Happy Tuesday!
Did you see Willy Tavares in action last night? Did you see the ineptitude that has turned this town against him, and is slowly turning the town against the man who traded for him, Walt Jocketty?
Inside of one half inning, Tavares ran into the wall in centerfield twice, TWICE, without making the catch. The first time was somewhat forgivable: Tavares was trying to track down a long fly ball. But the second time, two batters after the first run in, Tavares went back on a fly ball, ran into the wall with his back to the field and the ball bounced IN FRONT of him.
And this is what the Reds paid close to $7 million dollars for?
Look you can can on one hand this is Bob Castellini's money and he should take issue with Jocketty who signed Tavares for $7 mil when Tavares could have been had for close to the MLB minimum. And Castellini should. But the reason why this is so important to you is that Castellini's payroll this year is $75 million and will be close to that next year. And he's in no position to be throwing good money after bad.
Tavares came here with a reputation of stealing bases and making plays in the field that highlight his speed. We've seen far to little of either. The Reds are in no position to eat his contract. But they are in a position to bench Tavares and let others have a shot at his job. When Chris Dickerson is healthy, he should start every day in left field. Dickerson should have been the starting centerfielder all along. When September rolls around, both Drew Stubbs and Chris Heisey should be brought up from AAA and allowed to get a taste of major league baseball.
And sometime soon, Castellini should call Jocketty into his office as ask Walt exactly where is the guy who was GM in St. Louis and very successful at that. Maybe between the two of them, they can find that guy before another season is flushed because of ill advised player acquisitions.