Reds Sign Fred Lewis
By Ben Nicholson-Smith [January 10, 2011 at 4:43pm CST]
The Reds announced that they signed Fred Lewis to a one-year deal (Twitter link). It's a $900K major league deal, according to MLB.com's Mark Sheldon (on Twitter). The team also officially announced its one-year deal with Edgar Renteria.
Until last week, Jay Bruce was the lone left-handed hitter in the Reds' outfield. Drew Stubbs, Jonny Gomes and Chris Heisey all bat from the right side, so the team signed Jeremy Hermida and Lewis, two left-handed hitters.
Lewis, 30, hit .262/.332/.414 in 480 plate appearances for the Blue Jays after they acquired him from the Giants early in the season. Though he mostly played left field, Lewis did play some center and right in 2010. He contributed 31 doubles and 17 steals, mostly as Toronto's leadoff hitter, before the Blue Jays cut ties with him at last month's non-tender deadline.
The signing presumably eliminates the possibility that the Reds sign Scott Podsednik.