ByOr, notes from the transaction list…
The big news is that LHP Jon Coutlangus has been traded to Arizona for outfielding prospect Daniel Perales. (No more Coutlangus jokes. Sniff.)
ByReds LHP Mike Stanton has been told by the club that they plan to let him go, according to an article by John Erardi on the Cincinnati Enquirer’s web site.
The move will cost the Reds $3.5 million (Stanton’s salary this year plus an option for next year).
If you ask me, I think this indicates two things.
One, the Reds have again shown that they’re not afraid to eat some salary. They could have kept Stanton on in light of the $3,500,000 it’s going to cost them to cut him – and presumably been forced to cut or option a better player in order to keep Stanton. This shows that improving the team is the primary concern, rather than the bottom line.
Two, it would appear that one of the non-roster invitee lefty relievers has made the team. For what it’s worth, my money’s on Kent Mercker.
ByAnd no, it’s not Mike Stanton.
Yesterday, the Reds traded Brad Salmon to the Kansas City Royals for a player to be named later or cash.
Salmon didn’t have a legitimate shot of making the Reds bullpen this year, but I imagine he’ll have better chances in KC. Of course, thinking that the Reds are better off than the Royals might simply be delusional thinking. Neither have done anything for quite some time.
But hey, I look forward to seeing that cash contribute to the Reds!
BySpring Training in baseball is always exciting, filled with the naive optimism that “We can win it this year.” It always seems the players feel that way, too, so I wonder how the marginal players deal with the cuts. It’s one thing if you’re young and a touted prospect, but to be older and hanging on for one more shot has to be hard.
No major moves have been made yet, but here’s a rundown of the cuts that the National League Central clubs have made in the past few days.
 Just two and a half weeks until Opening Day, and most teams have rosters that are well over the 25 man limit. It seems that teams are taking longer to decide on which 25 to take this year. I find the hand-wringing over all of it a little amusing. I mean, the vast majority of the final 35 or so players all make it to the big leagues at some point. Someone always gets injured.
Until then, keep enjoying the starting rotation battles for the Reds, the closer battle for the Cubs, the 25-man battle for the Pirates, and the Cardinals ongoing search for a Scott Spiezio replacement.
By
According to STLToday, the Cardinals will be giving one Sidney Ponson an audience this week:
JUPITER, Fla. — The Cardinals will lend former pitcher Sidney Ponson a place and a mound to throw for scouts Thursday at lunchtime.
Ponson, who made 13 starts for the Cardinals in 2006, is said to have slimmed down to 245 pounds and cranked up his fastball to 91 mph.
Because he’ll be on their spring-training campus, the Cardinals will have scouts in attendance, and they are interested is seeing what he has. “Just keep an open mind,” manager Tony La Russa said.
To think that the Cardinals would overlook Kyle Lohse, Ramón Ortíz, even Eric Milton to let Ponson have a chance…this is really something special.
