Cincinnati Reds Press Clippings November 11, 2016

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1 Cincinnati Reds Media Clips November 11 th, 2016

2 Cincinnati Reds Press Clippings November 11, 2016 THIS DAY IN REDS HISTORY 1998-The Reds trade Paul Konerko to the White Sox for Mike Cameron. Konerko played one season with the Reds, but will go on to play 16 with the White Sox, producing a.279 lifetime average, with 439 home runs and 1412 RBI MLB.COM Dixon's early homer powers Peoria in AFL win Reds' farmhand caps three-run first with first Fall League homer By Jonathan Saxon / Special to MLB.com November 10th, COMMENTS PEORIA, Ariz. -- Cincinnati Reds farmhand Brandon Dixon hit his first home run of the Arizona Fall League season, providing an early offensive catalyst that carried the Peoria Javelinas to a 5-4 victory over the Scottsdale Scorpions at Peoria Sports Complex. A third-round Draft pick in 2013 out of the University of Arizona, Dixon is in his second Fall League stint and is hitting.319 after posting a.295 average here last year. His two-run shot in the bottom of the first inning off of Scottsdale starter James Kaprielian, the New York Yankees' No. 9 prospect, gave the Javelinas a 3-1 lead. "It was just a good pitch, early in the count," he said of the fastball from Kaprielian. "I just tried to put a good swing on it, and the rest took care of itself." Dixon, who was traded from the Los Angeles Dodgers to the Reds last winter, was relieved that his early homer proved to be the difference for the Javelinas. Now, he hopes Peoria can continue its two-game winning streak as the Fall League winds down to the final games of the season. "It feels good," he said. "Hopefully we'll get a few in a row. The last couple of days we played well, so we'll see what happens." Dixon spent the entire 2016 season at Double-A Pensacola and is hoping to use the remaining games of the Fall League to continue to improve at the plate while getting comfortable playing different infield positions. "For me, it's just been trying to put together quality at-bats, and getting comfortable playing the corner positions -- getting comfortable playing first and third. I haven't played too much there," said Dixon, who started at first base Thursday. The Scorpions took the early 1-0 lead when Yankees No. 2 prospect Gleyber Torres scored on a sacrifice fly from center fielder Hunter Cole, the Giants' No. 21 prospect. During the Javelinas' turn at the plate, Rays' No. 15 prospect Justin Williams plated Franchy Cordero (Padres) with a double to even the score and set the stage for Dixon's home run. Scottsdale made a late push, scoring twice in the eighth inning, but Emilio Pagan (Mariners) came on in the ninth to strike out two en route to his first save of the Fall League season. Reds may try to move Phillips, Cozart GM Williams open to offers to improve club's roster By Mark Sheldon / November 10th, COMMENTS CINCINNATI -- The Reds' roster has stabilized from a year ago when Dick Williams arrived at the General Managers Meetings in Florida. Trades remain possible this offseason, however. "We'll definitely be opportunistic," Williams said at the GM Meetings in Scottsdale, Ariz. "If there is a deal to be had that works in terms of getting value back in a trade and opening a spot for a guy we think is ready, we'll do it."

