This right here is the most important statement in all of those articles. It just won't be Opening Day without Juan Castro on the roster.Castro was optimistic he could be ready by Opening Day.
This right here is the most important statement in all of those articles. It just won't be Opening Day without Juan Castro on the roster.Castro was optimistic he could be ready by Opening Day.
“I don’t care,” Votto said of passing his friend and former teammate. “He’s in the past. Bye-bye, Jay.”
Per John Fay:
Dusty on Sparky, Bruce
Dusty Baker would like to see Sparky Anderson in camp with the Reds.
"I'd really like to see that," he said. "He gave me a lot of advice. I'd like to bring him for a couple of days. . . I called it going to library when talked to guys like him, Bill Walsh, Al Attles."
Baker got his first look at Jay Bruce hitting yesterday.
“He’s got a very good stroke,” Baker said. “It’s just BP. But you can still see places where a person might have flaws, you need to correct this and that. But he has a very good stroke. He come through the zone with balance. He keeps his head still and down.
“Just from talking to him, he’s very confident that he can hit without being arrogant about it, which is the first thing you want to be in a young hitter. The confidence part is something you can’t give them. You’d rather not see them arrogant because they won listen.”
And the difference between confidence and arrogance?
"I can tell the difference because I had some of both myself."
Baker and Bruce were together on the Winter Caravan.
“I spent three or four days with him on the caravan. It was a very productive days as far as getting to know him – to get away from the stadium, the people, the crowd. People tend to be more relaxed. I was very impressed.”
“He’s a very mature young man. It sounds like he’s had a lot of responsibility in his life at a young age. It makes you grow up rather quickly.”
Reliever Weathers welcomes new role in bullpen
Listen to this article or download audio file.Click-2-Listen
By Hal McCoy
Staff Writer
Friday, February 22, 2008
SARASOTA, Fla. — David Weathers could have stomped around, snorted, threw a tantrum or thrown a rosin bag at the refrigerator.
When the Cincinnati Reds signed Francisco Cordero, they snatched the closer's role from his 38-year-old grasp — a possible slap to the cheek to a guy who saved 33 games in 38 chances last year and led the National League in games finished (60).
Weathers, though, doesn't think that way.
He was one of the first players Dusty Baker called when he became manager, and Baker was thoroughly pleased with Weathers' attitude when he was told Cordero would be the new closer.
"Seems to me, he is a guy who wants to win," Baker said Thursday, Feb. 21. "He is a team player and a guy who has done everything and anything you want him to do. I remember him as a starter.
"I quickly noticed that the guys look up to him and he's not afraid to tell them things."
For different reasons, Weathers has been the team's closer the last 2½ seasons. And while Weathers came to love that role, he knows — for the betterment of the team — he is best suited to pitch in front of Cordero, in the eighth-inning set-up role.
"When we got Cordero, we got something we drastically needed to fill a huge void," said Weathers. "What has hurt us the last few years is that we always seem to try to do things by committee. That's a cop-out. Every pitcher needs a role."
Yes, Weathers loved his cop-out role, but stepping aside comes easy because he wants to win.
"Cordero makes it so all of us in the bullpen know exactly when we'll pitch and that's important, something people who have never pitched don't understand. Plus he's very good," Weathers said.
"I really enjoyed closing," he added. "It was evident it was going to be my game in the ninth. When a big lefty came to bat, I wasn't going to get pulled out. I enjoyed that, enjoyed the competition. I know that my time and my career is running out and I have the mentality, which for a closer, is sometimes better than having great stuff."
But ...
"I totally understand," he said. "It was the right move for our team. Even though it hurt me, it was the right move. I want to win. If you had asked me last year if I'd take 33 holds instead of 33 saves and we'll make the playoffs, I'd say, 'Let's do it.' "
What bothers Weathers more is watching the players play the game the wrong way and he says it is played wrong way much too much. And it is why he isn't afraid to speak out.
"I'm not big on numbers and statistics," he said. "Statistics get you paid, but they don't get you wins. Statistics are for contracts. We've lost the art of playing the game the right way."
And, as Baker said, Weathers isn't afraid to cut down anybody with a me-first attitude.
http://www.daytondailynews.com/s/con...22208reds.html
Comments from Baker from Fay's blog on a few guys:
“Some guys are throwing good," Baker said. "You can tell the guys who played Winter Ball. (Johnny) Cueto, (Edinson) Volquez. They’re ready. (Josh) Roenicke showed a pretty good arm yesterday.”
Baker singled out right-hander Gary Majewski again: "Majewski’s throwing the ball well. He’s in better shape than I heard he was last year. He’s stronger.”
Jared Burton’s make a favorable impression as well.
“He was breaking some bats yesterday," Baker said. "The ball was moving all over everywhere.”
http://frontier.cincinnati.com/blogs...uch-better.asp
Here's the scoop on Tuesday's intrasquad game:
SCRIMMAGE: The intrasquad game will be held at 12:30 p.m. Tuesday at Ed Smith Stadium. The 11 pitchers scheduled to throw an inning each are RHP Aaron Harang, RHP Bronson Arroyo, RHP Josh Roenicke, RHP Richie Gardner, RHP Johnny Cueto, LHP Alexander Smit, LHP Matt Maloney, RHP Daryl Thompson, RHP Sergio Valenzuela, LHP Tyler Pelland and RHP Ramon Ramirez. Proceeds from the $5 general admission tickets will benefit the Reds Community Fund.
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