Johnny Damon to the reds?!?

• Eric Taylor

  Nady signed a 1 year deal with the Cubs.
  
  The Reds were never really interested in Damon. They called Boras about another of his clients and Boras brought up Damon to Cincinnati.
• Fidmeister

  Scott Boras is a piece of shit.
  
  Carry on.
• crab42

  A couple of things... Drew Stubbs does walk, and that's why is strikeout total can be tolerated. He has never OB'ed below .353 in the minors, he rough has a 2:1 K/BB ratio. He does have contact issues and the debate on whether he's a 1-2 hitter or a 6-7 hitter is a valid one, but the guy does get on (.364 MiLB OBP) and he steals bases at nearly an 80% clip.
  
  As for Damon... This is EXACTLY the kind of guy the Reds need in the lineup. He will OPS in the high .800's (could be higher in the NL) and he can still run. Damon's presence at the top of the lineup would make this team legit and guarantee more runs would be scored. The Reds have a shortage of guys that can get on base, but Johnny Damon ahead of Votto would do wonders for an offense that is still below par unless Bruce and Stubbs live up to expectations. Damon has had on OPS+ of 110 or higher in 5 of the last 6 seasons, with 07 being a dip in his SLG. The cat gets on base and has some pop left, and I'm sure whatever boost he recieved from New Yankee Stadium could be compensated by the change in leagues and hitting in GABP.
  
  Last year the Reds past on an "aging" Yankee OF that put up great OB and OPS numbers, because he didn't defend "that well" or was thought to be too expensive. He ended up signing a 1 year 5 million dollar deal, and OPS'd .825 while driving in over 100 runs. Instead the Reds spent 2 years and 6 million on Willy T to be the solution because Dusty could fix him and the Reds were gonna win with speed and defense while producing runs with small ball... How'd that work out? Meanwhile Mr. Abreu was thought to be over the hill or a defensive liability.
  
  Give Damon 1 year and 5-7 million (if that's what it takes) and watch the this offense improve. We need more OPS guys in the lineup, and while Gomes was solid last season Damon is a better player. I could handle Gomes returning in some capacity, but Johnny Damon would do wonders for this team.
  
  One more question... where are all the Willy lovers from the other Huddle? God I remember the love of the signing... while I (and few others) was banging my head off the wall!
• crab42

  Also, I'm kinda of mixed on Cabrera... As long as the Reds don't go 2 years for him then I won't mind it if they sign him. His defense was down last year, but there's a chance that it was an outlier. He does have some pop at the plate but I don't like that he doesn't walk very much. His bat is a no doubt improvement over Janish, but his glove doesn't look as good anymore. I do think that he's an upgrade... But for God's sake, don't give him 2 years!
• Azubuike24

  

  Drew Stubbs walked (a fair amount, nothing amazing) in the minor leagues, but Drew Stubbs also has contact problems, which is going to limit his OBP.
  
  Stubbs might, on the high side, be a .350-.360 OBP guy in the majors, but with his splits, he's going to have to hit .280-.290 to do so. I'm a fan of Stubbs and his versatility, pop and defense, but for 1-2 years, he's not a better option that Johnny Damon.
  
  Now, it's not my money the Reds are going to spend (or save playing Stubbs or C-Dick), but usually I'm in favor of just spending it on someone because we all know they won't be re-investing it or saving it for anyone else.
• dave

  the only person you have to compare stubbs to is willy t so it doesn't really matter who's a better option. damon wouldn't play center and stubbs won't play left. stubbs will play all year but ideally he would be a bottom of the lineup hitter. the reds 7-8-9 hitters have been sure outs and even if they get on they can't do anything. stubbs would change that
  
  personally id like to see something like damon/balentien in left, stubbs/dickerson in center, and bruce/balentien in right. i dont think we should be too worried about left field though, that was supposed to be the weak spot last year and it turned out to be one of the brightest. im more worried about stubbs and bruce.
• crab42

  I agree, that I don't expect Stubbs to start walking at a Dunn-esque rate but I do think that his contact issues will improve and I think he'll be a .350-.360 OB guy like you said... I just more less disagree that the guy doesn't walk, because he's found a way to get on base while being a .250-.260 hitter. But with his gold glove defense and the pop that he's capable of having, he becomes a very valuable player.
  
  As for Balentein, I'm with you on him. He's been a guy that has 30+ HR potential but never put it together at the big league level. But I disagree on LF being a bright spot and if it was, then the Reds offense has more issues then we believed. The Reds LF combined to have the worst OBP in the NL (29th in the ML) and they were 26th out of 30 teams in OPS from the position. Now I like Gomes and think he has a place on this team but Dickerson should not be platooning with him, if anything CD should split some time in CF with Stubbs. We need to turn LF back into an offensive position.
  
