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Reds In Lead For Bedard?

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UPDATE, 12-10-07 at 2:47pm: I thought this link in the Cincinnati Enquirer was worth including here.  A member of the Reds’ organization rated the team’s chances of getting Bedard at 75%.  Should we consider them the frontrunners in this race?  Some talent would be coming into the NL, for once.  However, Ken Rosenthal believes the Reds’ unwillingness to include Jay Bruce may prevent this deal from happening.

FROM 12-8-07 at 9:05pm:

The Reds definitely have the talent to acquire Erik Bedard from the Orioles.  They may even be able to pull it off without including Jay Bruce.  John Fay believes Homer Bailey, Joey Votto, and a top prospect could work.  Johnny Cueto, a 21 year-old hard-throwing starter, would definitely be on the Orioles’ short list.  Those three would be a slam dunk for Baltimore.  Bedard could become a fashionable NL Cy Young pick, even pitching at Great American.

You could also imagine guys like Josh Hamilton and Edwin Encarnacion piquing Andy MacPhail’s interest.  There are many ways this deal could work.

Crasnick’s Latest: Encarnacion, Hamilton, Jenkins

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ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick has been working hard all day to get us some good rumors.  Here’s the latest.

  • The Reds want to acquire a starter, but they spent all their money on Francisco Cordero.  The plan is to trade a young player for a cheap starter.  Joey Votto and especially Jay Bruce would be near impossible to acquire.  However the Reds will listen on Josh Hamilton and Edwin Encarnacion.  They never seemed to like Encarnacion.  Crasnick thinks the Cubs could work for Hamilton but they’d need to pony up more than Sean Marshall.  Would Rich Hill be too much?  It’s been said in the past that the Rangers inquired on Hamilton.  The Giants, meanwhile, would love to pry Encarnacion loose – Noah Lowry anyone? 
  • The Phillies and Rays spoke to Geoff Jenkins’ agent today, and the Padres and Rangers have their eye on him as well.  A poor free agent market for corner outfielders may result in a two or even a three-year deal for Jenkins.

Rosenthal’s Latest: Cordero, Livan, Jenkins

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Somehow, I missed a Ken Rosenthal column.  This thing is already 14 hours old.  I’m slipping.

  • A Mystery Team has already made a four-year offer to Francisco Cordero.  We know the Brewers made an offer on Monday but Rosenthal may be referring to another club.
  • Rosenthal suggests Scott Linebrink could be reunited with Bruce Bochy to become the Giants’ closer.  It’s known that the Astros already have an offer out to Linebrink.
  • Teams interested in Geoff Jenkins: the Cubs, Padres, Giants, Rangers, and Royals.  Several of those are new to me.
  • The Tigers’ payroll is expected to exceed $115MM.  Time to head over to Cot’s and do some math.  By my count the Tigers are around $105MM right now (includes some arbitration guesses).  That leaves room for one starting pitcher signing, be it Kenny Rogers, Carlos Silva, or whoever.
  • The Cardinals, Astros, and Mets have their eye on Livan Hernandez.  Mets’ management is divided on signing him, since he’s a back-rotation guy.
  • Rosenthal believes the Reds could shop Joey Votto or Josh Hamilton a year from now in hopes of acquiring starting pitching.
  • Tony Clark is gaining in popularity as a cheap power source.  He might be looking at two years, $4MM plus more playing time.

Hatteberg Signed For 2007

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In a minor move today, Reds GM Wayne Krivsky signed first baseman Scott Hatteberg for 2007 with an option for ’08.

The 36 year-old slumped to an awful .256/.334/.343 line for the A’s in ’05.  He signed a free agent deal in February for $750,000 with Cincinnati.  This year, Hatteberg has surged to a .324/.417/.505 performance in 275 ABs.  He’s drawn a walk in an impressive 14% of his plate appearances, 12th in the league.

Hatteberg historically performs worse against southpaws, and Jerry Narron has done well to use him primarily against righties.  In the previous three seasons, Hatteberg faced lefties in 28% of his at-bats.  This year, he’s seen them just 19% of the time.

Given the small commitment to Hatteberg, the path is still clear for 22 year-old first baseman Joey Votto whenever he’s ready.  Votto is hitting .325/.407/.577 in Double A this season.  The .984 OPS leads the Southern League.  Baseball Prospectus’s Kevin Goldstein rates Votto the third best first base prospect in the game behind Daric Barton and James Loney.  Throw in Jay Bruce and Homer Bailey and the Reds can have a core of excellent youngsters in place by ’08.

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