The Bargain Basement

[Patrick Bateman]

Originally Posted by camisadelgolf

Why give up value for Bernadina when you already have Xavier Paul?

IMO, Bernadina's ability to handle CF makes him more interesting than Paul. Paul isn't a particularly great fielder, and I feel like they may be fairly equal with the bat, but Paul's fiedling eliminates him from my mind as a decent platoon partner. It's not a huge margin, but it is something IMO.

[chicoruiz]

Random thought: I wonder if Scutaro could play 3b.

[bucksfan2]

Originally Posted by chicoruiz

Random thought: I wonder if Scutaro could play 3b.

Scutaro is going to get paid, paid much more than he is worth because of his 2 month span with the Giants.

He would have been a nice player but he is no longer going to be in the "bargain basement".

[PuffyPig]

Originally Posted by chicoruiz

Random thought: I wonder if Scutaro could play 3b.

He'd be pretty unexciting as a 3B.

[HokieRed]

Originally Posted by Patrick Bateman

IMO, Bernadina's ability to handle CF makes him more interesting than Paul. Paul isn't a particularly great fielder, and I feel like they may be fairly equal with the bat, but Paul's fiedling eliminates him from my mind as a decent platoon partner. It's not a huge margin, but it is something IMO.

Does Felix Perez have a chance to fit in anywhere next year as part of an outfield platoon? .301/.348/.401/.749 last year at L'ville but stronger in the second half. Not advocating this, just asking for opinions.

[LegallyMinded]

I've been intrigued by Erik Bedard as a possible bargain signing. He had a pretty miserable 2012, but that would make him cheap to sign (He settled for 1.5M and 1.0M in 2010 and 2011, for instance.), and as recently as 2011 he had decent numbers. It seems like he could be stashed away at triple A as insurance in case the Reds aren't as fortunate with rotation health next year, and could provide a better option than Todd Redmond or Jeff Francis.

[Vottomatic]

Originally Posted by LegallyMinded

I've been intrigued by Erik Bedard as a possible bargain signing. He had a pretty miserable 2012, but that would make him cheap to sign (He settled for 1.5M and 1.0M in 2010 and 2011, for instance.), and as recently as 2011 he had decent numbers. It seems like he could be stashed away at triple A as insurance in case the Reds aren't as fortunate with rotation health next year, and could provide a better option than Todd Redmond or Jeff Francis.

My first reaction is to say no to Bedard.

But when you consider what Brian Price has done with this rotation, maybe he could revive Bedard's career.

[mth123]

Originally Posted by camisadelgolf

Why give up value for Bernadina when you already have Xavier Paul?

Can Paul play CF? Adding an OF doesn't improve the team much unless it takes PAs away from Drew Stubbs vs RHP. Xavier Paul doesn't do that.

[M2]

Scott Hairston. Discount player who's always produced pop in extreme pitcher's parks. Plays all over the OF and both IF corners. Love to see him providing depth on the Reds.

[Patrick Bateman]

Originally Posted by HokieRed

Does Felix Perez have a chance to fit in anywhere next year as part of an outfield platoon? .301/.348/.401/.749 last year at L'ville but stronger in the second half. Not advocating this, just asking for opinions.

He's likely nice depth to have at this point because of his defensive ability, but at this point, hard to imagine giving him a key reserve role until he's banging on the door. I think we need to have a better option on paper going into the season.

[mth123]

Originally Posted by M2

Scott Hairston. Discount player who's always produced pop in extreme pitcher's parks. Plays all over the OF and both IF corners. Love to see him providing depth on the Reds.

Hairston is pretty splitty, He looks a lot like many of the Reds guys who mash LHP, have a low OBP and a high slugging pct. He might be a decent option to back-fill for Ludwick provided the Reds have a 300 PA lefty bat to share the job with him (Xavier Paul?). The line-up really struggles against RHP already and I'd hope that any guys brought in would profile a bit differently than the low OBP, high slugging, big split RH bats like the Reds have so many of. That said, his versatility is a plus and he would be a good guy to mix and match with in LF (better than Heisey IMO). He would seem to be a guy who would thrive in GABP.

If he could be had for a couple of million bucks, he'd be a decent get for the LF mix. He'd probably be a nice cheap option if they can't afford Ludwick.

Of course if bringing in a low OBP, high pop, somewhat splitty RH bat to split LF with Xavier Paul is the path chosen, that would seem to open the field a lot. A couple of familiar free agent names to chew on:

1. Jonny Gomes - Kills LHP, good in the clubhouse (that may be losing Rolen and Cairo) and can hit in the middle of the order. He needs a platoon partner.

