New Excitement in the Air at Redsfest

Walking into my first Redsfest last Friday I was largely surprised. I was not sure what to expect when my girlfriend and I got there. People were everywhere and there was a new excitement in the air. I think a lot of it had to do with last years turning of the Ken Griffey Jr. and Adam Dunn page. Either way the crowd was great and so were the players and coaches.

I was able to talk with most of the players (Johnny Cueto, Chris Dickerson, Edwin Encarnacion, ect.). All of these guys were very nice guys, but also very focused at the upcoming season and the tasks at hand. Part of Redsfest was a question and answer session with a few of the executives, the general manager Walt Jocketty, and manager Dusty Baker. Some of the fans were drilling them with some good questions. Of course one of the hottest topics was who is going to fill the void in the outfield and in the middle of the batting order. Jocketty did a good job of basically dodging those questions completely. However he did say that the Reds will either trade for an outfielder or sign one out of free agency. Also Dusty Baker was asked about who his ace would be. He said that although Edinson Volquez had a great season last year, he still views Aaron Harang as his ace. The night was finished off by a live performance from the Bronson Arroyo Band.

A couple of moves that have happened in the last week or so have been the acquisition of new catcher Ramon Hernandez(left) from the Baltimore Orioles. The Reds traded utility player Ryan Freel and a couple of prospects for Hernandez and some cash. Also the Reds made it official on Saturday that they have signed free agent southpaw, 39 year old Arthur Rhodes to a two year deal. This will help fill the void left when Jeremy Affeldt left for the Giants. Also the Reds have just signed outfielder Laynce Nix to a minor league contract. He comes from the Milwaukee Brewers and has battled injuries for most of his career. There are rumors out there saying that a short list of outfielders that the Reds could be pursuing are Willy Taveras, Pat Burrell, and Jeremy Hermida. As new developments come about the L Yes! Report will bring them to you. The Reds are trying to bring in some veterans to put around the young core, which in turn could possibly take them back to the playoffs.