3 Williams, who became Reds GM last year, took charge this month of the club's baseball operations as Walt Jocketty moved from president into an advisory role. At last year's GM Meetings, Jocketty and Williams signaled loudly that they would listen to trade proposals on any pricey veteran player. Those talks eventually resulted in closer Aroldis Chapman and third baseman Todd Frazier being dealt. This offseason, the focus of talks could be on shortstop Zack Cozart and second baseman Brandon Phillips. The Reds are trying to find playing time for young talents like Jose Peraza and Dilson Herrera -- both primarily middle infielders. Both are currently blocked by mainstay veterans. Cozart is third-year arbitration-eligible and a year from first-time free agency. Phillips, who is set to earn $14 million in the final season of his six-year, $72 million contract, has full no-trade protection. That clearly makes him the more difficult of the two to deal. While he may explore options, Williams did not feel compelled to complete a trade. "If those deals are not there, then we'll just have to make playing time work for everybody and make the transition work and act accordingly," Williams said. "It's hard to say at this point. It's a good problem to have a veteran guy and a young guy you like in a given position because you can play one or the other or groom him or let the young guy run and play. It will be kind of dictated by if somebody comes and has a compelling offer that makes the organization better enough to make a trade." In year two of a rebuild, the Reds lost 94 games -- a four-game improvement from But as he lay the groundwork for future moves with his counterparts this week in Arizona, Williams felt good about the state of the organization compared to a year ago. "Last year there was a lot of uncertainty about pieces we still had to trade, big pieces that we could trade and the uncertainty about where that would lead us," he said. "Since then, we've had a tremendous year away from the field in terms of a really productive Draft, a productive year of international signings, a productive year of investing in our baseball operations infrastructure, as far as hiring people in player development and adding scouts, investing in sports science. We feel it was a really good year all around and so we're in that much better of a position now. "A lot of those young prospects, every year that passes makes you feel like you're closer to the exciting part. We're still engaged in that game of when are they going to hit? We have enough guys now that will get to Spring Training and get an opportunity. It will be interesting to see who steps up." CINCINNATI ENQUIRER No Silver Slugger for Votto Zach Buchanan, zbuchanan@enquirer.com 6:30 p.m. EST November 10, 2016 Joey Votto has won a National League MVP award and finished in the top 10 of the voting three other times. He has never won a Silver Slugger award, despite being one of the greatest offensive players of his generation. Breaking that shutout will have to wait until 2017 at the earliest. On Thursday, Votto was beat out for what would have been his first Silver Slugger by Chicago Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo. The award, presented by Louisville Slugger, is voted on by major-league coaches and managers and honors the top offensive players at each position in either league. Votto hit.326 with a.985 OPS and 29 home runs. His.434 on-base percentage and 160 OPS+ -- an advanced metric that takes into account differences in ballparks -- both led the majors. Rizzo had a fantastic season in his own right, hitting.292/.385/.544 with 32 home runs, but did not lead the majors in any offensive category. Adding a Silver Slugger would have certainly offered a nice shorthand when describing Votto's 2016 campaign. It would have mirrored the brevity with which his 2015 could be detailed. That year, Votto started the year poorly and finished it by coming in third in NL MVP voting. In 2016, he started even more disastrously -- he was hitting.213 after two months -- but was the game's most intimidating hitter in the second half. His second-half numbers in 2015 were historic, but they were even more eye-popping in This past season, Votto batted.408/.490/.668 after the All-Star break, becoming just the third player to hit.400 or better in the second half since Ted Williams in 1941 and the first since Ichiro Suzuki in Votto was the only serious candidate the Reds had to claim the award this year, and despite his massive contract would represent an attractive trade chip for teams in win-now mode. But earlier this week, Reds general manager Dick Williams said the organization has no interest in trading the 33-year-old veteran.