2. Austin Kearns - Not splitty at all. Actually has been better against RHP than LHP and historically gets on base at a much better clip than most of the bats on this offense. Not sure if he's still a plus defender, but he'd probably do well sharing LF.

Of course a LH bat who looks somewhat similar to these guys would be better. That brings me to the name I've floated the last couple of years and was left off of my original list. Seth Smith would seem to be the perfect guy for the Reds to target in LF. Should not be overly expensive, kills RHP, decent defender, profiles well in GABP, may be the odd man out in Oakland with Cespedes, Crisp, Reddick and Young ahead of him and Michael Taylor and Jermaine Mitchell around as well. Michael Choice may force his way in this year too. Smith should be available yet again. I'd hate to deal Didi, but he'd be an obvious fit for what ails the A's most (Adam Rosales is currently penciled in as the starter at SS.)

[Vottomatic]

Bernadina kind of scares me. He's had one decent, not great, year. In 2010 and 2011 his OBP was .307 and .301. Drew Stubbs lite. He's had 536 at-bats combined the last 2 years.

Is he on the rise? Or was last season a fluke? Is he a utility player that someone is trying to say is the answer? Or a guy who is coming into his own and could become a starter?

I'd error on the side of caution.

[buckeyenut]

Originally Posted by mth123

Hairston is pretty splitty, He looks a lot like many of the Reds guys who mash LHP, have a low OBP and a high slugging pct. He might be a decent option to back-fill for Ludwick provided the Reds have a 300 PA lefty bat to share the job with him (Xavier Paul?). The line-up really struggles against RHP already and I'd hope that any guys brought in would profile a bit differently than the low OBP, high slugging, big split RH bats like the Reds have so many of. That said, his versatility is a plus and he would be a good guy to mix and match with in LF (better than Heisey IMO). He would seem to be a guy who would thrive in GABP.

If he could be had for a couple of million bucks, he'd be a decent get for the LF mix. He'd probably be a nice cheap option if they can't afford Ludwick.

Of course if bringing in a low OBP, high pop, somewhat splitty RH bat to split LF with Xavier Paul is the path chosen, that would seem to open the field a lot. A couple of familiar free agent names to chew on:

1. Jonny Gomes - Kills LHP, good in the clubhouse (that may be losing Rolen and Cairo) and can hit in the middle of the order. He needs a platoon partner.

2. Austin Kearns - Not splitty at all. Actually has been better against RHP than LHP and historically gets on base at a much better clip than most of the bats on this offense. Not sure if he's still a plus defender, but he'd probably do well sharing LF.

Of course a LH bat who looks somewhat similar to these guys would be better. That brings me to the name I've floated the last couple of years and was left off of my original list. Seth Smith would seem to be the perfect guy for the Reds to target in LF. Should not be overly expensive, kills RHP, decent defender, profiles well in GABP, may be the odd man out in Oakland with Cespedes, Crisp, Reddick and Young ahead of him and Michael Taylor and Jermaine Mitchell around as well. Michael Choice may force his way in this year too. Smith should be available yet again. I'd hate to deal Didi, but he'd be an obvious fit for what ails the A's most (Adam Rosales is currently penciled in as the starter at SS.)

What about a Seth Smith / Johny Gomes platoon in LF? Wouldn't that be a perfect fit?

[mth123]

Originally Posted by buckeyenut

What about a Seth Smith / Johny Gomes platoon in LF? Wouldn't that be a perfect fit?

Yep. Been hoping for that since 2010.

[mth123]

Originally Posted by Vottomatic

Bernadina kind of scares me. He's had one decent, not great, year. In 2010 and 2011 his OBP was .307 and .301. Drew Stubbs lite. He's had 536 at-bats combined the last 2 years.

Is he on the rise? Or was last season a fluke? Is he a utility player that someone is trying to say is the answer? Or a guy who is coming into his own and could become a starter?

I'd error on the side of caution.

Of course he's a low budget option. But consider this vs RHP

Drew Stubbs OBP 2011 .298, 2012 .259
Roger Bernadina OBP 2011 .322, 2012 .359
Chris Heisey OBP 2011 .324, 2012 .314

Reducing Stubbs exposure to RHP while replacing it with somebody who can approach average while maintaining defense in CF would be a huge improvement. We're talking about filling a roster spot with a guy making near league minimum who could probably be acquired for little. If the Nats would want anything that would cause pain to deal, then move on. OTOH, if he could be acquired for next to no talent and not cause budget issues that may force to the team to pass on somebody who'd be more useful for the bullpen or LF, then its a move to make.