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« White Sox Sign Jimmy Gobble | Main | The Jason Bay Trade Revisited »
Reds Cut Jonny Gomes
John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports the Reds have cut Jonny Gomes and offered him a spot in Triple-A. Fay says Gomes is a little surprised and unsure what to do next.
Gomes hit .250 in 44 at bats this spring, and led the Reds with 4 homeruns while knocking in 12 runs.
Mark Sheldon of MLB.com is "totally shocked" by this move. He notes that Paul Janish and lefty Daniel Herrera have made the team.
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I'm not sure whether I'm "surprised" that Gomes was cut or "curious" now that the left field situation stands at Chris Dickerson and Jerry Hairston, Jr. I look at Chris Dickerson and see shades of Chris Young (ARI) -- low clip, solid power, reckless speed. Great hitter to have in the bottom third of the lineup. At least, I THINK he's going to hit seventh.
Either way, this move is a small gesture from Baker and the Reds' brass that Dickerson has their seal of approval in the short term.
Posted by: Ruck859 | April 05, 2009 at 11:11 AM
Gomes has a problem hitting RH pitchers and really with contact period, yet for a team that was supposedly considering signing Sheffield for additional power from the RH side, this is surprising, since Gomes does deliver with that if he will be used against just lefties and he can play both corner OF spots reasonably well and he always got along well with his team mates in Tampa.
Posted by: johns | April 05, 2009 at 11:22 AM
Really dumb move by the Reds. Dickerson and Gomes would have been a nasty platoon in LF, but surprise surprise, the Reds messed that up. How do you pick Paul Janish over Jonny Gomes. Insane...
Posted by: moebarguy | April 05, 2009 at 12:03 PM
Really dumb move by the Reds. Dickerson and Gomes would have been a nasty platoon in LF, but surprise surprise, the Reds messed that up. How do you pick Paul Janish over Jonny Gomes. Insane...
Posted by: moebarguy | April 05, 2009 at 12:03 PM
Agreed.
Gomes has a career OPS of .784 and is the best hitter compared to the Reds' other options. They cut the guy who has any decent power? Enjoy another losing season.
Posted by: strikethree | April 05, 2009 at 12:15 PM
Gomes' career-best averages across the board, minus his fluke 2005 season:
.244, .325, .460, .782. It looks okay, but not great. Last year, in 154 AB, Gomes put up a .182, .282, .383, .666 line.
Defensively, Gomes has posted negative defensive value every year he's played significant innings in the outfield. He actually cost the Rays a win last year based on how bad he was on the field and at the plate.
And looking at the Reds, Edwin Encarnacion and Jeff Keppinger/Alex Gonzalez are likely the worst defensive third base/shortstop combination in Major League Baseball.
In short, the Reds need Paul Janish so much more than they "need" Jonny Gomes. I'd choose Janish over Gomes every time in this scenario.
Posted by: Ruck859 | April 05, 2009 at 12:19 PM
But Janish isn't starting. At best, he'll receive 20% of the ABs at SS this season...I'm not sure if that's worth Gomes' offense.
Posted by: moebarguy | April 05, 2009 at 12:22 PM
And also, the problem is then not Gomes or even Janish, but Alex Gonzalez...
Posted by: moebarguy | April 05, 2009 at 12:24 PM
I can't believe anyone would defend Jonny Gomes in this situation. Even in his fluke season, he struck out 110+ times in fewer than 400 at-bats. His SO total actually increased every year since then, and he whiffed 46 times last season compared to 15 walks. Gomes have never amassed more than 400 at-bats in any single season.
Also, let's not forget that while JHJ is in the left field platoon, he can also play a reasonable shortstop and third base just like Janish. So if an injury were to occur, JHJ can certainly help.
I can't see why anyone would prefer the fodder that is Jonny Gomes.
Posted by: Ruck859 | April 05, 2009 at 12:34 PM
Gomes is still young, so given another opportunity, he could have posted some nice stats. I think his upside is far greater than Janish's, thus my view towards the move.
Posted by: moebarguy | April 05, 2009 at 12:37 PM
Gomes is 28 this year, and 2009 will have been his fifth year in baseball with significant playing time, so he's not exactly "young."
The Rays have given him four years' worth of opportunities to improve. His offensive and defensive peripherals have consistently gotten worse.
The only upside Gomes has at this point is in the weak side of a platoon at DH. He might also be a valuable pinch-hitter or runner. Otherwise, he's dead weight.
Posted by: Ruck859 | April 05, 2009 at 12:45 PM
is this not the perfect RH bat for the phillies bench?
Posted by: mr utley | April 05, 2009 at 12:53 PM
Maybe. The Phillies don't seem to care that Ibanez is a lousy outfield option on defense, so why not?
Posted by: Ruck859 | April 05, 2009 at 12:55 PM
In short, the Reds need Paul Janish so much more than they "need" Jonny Gomes. I'd choose Janish over Gomes every time in this scenario.
