Casali vs Barnhart

[757690]

Add more offense and there would be less thin leads.

They need offense and bullpen help.

I agree. Which is why it makes more sense to make a cheaper upgrade offensively to allow a better upgrade for the pen. Sign Grandal, and the pen will largely stay the same next season. That’s a recipe for another below .500 season.

[mth123]

I agree. Which is why it makes more sense to make a cheaper upgrade offensively to allow a better upgrade for the pen. Sign Grandal, and the pen will largely stay the same next season. That’s a recipe for another below .500 season.

If all they do is sign Grandal, I'd agree. They have enough money to add a bat and add some relievers. They don't have money to add a closer and push Iglesias to mop up. I doubt he can be dealt right now. He's OK if he's that old fashioned 9th inning only with a lead guy. Use him that way and build the depth in front of him and add offense.

If there is a cheaper upgrade, who is really an upgrade, let's hear it. GRandal is available , he plays a position that is the worst offensively on the roster which makes the upgrade significant and he only will cost the one things the Reds actually have this year which is payflex. I'd like to hear a better idea, but I don't see any. There probably are trade acquisitions that they can make that none of us know about and I hope they can make them, but things like signing Puig, even if we assume his last couple of years of 120 OPS+ or so is what we'd get is the guy we're getting, it really isn't an upgrade offensively over what the Reds have gotten for a lot less from Jesse Winker and Phillip Ervin. Puig is a better defender, but run prevention hasn't been the problem even with some defensively challenged players out there. The reds need to spend their resources upgrading the offense not treading water offensively while making fringe improvements on the bases or upgrading a defense that already isn't allowing a ton of runs.

[Sea Ray]

For those that may have missed it, in the 2nd inning "chatter session", that the guys on the radio have with the beat writers revealed an interesting tidbit with Tucker Barnhart. He's seriously considering becoming an exclusively LH next year. The reason was stated in an interesting way. The beat writer said something to the effect of "Tucker wants to see what kind of ballplayer he can become if he adds offense to his game." I took that to mean that he realizes that unless he starts hitting, he's nothing more than a borderline major leaguer. They said that he's a natural LH hitter and that he might benefit from working FT on that side of the plate. Something to chew on...

[wlf WV]

For those that may have missed it, in the 2nd inning "chatter session", that the guys on the radio have with the beat writers revealed an interesting tidbit with Tucker Barnhart. He's seriously considering becoming an exclusively LH next year. The reason was stated in an interesting way. The beat writer said something to the effect of "Tucker wants to see what kind of ballplayer he can become if he adds offense to his game." I took that to mean that he realizes that unless he starts hitting, he's nothing more than a borderline major leaguer. They said that he's a natural LH hitter and that he might benefit from working FT on that side of the plate. Something to chew on...

That has been mentioned a couple times on the tv broadcasts also. He’s actually started already, as he hit left handed against a lefty pitcher the other night.

[Ron Madden]

Sorry...Tried to post a Thank You tweet from Tucker Barnhart but for some reason I can’t get the image to work