I don't understand why you would "audition" guys that are essentially known (poor) commodities. The Reds gave out a ton of plate appearances last season to players with wretched numbers.
I don't think Taveras is the end of the world. He's just one in a long list of bad decisions. I do think he's bad for the team. He has a guaranteed contract that pays decent money, and we're going to waste 200 or more PAs on the guy before we ditch him for a better option. To me, that seems like utter futility.