Cincinnati Reds Press Clippings January 27, 2017

Transcription

1 Cincinnati Reds Media Clips January 27 th, 2017

2 Cincinnati Reds Press Clippings January 27, 2017 THIS DAY IN REDS HISTORY 1937-Crosley Field s playing surface is submerged under 21 feet of water. Reds pitcher, Lee Grissom, and groundskeeper, Matty Schwab, are photographed in a rowboat crossing the field. No Game Today. Wet Grounds, accompanies the photograph on the newspaper the next day MLB.COM Arroyo, Reds not ruling out a reunion Cincinnati also looking for help with catching, outfield depth By Mark Sheldon / January 26th, COMMENTS CINCINNATI -- With the addition of starting pitcher Scott Feldman on Wednesday and late-inning reliever Drew Storen on Jan. 3, the Reds are likely done with signing anymore free agents to Major League contracts. Minor League deals with Spring Training invites for non-roster players is another matter, however. "We are still looking around," Reds general manager Dick Williams said on Thursday at the Reds Caravan launch event. "I don't foresee a Major League signing right now. But we're still looking to add." Williams would still like to improve the catching depth behind Devin Mesoraco and Tucker Barnhart. Adding other bench help, perhaps an outfielder, is also on the remaining to-do list. Also not ruled out is a reunion with former Reds starting pitcher Bronson Arroyo. "It's a possibility," Williams said. "He's expressed interest in having an opportunity. We're doing our due diligence." Arroyo starred for the club from , but he has not pitched in the big leagues since '14. He has been plagued by elbow and shoulder injuries since. Williams said representatives from the Reds have watched the right-hander throw at Great American Ball Park. Arroyo, who will turn 40 on Feb. 24, would be viewed as a positive influence on a younger clubhouse. The Reds and Arroyo also flirted with a deal last offseason, but Arroyo ultimately signed a Minor League deal with the Nationals. He pitched in two games for their Gulf Coast League team before being shut down after a July 2 appearance. Storen, Schebler join Reds Caravan Organization will cover 5 states over 17 stops this weekend By Mark Sheldon / January 26th, COMMENTS CINCINNATI -- Four buses were lined up outside of the Reds Hall of Fame and Museum on early Thursday morning, and that can only mean one thing in the winter: It's the starting point of another Reds Caravan. Reds reliever Drew Storen, who signed a one-year, $3 million contract on Jan. 3, was excited to get rolling with his new team. Storen is on the east leg of the four-day road trip. "Spring Training is always different with a new team. You're the new kid at school," Storen explained. "Obviously knowing Tucker [Barnhart], that helps. But I am getting to meet some people now and spend time with them before spring. It will be a little bit of a head start for me." Storen and Barnhart, the Reds' catcher, both hail from Brownsburg, Ind., near Indianapolis. Storen was a Reds fan as a kid. "I'm getting the feel of it from the other side of things. It's pretty cool," Storen said. "I grew up coming to games in Cincinnati. Being able to play here is going to be a lot of fun." The four buses spread out on the roads, set to cover the region with a combined 17 stops. They will reach five different states -- Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, West Virginia and Tennessee -- totaling around 3,300 miles. Reds radio icon Marty Brennaman and president/ceo Bob Castellini hosted the trip's launch.

3 There are stops planned at Reds-affiliated radio stations, plus a few malls, universities, children's hospitals and the National Museum of the United States Air Force. All of the public caravan fan stops are free. There will be Q&A sessions and opportunities for autographs. Reds outfielder Scott Schebler is on the northern leg of the caravan. Schebler, acquired from the Dodgers in a trade last offseason, is also experiencing the trip for the first time after playing his first season in Cincinnati in "It seems like our schedules are pretty full," Schebler said. "I'm excited to go out and see the fans. It seems like it will be a fun weekend. I'm really looking forward to the Air Force Museum in Dayton. I've heard it's great." All four caravan legs will converge for a final stop at 11 a.m. ET on Sunday at Florence Mall in Florence, Ky. CINCINNATI ENQUIRER Dick Williams: rebuild message is getting through Zach Buchanan, zbuchanan@enquirer.com Published 10:11 p.m. ET Jan. 26, 2017 ATHENS, Ohio The fan had a question for Dick Williams. Why, he asked the Cincinnati Reds president of baseball operations, had the Reds not pursued any offensive upgrades this offseason? Clearly improvements were needed. Williams has come to expect such pointed critiques during his stops on the Reds Caravan like this one, at The Market on State here in Athens on Thursday. He was prepared with an answer so honest, it visibly stunned his neighbor on the dais, new Reds pitcher Drew Storen. Did you watch us pitch last year? Williams responded. Storen raised his eyebrows and shared a laughing look with minor-league catcher Chris Okey, like someone in their fourth-grade class had just back-sassed the teacher. Williams finished the answer diplomatically, pointing out that the offense rebounded nicely in the second half and that good health should make it reliable again in The pitching, however, needed help more desperately. It was just about the only open critique of the Reds plan that Williams was offered during the 20-minute ask-and-answer session that also featured Storen, Okey and Reds legend Eric Davis. That s not a coincidence, Williams thinks. The feedback he gets is that fans are starting to understand the purpose of the rebuild. It really started at RedsFest, Williams said. There was a real positive tone to the questions and the atmosphere. I think people are really seeing the light and feeling like they re part of something. The questions lobbed at Williams on Thursday seemingly reflected that new appreciation for team-building strategy. One fan inquired about whether better value comes from selling off stars at the deadline versus in the offseason. (The answer: it depends.) Another question, from a man near the front of the crowd of about 250, started more ominously. He s a fan of Brandon Phillips, he said, and is glad the team s numerous efforts to trade him have failed. Williams prepared himself. But then the fan took an abrupt turn. Clearly, Phillips is declining defensively, he said. Would the Reds make Jose Peraza the starter at second base and move Phillips to the outfield? (Williams' response: a very lawyerly no.) I haven t had any of those confrontational questions, said Williams, whose day began with three stops for radio interviews and one event at a middle school in Ashland, Ky. It s been a more positive frame of mind. I think people are excited to hear about what s coming. Part of that is due to Williams persistent efforts to be transparent. It may be common sense to those in the game that a rebuild was necessary to the Reds and those people arguably recognized that a year or so before the Reds did but for the casual fan it can be an affront to competitiveness. Williams has tried his best to explain the team s thought process whenever possible. Rebuilds are painful and drive fans from the ballpark, but he wants to show them the roadmap back to contention. He won t take all the credit; an increased focus on the subject by the national media has done most of the heavy lifting.

