Reds, was one of 1,324 people thanked by Dan O'Brien in his debut press conference as Reds GM. Thank you, Angry Guys.

[pedro]

yeah those fans made such a huge difference that Austin put up a .750 OPS at RFK.

Next.

[oneupper]

I don't miss Kearns at all. Just disappointed in what we got in return for him.

[Highlifeman21]

Huh? Kearns has a very good arm and makes plays on the balls hit near him. But he doesn't cover a lot of ground. When Freel took over in right field last year, it was obvious that he was getting to many more fly balls than Kearns did.

Indeed I'm sure that one of the reasons Krivsky obviously wanted to move Kearns was that an outfield of Griffey, Dunn and Kearns was, collectively, just too slow.

Kearns' break/judgment of flyballs > Freel's break/judgment of flyballs

While Kearns won't win many footraces, he's a better OF overall than Ryan Freel. Freel just uses his only major talent, his speed, to mask his deficiencies.

Freel plays with heart, plays fearless, but almost plays reckless. He doesn't strike me as a smart player, which seems to be evident by his lack of base-running aptitude. If we didn't have Brandon Phillips or Alex Gonzalez, I would think Ryan Freel would easily be our starting 2B, but unfortunately he's not, and personally I don't think he's good enough to be a starting OF, even with Griffey's declining skillsets.

If I had my choice between Kearns and Freel, I'd pick Kearns 8 days a week.

[AccordinglyReds]

I'm looking forward to late May when the Nationals come to Cincinnati.

[westofyou]

If I had my choice between Kearns and Freel, I'd pick Kearns 8 days a week.

I'm sorry, The Beatles own the term "Eight Days a Week" and as a known "Beatle Hater" they would prefer you not use the term in a public forum.

Signed The Beatles Lawyer

[Team Clark]

Kearns' break/judgment of flyballs > Freel's break/judgment of flyballs

While Kearns won't win many footraces, he's a better OF overall than Ryan Freel. Freel just uses his only major talent, his speed, to mask his deficiencies.

Freel plays with heart, plays fearless, but almost plays reckless. He doesn't strike me as a smart player, which seems to be evident by his lack of base-running aptitude. If we didn't have Brandon Phillips or Alex Gonzalez, I would think Ryan Freel would easily be our starting 2B, but unfortunately he's not, and personally I don't think he's good enough to be a starting OF, even with Griffey's declining skillsets.

If I had my choice between Kearns and Freel, I'd pick Kearns 8 days a week.

I can agree that Freel's speed makes up for any lack of footwork/jumps. There are a lot of baseball players in general with deficient mechanics of the game. However, Austin was horrible going to his right and anything over his head required a circus catch. I'll take Freel's speed. You can teach footwork. You can't teach speed and Hustle. Kearns SEVERELY lacked both his last few seasons. From what I am reading and hearing about Hamilton's OF play he may make Freel and Kearns look like they are standing still.

[Red Leader]

I'd pick him 169 hours a week, then.

[CTA513]

As usual with Kearns, he accepts no responsibility for anything and blames his struggles on someone else.

[RollyInRaleigh]

I can agree that Freel's speed makes up for any lack of footwork/jumps. There are a lot of baseball players in general with deficient mechanics of the game. However, Austin was horrible going to his right and anything over his head required a circus catch. I'll take Freel's speed. You can teach footwork. You can't teach speed and Hustle. Kearns SEVERELY lacked both his last few seasons. From what I am reading and hearing about Hamilton's OF play he may make Freel and Kearns look like they are standing still.

Kearns always got a lot of credit for being a real good outfielder, but after his first year, I noticed that he did not get good jumps and really had problems with balls hit over his head. His play in the outfield really suffered with the added pounds. Glad you pointed that out, Team Clark. His arm was a plus, and he charged balls in front of him well.

[Cyclone792]

I'm looking forward to late May when the Nationals come to Cincinnati.

So am I.

I'll sit there and watch a half empty ballpark collectively boo one of its former players, all because said former player's father implied that the city isn't a baseball town. And it'll be comical, because in reality that former player's father is absolutely correct in that implication, and the site of a half empty baseball stadium will be all the proof he needs.

After all, we are talking about a supposed baseball town that still couldn't fill its stadium during the final month plus of 2006 despite the team hanging around in a playoff chase and ownership slashing ticket prices in half. That itself is appalling for a supposed baseball town, and Reds fans should be embarrassed.

Cincinnati can be classified as a baseball town on exactly one day of the year: Opening Day. Outside of a handful hardcore fans, the other 364 days of the year sees most Reds fans just living in the past pretending to be a baseball town, when in reality, it's more like a ghost town.

[WMR]

So am I.

I'll sit there and watch a half empty ballpark collectively boo one of its former players, all because said former player's father implied that the city isn't a baseball town. And it'll be comical, because in reality that former player's father is absolutely correct in that implication, and the site of a half empty baseball stadium will be all the proof he needs.

After all, we are talking about a supposed baseball town that still couldn't fill its stadium during the final month plus of 2006 despite the team hanging around in a playoff chase and ownership slashing ticket prices in half. That itself is appalling for a supposed baseball town, and Reds fans should be embarrassed.

Cincinnati can be classified as a baseball town on exactly one day of the year: Opening Day. Outside of a handful hardcore fans, the other 364 days of the year sees most Reds fans just living in the past pretending to be a baseball town, when in reality, it's more like a ghost town.

What kills me is just how many dumb fans there are in Cincy... I dunno, maybe that's just baseball fans everwhere, but I'm not sure I can remember a single time when I've sat down next to someone, struck up a conversation, and heard anything other than the same, cliched, unfair baseball opinions parroted over and over and over...