We are not selling Tom Emanski videos here!
We are not selling Tom Emanski videos here!
Hugs, smiling, and interactive Twitter accounts, don't mean winning baseball. Until this community understands that we are cursed to relive the madness.
Sean Casey had the ugliest swing I ever saw, and he turned out to be a fairly good player. It doesn't matter how pretty or ugly a swing a player has, as long as the swing works for him. I am more concerned about his ability to make contact. Hopefully, he will make more contact and not strikeout much.
My fear concerning Votto is that he will actually be too much like Casey at the next level. I certainly hope he has more power. I'm tired of the Reds having below league average 1B and Votto is my hope to provide 1B type production consistently. Reds haven't had that since Tony Perez left town in the 70s.
All my posts are my opinion - just like yours are. If I forget to state it and you're too dense to see the obvious, look here!
Quick observations from the game:
Votto: Smooth at 1B. Should be defensive upgrade from Conine/Hatteberg. Has a longer swing than I had imagined, so he could struggle to maintain his high OBP with the Reds, especially initially. Might want to platoon him with Conine or another righty. Still, has power and solid line-drive cut that should land him his share of extra base hits.
Dumatrait: Hard to say. Only pitched to two batters before being lifted. Handcuffed them both, showing strong command of his pitches if not a ton of speed.
Best offensive player of the game: Admittedly small sample size, but Adam Jones of Tacoma looked to be the cream of the crop. He has it all: Power, speed, contact hitter, good defensive instincts, rifle of an arm. I'd trade the farm for him (at least Griffey), although it does look like the parent Seattle Mariners have declared Jones an untouchable as far as deals go. I can see why. We could sure use someone like him patrolling CF.
Best Pitcher: Manny Acosta from the Braves system dealt the filthiest stuff. Cory Doyne from the Orioles system also could be a mean closer/setup guy, but he needs a fashion makeover. Those are some wacky glasses he wears.
Other asides: The Detroit Tigers not only have put together a dominant MLB club, I like how they have stacked talent like Timo Perez and Mike Hessman with the Toledo Mudhens. Either of those quasi-veteran players could have represented a serious improvement over most of our '07 bench players. Krivsky should wise up on bench construction. Just because you're looking for role players doesn't mean they have to be offensive patsies.
Fan Favorites: Hessman and Valentin Pascucci from the Marlins system. These are both big guys with big hearts. Each hit a home run during the game, and many more outside the game by signing autographs for adoring kids.
Catching prospect: I have weighed in elsewhere supporting us acquiring LH catcher Jeff Clement from the Mariners system as a possible platoon mate for David Ross. Another guy who could fill the bill: Jose Morales, a switch-hitting catcher, from the Twins system. For a catcher, he sure has a fast bat and blazing speed on the basepaths.
Didnt we have Timo Perez in our system at one point last year
Domo Arigato, Here Comes Joey Votto
---TRF
"I do what I want to do and say what I want to say."
--Bronson Arroyo
I don't believe so. He mostly played in '06 for the AAA Memphis Redbirds, with a very short stint on the parent Cardinals team. The highlight of his major league career came in 01-03 with the Mets. He's also played for the White Sox.
Still, he's only 30, maybe no longer a Solid Gold Prospect, but certainly capable of holding down a spot on a ML bench. He sure put on a clinic in yesterday's Triple AAA All-Star Game -- his 1st inning triple igniting the IL offense.
Yes, I know he was with us, maybe a Spring Training non roster invitee
Domo Arigato, Here Comes Joey Votto
---TRF
"I do what I want to do and say what I want to say."
--Bronson Arroyo
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