Hot Stove League show report

[Chip R]

I am probably the last one around here to criticize any of the broadcasters or writers, but sometimes they deserve it. OF COURSE Welsh is going to say they're better without Dunn and Jr. These guys are getting paid by the club, it's no shock that they're buying all of the moves hook, like and sinker. I just think it's a stupid comment to make. We're replacing almost 60 homers and about 170 RBIs with a guy that had 2 good months in the majors last year and another guy who has been dreadful for the last 3 years. Color me unimpressed, my friend. I'm not buying the spin. Replacing Dunn I was ok with. Replacing Dunn with garbage I was not.

I think Welsh is spouting the party line here. But I think he's sincere when he says that or he's bought into it so much he actually believes it. Defensively, we shouldn't miss either one. Offensively, we'll miss Dunn tremendously but Jr. probably not too much. I'll go into a little more detail tonight when I post the whole report but Welsh was saying that Jr. got a lot of the attention when the Reds went on road trips. That's not going to happen this year and he seemed to infer that the Reds players will be better off for it. It's similar to the leadership talk that's been going around since they left. It's been reported that some of the younger players were reluctant to show leadership without those two around. But they have no excuses now and have to step up.

The Reds are trying to sell - and I know it's a cliche on here - scrappy now. They are saying that we have 25 guys who are going to bust their tails every night now. No superstars anymore just a bunch of guys who will run out the ground balls and bunt and steal bases and drive in runners with men on base and catch and throw the ball better and not strike out so much. Reds fans eat that stuff up with a spoon but they aren't going to show up unless they win no matter how scraptastic they are.

[I(heart)Freel]

Could also be that Welsh is a former pitcher and therefore values defense way more than others?

Could also mean that he thinks Reds fans won't miss anyone as long as the club is winning? After all, we don't care who does it or how, as long as the players wearing the Reds uniforms are the ones high fiving on the mound when the game is over.

Just two theories behind the statement.

[westofyou]

Could also be that Welsh is a former pitcher and therefore values defense way more than others?

Chris has also state dthat when he was a fan of the BRM he used to think they should bunt more than they did, in retrospect he's stated that he was an idiot on that one.

Chris is a 60's/70's fan of the game, he has a bias about the way the game should be played at times, as many of them (us) do.

The game's changed a bit in the past 20 years, many of the announcers don't want to admit that all the way.

[Chip R]

Could also be that Welsh is a former pitcher and therefore values defense way more than others?

Could also mean that he thinks Reds fans won't miss anyone as long as the club is winning? After all, we don't care who does it or how, as long as the players wearing the Reds uniforms are the ones high fiving on the mound when the game is over.

Just two theories behind the statement.

You may be right on both counts. I don't think there's much of an argument to be made that the Reds are better now defensively than they were a year ago. Offensively and in the clubhouse, the jury's still out on that one.

I agree that Reds fans aren't going to care who the players are, as long as they win. As Jerry Seinfeld said, "We root for laundry." I think it's silly to say that the Reds won't miss Jr. and Dunn. They may not miss all aspects of their game but they will miss some aspects. It's like saying the Red Sox won't miss Manny. He was a PITA in some areas but he certainly helped them at the plate. We all know how popular Sean Casey was when he was here. A lot of people thought he would be missed a great deal. I'm sure he was but his last year here, the Reds finished 73-89. The next year they were 80-82. Doesn't look like they missed him that much. That's no knock on Casey since it certainly wasn't all his fault the Reds were 73-89.

The Reds are trying to put the best face they can on this. They aren't telling the fans how much they will miss Dunn and Jr. and they shouldn't. They need to promote this team and they are doing it the best they can. But all the hype and all the promises isn't going to translate into wins. If they win people will watch them. If they don't, no matter how well they pitch or play defense, they won't. People weren't coming out to Dunn and Jr. hit home runs. And this is a franchise that didn't draw a million people until they hit a record number of home runs - plus they were in the pennant race most of the year.

[gm]

Chris Welsh told me himself that the Reds needed someone to replace Dunn's production. So, what he says on the air may be different from what he believes. Company line?

"and never is heard a discouraging word..."

The Creeper has been listening to Georgie and learned this lesson well, over all these years

[Chip R]

Here is the Reds Hot Stove League show report for 2-17-09. Thom and Chris Welsh were the hosts from the Reds HOF & Museum. Thom said that Chris and George were the longest running TV broadcasters in franchise history with 17 years together. Thom talked about the signing of EE to a 2 year deal avoiding arbitration. Thom said Walt hates to go to arbitration and will avoid it if humanly possible. Thom said it was a bit of a surprise that it was a 2 year deal. Chris said he didn’t think it was that big of a surprise because they bought out his arbitration years and it takes pressure off the player and the team next year. Chris said going through arbitration is tough because the team is trying to tell the arbitrator of all the things the player did wrong and it leads to ill-feelings. Thom said that EE is the man on the spot as far as the fans are concerned since he’s got a world of potential and he hasn’t put it together yet. Thom said the two year deal may be a good thing or a bad thing since he may feel more secure but he could just slack off since he’s already got a deal for 2010. Chris thought last year would be his breakout year and he’d embrace what Dusty was trying to do but he was inconsistent. Chris said there are a lot of guys on the team older than EE including guys like Owings and Votto. Chris said he’s a quiet sensitive guy who doesn’t say much. Because if that it appears that he doesn’t care but Chris said he cares quite a bit and it eats him up on the inside and he needs to be stroked more than he needs to be pushed. Thom said that EE was always one of the first guys to the park working on his fielding, throwing and hitting and he’s always trying to improve. Chris said that every time EE got sent down he came back up and played very well. He said he’ll get pushed a bit since there are options in the minors and he’ll need to play well to stay in the lineup.

