Rosenthal's Latest: Krivsky, Scherzer, Edwin Jackson

More final comments from Krivsky: http://www.daytondailynews.com/s/content/oh/story/sports/pro/reds/2008/04/29/ddn042908spkrivsky.html?cxtype=rss&cxsvc=7&cxcat=35

never mind my last comment, sorry, didn't even realize I got that link from this very site this morning.

On a related note, I don't know how keen the Rox are on trading prospects for vets- I really can't recall them making a deal of the sort- but they really seem to match up well for a potential Brian Roberts deal. Two of their biggest offensive holes are 2B and leadoff. Even with a somewhat slow start (his .267 BA is identical to Taveras') Roberts' OBP- critical for the leadoff role is 18 points higher than Fast Willie's and his career OBP is .351 to Taveras' .338. If you prefer OPS, the gap widens to .762 vs. .687. Significant. Despite less pure speed, this (and better instincts) has helped Roberts put up stolen base totals of 36 and 50 over the last two years and he's got 10 through 25 games this year. Taveras, over the same period, has respectable, but inferior lines of 33, 33, and thus far in '08, 8. I also think patience is very important from a leadoff hitter, so it's worth noting that over the past two years, Roberts has walked a total of 144 times to Taveras' 55. As far as intangibles, Roberts is also known for for working the count and forcing pitchers to throw a lot of pitches.

At 2B, it's no contest with Nix or whoever they replace him with.

The Rox could drop Taveras to ninth in the order, behind the pitcher in much the same way that Milwaukee has; their stat guys have shown that it will increase the number of runs scored by, in essence, putting two lead off hitters back to back and drastically increasing the number of RBI opportunities for the number 2-4 or 5 hitters.

Roberts is precisely the kind of guy who can jump start an anemic offense (as Colorado's has been of late) and a lineup of Roberts, Helton, Holliday, Atkins, Hawpe, Tulowitski, Ianetta/Torrealba, pitcher, and Taveras would be a beast, to say nothing of an infield of Helton, Roberts, Tulo, and Atkins.

I'm not sure what the Rox are planning to do with Atkins, seeing as how good Ian Stewart has been at Triple A and how much time they've put in, grooming him for the position; perhaps they could have Stewart back up both Atkins and Helton and move over once Helton retires (unless they also believe in Koshansky, in which case they could just...trade Atkins or let him walk when his contract is up). Dexter Fowler is the long term answer in CF. That takes those two off the trade table. Ditto Franklin Morales and Ubaldo Jimenez who, despite early struggles, should both join Jeff Francis at the front of the rotation sooner rather than later.

As such, I could see Roberts and perhaps Chad Bradford- who could be the RH setup man if Corpas retakes his closer role AND who seems a perfect fit due to his ability to keep the ball in the park- go to Colorado for Greg Reynolds (middle rotation starter with solid chance to get there; injury issues make him expendable), Hector Gomez (hopelessly blocked by Tulowitski, but a nice SS prospect perfect for an O's system lacking anything resembling a middle infield prospect), Jhoulys Chacin (just a personal fave sleeper prospect), and Nix.

Obviously, I've been thinking about this too much.

Hey Dingle Munch (just guessing. I suppose DM could stand for a number of things...), chill out...try skipping the post...Otherwise you're a d-bag.

I don't think I brought up the Roberts-to-Cubs non-deal once, so what the F are you talking about?!

No, this post has nothing to do with the Orioles. That hasn't stopped countless Cubs fans from bringing up potential trade scenarios and the like in the past. The original post had to do with Nix. I brought up a point having to do with Nix and connected it with another idea. Its hardly unusual for this site.

Quit acting like an @ssh0le and contribute something instead of just @#*&ing on other people's posts.