4 There s a lot more media coverage on it now, a lot more national media coverage, a lot more talk of the value of going through cycles and the down cycles and the value of drafting, he said. That has certainly educated the fans and made them aware of these cycles. That doesn t make it necessarily easier to go through. But I think it helps educate people. I think it helps them see that there is hope. Together again? Reds, Bronson Arroyo interested in reunion C. Trent Rosecrans, crosecrans@enquirer.com Published 12:39 p.m. ET Jan. 26, 2017 There is mutual interest between the Reds and former starter Bronson Arroyo, Reds general manager Dick Williams acknowledged on Thursday. Speaking to reporters before Thursday s kickoff of the team s caravan, Williams said the Reds have seen Arroyo throw in Cincinnati and have done their due diligence on the veteran. It's a possibility, Williams said. He's expressed interest in having an opportunity. The Enquirer reported the mutual interest Wednesday night. If Arroyo were signed, it would almost certainly be a minor-league contract. Arroyo, who will turn 40 next month, hasn t pitched in the big leagues since 2014 when he was with the Diamondbacks. After eight years with the Reds, Arroyo signed a two-year, $23.5 million contract before the 2014 season. Arroyo made 14 starts for the Diamondbacks that year but suffered an elbow injury that required ulnar collateral ligament replacement surgery, better known as Tommy John surgery. Six of Arroyo s starts with the Diamondbacks came after he tore the UCL. Arroyo signed a minor-league deal with the Nationals before the 2016 season. He suffered a partial tear of the rotator cuff in his right shoulder during spring training. Arroyo made two starts for the team s Gulf Coast League affiliate. From 2006 to 2013, Arroyo made 265 starts for the Reds, making at least 32 starts and pitching 199 innings in all eight seasons in Cincinnati. WCPO - Channel 9 Fay: Bryan Price makes new pitch on Reds Caravan: 'We're going to compete and compete well' Question is: How? John Fay 12:48 PM, Jan 26, 2017 CINCINNATI The Reds kicked off the annual Winter Caravan Thursday, the bus trek to the far-flung reaches of Redsland to sell the club to fans. The pitch this year: We re going to be better. There s light at the end of the rebuilding tunnel. That comes from the man in charge on the field and the man in charge overall. We have huge expectations that we re going to compete and compete well, Reds manager Bryan Price said. I m not looking for 2017 to be a replay of 2016 because it s a rebuild. I m looking for 2017 to be a significant improvement over 16. Owner Bob Castellini is always hesitant to over-promise, but he thinks the Reds can break the string of losing seasons at three. Yeah, I do, Castellini said. That s not our goal. Our goal is to be better than that. Wishful thinking? Could be. To get to.500 and beyond, the Reds need a lot of things to go right. They ll have to stay healthy. Their young players will have to continue to progress. And their two free-agent acquisitions will have to play significant roles in shoring up the pitching staff. The Reds snapped up another free agent off the bargain shelf on the eve of the Caravan, signing right-hander Scott Feldman. The Feldman signing did not have people lining up at ticket windows Thursday. But it makes sense. Feldman is a lot like the Reds' other free agent, Drew Storen. Feldman is a low-risk, high-reward player who was willing to take a one-year, incentive-laden deal. The team hopes Feldman can be a reasonable facsimile of Dan Straily, the 14-game winner the Reds traded. That could happen, but it is way less than a sure bet. Feldman, 33, pitched mostly in relief last season. He went 7-4 with a 3.97 ERA in 40 games (five starts) with Houston and Toronto. In the previous four seasons he was with a 3.83 ERA exclusively as a starter.