  Now, Jay I'm not worried about at all... Minus the injury, last season was about what I expected from him. He's only 22 years old, he plays a great RF, he showed more patience at the plate, and he was very very low BABIP. The only problem Jay has was he was expected to do so much so soon... People talk about Votto getting it together in his 2nd season, well Jay is 4 years younger than Joey. Jay will be the prototypical power hitting corner outfielder within the next season or so, and I expect his patience at the plate to continue to improve... I think Dusty is one of the worst people for Jay to have around when he's struggling because Dusty thinks you can hack your way out of a slump. I think we'll see a major step forward out of Jay this season and I expect him to be All-Star caliber next season and for years to come.
• BCBulldog

  

  So with all the debate over Damon, Gomes, Belentein, Stubbs and Dickerson - let's hear what your ideal OF would be, assuming Damon or Gomes could be signed.
  
  I would like to see Gomes in left, Stubbs in center, Bruce in right with Balentein backing up the corners and Dickerson backing up center. I would like to see Tavares used as a batting tee.
• dave

  heisy/stubbs/bruce with dickerson and balentien getting about 3 starts a week. put the money in a safe and bring it out next year for a real SS.
• crab42

  If we could sign Damon, then it would be a no doubt Damon/Stubbs/Bruce outfield... Dickerson and Balentien as backups, with Dickerson splitting some time with Stubbs in CF. I like Heisey, and I'm not writing him off but his ceiling isn't is high as Balentien's... I really think it's just a matter of time, after reading a chat that farm director Terry Reynolds gave to MLB.com, before Alonso or Votto is moved to LF. But for this upcoming season, there is no doubt at all that a healthy Johnny Damon would improve the Reds offense by leaps and bounds.
• darbypitcher22

  

  If they get Cabrera for a decent amount, how does that affect what kind of money they'd be willing to give Damon? I'm not too familiar with the Reds payroll situation, only knowing that since they unloaded Griffey and Dunn's big contracts its a lot less than it was
• dave

  the payroll isn't really much different than it was a few years ago. instead of dunn and griffey getting the money its cordero/harang/arroyo. supposedly they are at their max but bob will spend a couple mil if the right guy comes available. if they get cabrera id get damon about a 2% chance of also coming to the reds. i really doubt they will spend more than 3-4mil if that.
• darbypitcher22

  

  ^^^^
  
  that's what I figured. I couldn't see all 3 of them showing up
• crab42

  I just shake my head at the payroll situation and the return the Reds recieved for Dunn... Owings may not make the team, Castillo is terrible, and Buck has been constantly hurt. But what's more aggervating is the ignorance of the contracts that have been passed out to mediocre veterans. Any body that couldn't see the Willy Taveras debacle wasn't paying attention, and the Mike Lincoln signing made no sense when you had young right handed arms like Burton, Masset, Fisher, Roenicke, etc. waiting in the minors that were all pre-arbitration. Rid themselves of just these 2 contracts and they'd have the money to make a push for Damon and Cabrera.
• Eric Taylor

  Damon turned down 6 million from the Yankees, so I would imagine the 3 million the Reds offered is not going to get it done.
  
  Maybe they should have used the 30 million spent on the young cuban pitcher on 2-3 other pieces.
• crab42

  The 30 million used on that pitcher is spread out over 10 years... The actual value of that contract can grow close to 100 million if Chapman hits his incentives, which I'm hoping he does. But the budget this year is what is keeping them from adding a guy like Damon, not the 1-2 million that Chapman is getting this season. Guys like Taveras, Lincoln, and Cordero are the signings that are keeping the Reds from adding extra pieces.
• TigerNation10

  

  Eric Taylor wrote: Damon turned down 6 million from the Yankees, so I would imagine the 3 million the Reds offered is not going to get it done.
  
  Maybe they should have used the 30 million spent on the young cuban pitcher on 2-3 other pieces.

  No. I would rather have a 22 year old who throws 100 MPH over Johnny Damon, Orlando Cabrera, Jonny Gomes, etc.
• dave

  crab42 wrote: The 30 million used on that pitcher is spread out over 10 years... The actual value of that contract can grow close to 100 million if Chapman hits his incentives, which I'm hoping he does. But the budget this year is what is keeping them from adding a guy like Damon, not the 1-2 million that Chapman is getting this season. Guys like Taveras, Lincoln, and Cordero are the signings that are keeping the Reds from adding extra pieces.

  this is not true
• brutus161

  

  Straight from Bob miller's mouth tonight. No on Damon, maybe on Cabrera.
• crab42

  dave wrote:

  crab42 wrote: The 30 million used on that pitcher is spread out over 10 years... The actual value of that contract can grow close to 100 million if Chapman hits his incentives, which I'm hoping he does. But the budget this year is what is keeping them from adding a guy like Damon, not the 1-2 million that Chapman is getting this season. Guys like Taveras, Lincoln, and Cordero are the signings that are keeping the Reds from adding extra pieces.

  this is not true

  My numbers on Chapman's contract may not be exact, but I know his money is spread out and he can make at least twice the original amount of the 30 million that is reported in the original contract. Aside from that, please enlighten me on what is "not true" about my post.
• crab42

  And in the morning I'll be glad to look up his exact contract and its possible worth.
• jordo212000

  

  I got a good laugh from the guy who suggested that the Reds should have passed on the young, lefty pitcher who throws 100, and instead should have focused on walking corpses like Johnny Damon.
• Fidmeister

  Damon has an awesome arm. Guys only occasionally take extra bases on him when he plays first.