Thom said that the Reds HOF & Museum’s Joe Nuxhall and the Reds HOF 50th anniversary exhibits will end at the end of February. This year they will have a Crosley Field exhibit and the lobby will be Crosley Field remembered.

The first person asked if they thought the Reds could get to the postseason this year or would next season be the year. Thom said his gut tells him that he’s very excited about the team. He said if the pitching does what they are capable of doing, they have a shot. Chris said they have as good of pitching as the Cubs. No matter who the 5th starter is. He added that they replaced the two least productive offensive players in the league last year in Patterson and Bako. He said we won’t miss the Griffey/Dunn factor one bit.

After commercial, the next person asked about the LF spot. Chris said he was down in fantasy camp and saw Dickerson and said he looks like he gained 10-15 lbs of muscle and. He thinks he has the inside track for that position. He mentioned Gomes as a backup plan. Thom said that he is curious to see which Jerry Hariston will show up; the .258 hitter or the player we saw last year. Chris said that Hariston said that last year he was really healthy and that made the difference. Chris said the roster will be more versatile this year and Dusty can mix and match more. Thom said there are guys who can play multiple positions this year and that wasn’t the case last season.

The next person asked what suggestions would they give to Dusty in regards to improving in runs scored. He suggested they improve their bunting. Thom said that he’s sure Dusty is well aware of that but the players have to execute. Thom said with the absence of Jr. and Dunn, when they get in position to score or manufacture runs, they have to do a better job of it. Chris agreed and said it comes down to Brandon. If he’s the cleanup hitter he has to do a better job of hitting against NL Central opponents. Against the Cubs and Brewers he struggled and the Reds need to do a better job against RH pitching. Thom said that EE had more HRs, more doubles and a better OPS than Brandon did even though he drove in 10 fewer runs. Thom said Brandon’s a wonderful young man and has said he wants to be a leader but he has to do it and not just talk about it.

The next person asked if they ever measure how successful a player is at moving the runner down and what percentage of those runs score and how many games you win by 1 run if you do that. Thom said if you buy into Moneyball they can prove that the bunt is overused because you give up outs. Chris said that they believe the bunt is a rally killer but a lot of those studies were done in American League baseball (Huh?) and it depends on who you have bunting. He added with Tavaras we’ll see more bunting this year than we have in years past and he’ll probably lay a bunt down 25% of the time.

After commercial, Phil Castellini joined Thom and Chris and pimped the Power Pack. Thom emphasized that if you buy the Power Pack, you get Opening Day tickets. Phil said other teams’ ticket departments are interested in how the Power Pack sells. He added single game tickets will go on sale the next Saturday. He said they will probably sell Opening Day tickets at Fountain Square the weekend before Opening Day.

The next person asked them who the toughest team in the division was besides the Reds. Thom said it was the Cubs and Chris agreed but said they aren’t as strong as they were last year. Thom wondered if Dempster could repeat last year’s performance. Chris said they better hope so. He added that after the Cubs, the next top spending team in the offseason was the Reds.

The next person asked what their favorite Reds memory was when they were growing up. Phil said it was Rose’s 4192nd hit. Chris said he drove non stop from Tampa to Cincinnati to get tickets to the 75 series when he was in college and sat behind Frank Robinson’s family. Thom said it was the first day he went to ST with his dad when he was 10.

The next person asked about Jr. signing with the Braves. Thom said last he heard was the ATL paper said he was signed but a SEA paper said he hasn’t made up his mind. The person asked if they missed Jr. Chris said no. He said they miss his presence and his persona. He said he took a lot of attention and pressure off the younger players on the road and now they will have to share that pressure. He said it’s time for them to move on and the ream’s ready to have a new personality.

After commercial, the next person asked what was the mood of the fans on the caravan and would Jim Kelsh be a part of the announcing team this year. Thom and Chris said they thought the mood was tremendous and Thom said the fans were excited about where the team is going. Phil said the fans should see good old fashioned, effort, hard, hustle baseball from this year forward. Phil also said Kelsh will do some games this year too.

The next person asked about Castillo. Thom said he’s a fascinating player since he can catch and play other positions and he has a hard time believing he can’t help a team win games. Chris said it will be tough for him to make the team since there are a lot of options out there but he’ll get a shot.

After commercial, the next person asked when the Reds would move ST to AZ. Thom said that he didn’t know the exact date but they will be there this time next year. The person asked if the Reds were going after any free agent pitchers. Thom said he thinks they are done shopping.

The next person asked if the team could use Brandon’s speed better hitting somewhere other than cleanup. Thom said the game has changed since teams don’t run as much anymore. Chris said he doesn’t think that running is that big of a factor in Brandon’s game. He said no one really wants Brandon batting 4th but if you split up the lefties, someone has to bat 4th.

Thus endeth the Reds Hot Stove League show report for 2-17-09. So let it be written. So let it be done.

[OnBaseMachine]

Phil also said Kelsh will do some games this year too.

Awesome. I thought Kelch did an excellent job last season. I hope the Reds promote him full time sometime in the near future.

Thanks Chip.

[Ron Madden]

Awesome. I thought Kelch did an excellent job last season. I hope the Reds promote him full time sometime in the near future.

Kelch can be a benefit to the Reds and their fans, he's a top notch play by play announcer. I like how he remains focused on the game and fills the down time with informative comments about game situations and players for both teams.

When I tune in to a Reds game I want to hear what's happening on the field, not inside jokes, golf stories, or if the Cowboy prefers malts over milk shakes or mayonnaise on his damn butter beans.

[Ltlabner]

Kelch was ok but he was too much like Steve Stewart: Boring.

I almost dozed off and ran off the road several times last year while listening to him call the fast paced action of the Reds being destroyed yet again.

[Ron Madden]

It's just my humble opinion but I liked Steve too.