5 Price has him penciled into the rotation with Homer Bailey, Anthony DeSclafani and Brandon Finnegan. That leaves the fifth spot as a three-way race between top prospects Robert Stephenson, Cody Reed and Amir Garrett. I like Scott because of his history, Price said. He s thrown the innings, he s made the starts, he throws strikes. In order to have a fresh bullpen, you ve got to have starting pithing. For any hope of competing, the bullpen is going to have to be much better. It was historically bad in Red relievers led the majors in home runs allowed (103), walks (297) and runs (359). Storen gives the Reds a proven late-inning guy to go along with left-hander Tony Cingrani and right-handers Michael Lorenzen and Raisel Iglesias. Storen, the former Washington closer, will be part of the hybrid, multiple-inning bullpen approach Price plans to use. When Lorenzen and Iglesias got healthy, they solidified the bullpen. That was a key to the Reds playing one game under.500 in the second half. (Storen) gives me the ability to mix and match, Price said. If it s necessary to run Lorenzen out there for the seventh and eighth and Storen s our freshest guy and he s throwing the ball great, maybe he s the guy for the ninth. It s set us up to have Iglesias for two or two-plus the next game, which is a nice option. You also have to have contingencies. I ve painted a picture of how I d like to use this bullpen. Having someone who s been in the big leagues, who s pitched in the postseason, who s saved 40-plus games, is a nice addition to the bullpen. The Reds scored enough runs to be competitive last year. They were eighth in the NL in runs, so if the pitching goes from abysmal to just mediocre, playing.500 or better is no pipe dream. Price will try to convince fans of that on his leg of the Caravan. It s an opportunity to answer questions and give the folks out there an understanding of where we re headed, Price said. There s not a more important time than now when the team s had a few years of struggle. We ve painted the picture of rebuilding and trying to get back on top of our game, working toward being a continual presence in the National League Central, competing again for postseason and World Series championships. It s been a painful ride to this point. I do believe staying healthy at this point with the roster where it is if we do, I think we ve got a great team, a great product on the field and certainly a fun team to watch. MUNCIE STAR PRESS Fans come out for Reds Caravan David Polaski, dpolaski@muncie.gannett.com Published 8:56 p.m. ET Jan. 26, 2017 MUNCIE Gilbert Orr pointed to a spot on his Cincinnati Reds hat as he slowly approached Corky Miller. Five years ago, Orr was in Arizona during spring training, where he met Miller. The former Reds catcher with a handlebar mustache autographed Orr's hat that day, and Orr couldn't wait to meet him again. Of course, Miller isn't the only player Orr wanted to see. He also came to meet Tucker Barnhart, the Cincinnati catcher who Orr hopes will help lead the Reds to a World Series title in the future. After all, Orr didn't need much time to think of his favorite Reds memory. "It has to be 1990, when they won the World Series," Orr said. Miller and Barnhart came to Stoops Automotive on Thursday as a part of the Reds Caravan. They were joined by Fox Sports Ohio host Jim Day, minor league second baseman Shed Long, executive adviser to the CEO of the Reds Walt Jocketty, Reds COO Phil Castellini and mascot Mr. Redlegs. The lobby was decorated in red, black and white balloons as fans had 15 minutes to ask questions before the guests signed autographs. They came wearing Reds jackets along with jerseys and shirts for Johnny Bench, Joey Votto and Adam Dunn. Barnhart is an Indiana native who went to Brownsburg high school. As a senior in 2009, he was named baseball's Mr. Indiana.

6 He said the hardest part of the minor league grind is 12-hour bus rides and spending nights in bad hotels, but making it to the major leagues makes it worthwhile. Barnhart also played against the World Series champion Chicago Cubs last season, and knows going up against an opponent of that caliber makes everyone better. "When you have to contend with those guys every single month, you know you have to raise your game to another level," Barnhart said. Jason Skinner has been a fan for 37 years. He usually makes it to games at Great American Ballpark a year. He will never forget watching former Reds and current New York Mets right fielder Jay Bruce hit a walk-off home run in 2010 to clinch the division. "It was awesome," Skinner said. "I went nuts." TRANSACTIONS 01/26/17 Cleveland Indians designated 1B Jesus Aguilar for assignment. Oakland Athletics traded LHP Dillon Overton to Seattle Mariners for C Jason Goldstein. Minnesota Twins signed free agent RHP Yohan Pino to a minor league contract. Atlanta Braves claimed Adam Walker off waivers from Baltimore Orioles. Seattle Mariners designated RHP Jonathan Aro for assignment. Seattle Mariners claimed Tuffy Gosewisch off waivers from Atlanta Braves. Chicago Cubs signed free agent LHP Brett Anderson. Cleveland Indians claimed Richie Shaffer off waivers from Cincinnati Reds. Washington Nationals signed free agent 2B Stephen Drew. Cincinnati Reds signed free agent RHP Scott Feldman. Seattle Mariners designated C Jesus Sucre for assignment.