The Mike Minor trade was clearly a knee-jerk reaction from ownership to the extremely angry backlash from the fanbase to the clear tank job that is/was being done.
As usual, this franchise fails to execute even the most basic of plans. Anyone with a brain knows that the Reds should have been planning to compete around 2024 and thereafter, with Greene, Lodolo, Barrero, India, Stephenson and perhaps Senzel as seasoned, cornerstone players to build around at that point.
Had that been the emphasis, the fire sale should have started last June — trading Winker, Mahle and Castellanos at their highest value for a prospect haul to supplement the major league team in 2024 and thereafter. Miley’s option easily could have been picked up and then traded for something to a 2022 contender.
Instead, the Reds traded Gray for a coin flip prospect who might pan out in 4 or 5 years. One good prospect comes over in the Mariners trade. And that’s about it. The Reds have lost Castellanos, Barnhart, Miley, Gray and Winker and somehow gotten very little of value in return. Add in letting Lorenzen and Givens walk as free agents and the team sucks for 2022 and is not adequately stocked for 2024-27 era like it should be. For what it’s worth, Castillo would be the one upcoming free agent ahead of 2024 who I would’ve tried to sign to a big deal to keep him around as part of the 2024 era rotation fronted with him, Lodolo and Greene.
It’s the same refrain as 2013-14 when it was clear that era was over and they held onto guys like Chapman, Leake, Frazier, etc. way too long and got comparatively little return value for what they should have gotten, thus slowing down and harming the last attempt to successfully rebuild.
Ownership is horrible and the front office is somehow even worse. Nick Krall just keeps getting pantsed by his fellow GMs. Ironically, if it were done in a vacuum, the Minor deal is the first good move they made.
It’s true, it’s true. Trust me …
I truly respect your opinion and enjoy your posts. I do disagree on some of your points...
-if you think the Reds give a flip about what the fan base thinks, you're giving us way too much credit. Pro sports is one way relationship, it's marketing's job to get people to the games. Many people today don't go to the games for the game. It's and event, it's something to do. Corporate seats flood the lower levels of these stadiums and many people who sit in them don't even pay for them. The seats that aren't used show up on StubHub, SeatGeek or Vivid and it's a market value day.
-Fannies in seats means ZERO today. Advantage ownership. TV and network deals is where it's at. There are enough of us die hard fans out here that's going to follow the team daily to keep them afloat. And when the win, all the naysayers will be back. Everyone loves a winner.
-I continue to laugh at he fire sale notion. Anytime a team gets rid of fan favorites, people claim it's a fire sale. The Reds will be competitive this year. When healthy, they can put a very competitive lineup on the field.
-the four folks you mentioned, Castellenos, Barnhart, Miley, Gray and Winker would have cost the team give or take between $50-$60 million this season. Castellenos simply was never going to be signed here. Like it or not, giving him $100+ million would not had been a good move today, tomorrow, next year or 5 years from now. Barnhard, Miley, Gray are all just guys who's salaries would not equal what they give you in return, it's a business. Say what you want about Gray, but you got a #1 pick for him. Now yes, it's not a foregone conclusion he's going to ever even be a big leaguer, but you basically got a first round pick from 2018, for Gray, then picked a guy much like Gray, that's a great move!!
-The Reds were primed to compete in 13-14. it's just armchair quarterbacking to say otherwise after the fact. Heck that team was alot closer to competing then than we were this year and look at the angst the Reds front office has got the last few weeks.
Let's just stop guessing and playing GM and just enjoy the guys who are in uniform as this season goes.