Posted by: Ruck859 | April 05, 2009 at 12:19 PM
The thing is, Janish isn't great defensively either.
And we shouldn't just take out seasons. Because, I can very well take out last year and call that an outlier. Based on career numbers, Gomes is the only option with power. Maybe Lance Nix too but his career OBP is .272. Yikes.
He hit 20, 21 HR consecutively in a limited role with less than 400 ABs each season. Even last season, at 150 ABs, he had 8 HRs. Projections have him with at least 10 HRs even in the limited platoon role. The guy is simply the better hitter.
Defensively, he's not great. However, it's not like he's playing center field. He can also be used as a pinch hitter. His offense makes up for his defense. (Given the other options, it's not like they're defensive whizzes either)
Posted by: strikethree | April 05, 2009 at 01:09 PM
I didn't say Janish or Hairston were "whizzes" at the position. All I said was they could play shortstop.
Janish showed league-average defense in just 200.1 innings at the big-league level (pretty inexperienced overall) and JHJ was slightly below-average in 271 innings there. They are pretty small sample sizes overall, so at this point we cannot say it's black-and-white whether these guys truly stink. What we can say, however, is that these two were better than Keppinger.
I'd much rather address defense and injury issues at a premium position than hope for upside in a position that doesn't have a glaring need. I think every team in baseball would agree with that.
Posted by: Ruck859 | April 05, 2009 at 01:29 PM
I'd much rather address defense and injury issues at a premium position than hope for upside in a position that doesn't have a glaring need. I think every team in baseball would agree with that.
Posted by: Ruck859 | April 05, 2009 at 01:29 PM
Sure but it's not like you can only move Janish. The Reds have other players that they can move. Like maybe that 3rd catcher or maybe Lance Nix or Darnell McDonald. Choose your pick. Their bench is full of defensive substitutes that can hit for a lick.
Posted by: strikethree | April 05, 2009 at 02:02 PM
It's Cincinnati not Cincinatti!
Posted by: MickS | April 05, 2009 at 02:03 PM
"I can't believe anyone would defend Jonny Gomes in this situation."
The Reds need a right handed bat. A platoon partner if you will. Jonny Gomes career batting vs LHP.... .266/.369/.510. That is why people are defending him. He is a good candidate to platoon in a corner OF spot. Phillies?
Posted by: nrmax88 | April 05, 2009 at 02:22 PM
I'd be surprised if he accepted the Triple-A assignment. To the Phillies for Gomes...
Posted by: moebarguy | April 05, 2009 at 02:56 PM
darn i was hoping gomes would stay as far away from the al east as possible to keep pettitte happy as he absolutely crushed him ruining alot of pettittes good days and had the stolen base off rivera in the 10th inning one game that led to the rays wnning that game showing that they were going towards a playoff push
Posted by: nyankss27 | April 05, 2009 at 03:41 PM
Ok to the people who said Janish is bad defensively they need to have their heads checked. Janish is one of the stronger candidates for defense on the Reds. Only Gonzalez when he last played most of a season has better defensive stats. Look at his minor league numbers on defense compared to other Reds SS players throughout the system. I am glad Gomes might be gone he didn't fit into the faster team, better defense philosophy that the Reds are employing now. Also I am thrilled to death that they are giving Daniel Ray Herrara a chance to be in the bullpen. He was lights out this spring.
As far as giving all the at bats to Dickerson that's not going to happen JHJ is going to get a good chunk too and probably see Nix get some too.
I actually like the 25 man roster. Good job Reds on thinking carefully about not having a over 100 strikeout man in short playing time play. We still have 4 or 5 guys Bruce, Votto, Hernandez, Gonzales assuming he is healthy, Edwin Error E. too, could all hit over 20 homers. I love the makeup of this team.
Oh one last note they should have put Arroyo on the DL for his carpel tunnel and Let Baily pitch until Arroyo was back to full strength.
Posted by: JayTheRed | April 05, 2009 at 03:45 PM
As far as giving all the at bats to Dickerson that's not going to happen JHJ is going to get a good chunk too and probably see Nix get some too.
JayTheRed
if they wanted jerry hairston jr to be the super utility then that idea is thrown out because hes getting at bats in left aparently now but nix and dickerson are both left handed right? how would that platoon work
Posted by: nyankss27 | April 05, 2009 at 03:52 PM
Ruben Amaro Jr. needs to be jumping on this ASAP. Cheap right handed bat. Massive improvement over Miguel Cairo and other RH PH options on the bench.
Umm, yeah.
Posted by: melonis rex | April 05, 2009 at 07:37 PM
Agreed Melonis. I know it doesn't matter after one game, but there was something nice, and sort of ironic about seeing Gonzo come in and whiff Howard and Ibanez back to back last night. The three lefties in a row already had an impact, in game one.
Posted by: nrmax88 | April 06, 2009 at 11:46 AM
Big mistake by Reds. Gomes dominates lefties and hes a right handed bat they were looking for
Posted by: redsfan24 | April 15, 2009 at 11:43 PM