4 Reds: Former manager Nixon passes away at 81 Dave Clark, 3:08 p.m. EST November 10, 2016 Russ Nixon, a Cleves native who attended Western Hills High School and the University of Cincinnati before becoming a manager and coach for the Cincinnati Reds, passed away at age 81, according to the team. Nixon managed the Reds in 1982 and 1983, and later managed the Atlanta Braves from 1988 to Nixon and his twin brother, Roy, an infielder, each signed with the Cleveland Indians in Roy never played in the majors, but Russ played 12 big-league seasons for the Indians ( ), the Red Sox ( ), the Twins ( ) and again with Boston (1968), hitting.268 in 906 games. His managing career began in the Reds' farm system in In 1976, he was on Sparky Anderson's staff with the Big Red Machine. He also coached with the Reds under John McNamara in Nixon replaced McNamara during the 1982 season - the only 100-loss season in team history. The Reds were after Nixon took over that season. He was fired after the Reds finished in McCoy to be honored as DDN living legend Brian Kollars Staff Writer 4:14 p.m Thursday, Nov. 10, 2016 Sports DAYTON DAILY NEWS Hall of Fame baseball writer Hal McCoy will be honored at the Living Legends of the Dayton Daily News Archives event on Nov. 17 at Wright State University. The program begins at 7 p.m. in the Endeavour Room in the WSU student union. Doors open at 6:30 and the event is free and open to the public. Parking is available in the visitors lot. McCoy will talk about his career covering the Cincinnati Reds and answer questions. He will be the seventh Daily News journalist honored. The annual program recognizes a Dayton Daily News/Cox Media Group Ohio editor, writer or photographer. I always appreciate the recognition, McCoy said. This is pretty special. Honorees are chosen by Wright State and Cox Media Group Ohio. Wright State s Special Collections and Archives, the University Libraries, and the Department of Communication in the College of Liberal Arts started the program in 2010 by honoring photographer Ty Greenlees. By his count, McCoy has won more than 50 state and national writing awards. He was honored in 2002 by the National Baseball Hall of Fame as the recipient of the J. G. Taylor Spink Award, which is awarded for meritorious contributions to baseball writing. McCoy, 76, was inducted into the Dayton Walk of Fame earlier this year and is the only non-cincinnati area resident in the Cincinnati Journalists Hall of Fame. He still writes his popular Ask Hal column for the Dayton Daily News, Springfield News-Sun and the JournalNews during the baseball season. His blog The Real McCoy has been a staple of daytondailynews.com for several years. Earlier this year, he launched his own website: HalMcCoy.com McCoy makes many public appearances and signings for his book: The Real McCoy: My half-century with the Cincinnati Reds. The book is in its third printing. Promoting his work forced him to do something he used to resist. I used to hate public speaking, McCoy said. When I had an engagement I could not sleep the night before. Since I wrote the book and have done so many, I really like it.

5 He said he spoke last week to the Cincinnati Association for the Blind and received a standing ovation. McCoy lost most of the sight in both eyes when he suffered strokes to the optic nerves in 2001 and He kept working, though, proving to be an inspiration to many. Last year, he received a special implant in his left eye that restored his long-distance vision. I can see 20/20 from a distance out of my left eye, but I can t see up close, he said. That s still dark and fuzzy. McCoy is best-known for his award-winning coverage of the Reds, but he has reported on a variety of sports during his career from high school basketball to the NFL to The Masters. McCoy was born and raised in Akron and graduated with honors from Kent State University. His given name is Harold Stanley McCoy Jr., but he became known as Hal after a photographer covering a Little League all-star game in which Hal starred got his name wrong. I liked it, though, so it stuck, McCoy said. He lives in Englewood with his wife, Nadine, and his two dogs, Paige and Cooper. ESPN.COM MLB Rumor Central: Reds open to trading Zack Cozart? 2:58 PM ET ESPN.com Cincinnati Reds general manager Dick Williams told reporters, including C. Trent Rosecrans of the Cincinnati Enquirer, that he's expecting the team to have a quiet offseason. However, one player who could be on the move is shortstop Zack Cozart. The 31-year-old is a free agent at the end of next season, and the Reds are open to the idea of dealing him. "He can be a part of grooming players, and he can be a part of a winning clubhouse," Williams said. "But if there's something that really puts the franchise in a better position for '18 and '19 that works, it's something we'd have to consider. We've shown the willingness to trade guys who have been with us if it helps us get better." Cozart hit.252 with 16 home runs and 50 RBIs in 121 games this year. The Seattle Mariners pushed to acquire him ahead of the Aug. 1 trade deadline, but a deal never came together. There is belief that the M's could pursue Cozart again this winter. As for the idea of trading Joey Votto, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reports that the Reds have no intention to do so, citing his clubhouse leadership. -- Kyle Brasseur 11/10/16 Atlanta Braves signed free agent RHP R.A. Dickey. TRANSACTIONS