The phrase has lost all meaning.

Per Marc:

Old news by now, I know (been away from the computer for a while), but the Reds have acquired infielder Brandon Phillips from the Indians for a player to be named or cash.

Phillips, 24, was long considered one of the top prospects around, and thought to be the key to the Bartolo Colon deal a few years ago. Grady Sizemore and Cliff Lee ended up providing quite a bit more return for the Tribe.

He'll be on the Reds' active roster, though a corresponding move won't be made until Sunday. Matt Kata was designated for assignment to make room for Phillips on the 40-man.

Another interesting pickup. I keep waiting for a really big domino to fall somewhere here, considering all the catchers, second basemen and outfielders floating around. Stay tuned, I guess.

OK, so Marc thinks we're going to see the huge corresponding move to this one. But we've been waiting for that shoe to fall since they signed Womack back in December.

KC2HMZ, who by now ought to be listed as an official writer for RHM, had this to say about the deal in the comments:

Pssst! Don't look now, but the Reds just obtained Brandon Phillips from the Indians for a player to be named later or cash.

Phillips was part of the booty in the same trade that got the Indians Grady Sizemore and sent Bartolo Colon to the Expos.

Phillips' problem has been that he can't hit a lick. He actually won the Tribe's 2B job in the psring of 2003, but hit like .210 in 88 games and got sent down to Buffalo. He's played here in Buffalo for the last three years, where I've been able to see with my own eyes that he's a dynamite fielder at both 2B and SS who would be an all-star in the majors if he'd quit trying to hit every pitch 600 feet and learn to be a contact hitter.

That, and LaRue comes off the DL on, like, Monday. I still think there's going to be a major trade here, the Reds have too many catchers and too many middle infielders.

To give this move an even more sinister shade, Marc says in his subsequent post that general manager Wayne Krivsky felt the need to point out Phillips' service time at short stop on multiple occasions.

Would the Reds stockpile a zillion second basemen just to trade their one really good shortstop? The idea makes me slightly ill.