So the Bruce talk was possibly legit then?

All systems go for Jay Bruce now. LaRoche had a rough year but this does leave a hole.

 

I know some people wouldn't like that, but I would like that for the right price.

Avila can also play 1B

Hopefully he can work out whatever personal issues he is having.

Class act. Hope he's ok

I'd love for Bruce to be here and reds to still pay for some of the contract.

I know some people wouldn't like that, but I would like that for the right price.

I'd be fine with it, he's more or less a younger version of LaRoche. The price may have just gone up, given our sudden need for a player.

 

I'll bang the Ethier drum again too, assuming the Dodgers are at all interested in it.

Colleen Kane ‏@ChiTribKane 8m8 minutes ago

 

Adam LaRoche: "I’m confident I am stepping away from baseball. ... My teammates have asked me for an hour (to reconsider)." (1/2)

(2/2): "I’ve tried to convince them I am convinced, but I will do them that, and give it a day or two, and then come back in."

I'd love for Bruce to be here and reds to still pay for some of the contract.

 

With the savings we should be getting, I'd rather give up nothing to get him and just pay the contract.

What could this be about?

Avila can also play 1B

With the worry for both catchers already being "health" and Avila having played only 409 games in the last 4 years, and no obvious replacement catcher waiting at Charlotte, you really don't want to use Avila at 1b in anything but a game situation emergency/injury replacement, unless another big league caliber catcher were acquired.

With the savings we should be getting, I'd rather give up nothing to get him and just pay the contract.

 

Yep, I think he would be a good fit for this team and I would rather not have to give up any of our top 10 prospects

I'm sure he's a great guy and all but this is a huge opportunity for the team to improve. Crazy to think Robin let the guys try to talk him out of it. It is best for all parties, pretty much no matter the cause of it is.

So who is the DH as of today? Avi right?

What could this be about?

 

My guess would be if it were injury related, they would have just said that.

 

Personal issues could be almost anything, none of which are good, and I feel dirty speculating about what they could be.

With the savings we should be getting, I'd rather give up nothing to get him and just pay the contract.

Idea came up somewhere on twitter to keep the money for flexibility at the trade deadline, but I hold the same belief that I did about the roster before the Austin Jackson signing. I'd rather try to make the team better now and get the extra win or two in the first half.

With the worry for both catchers already being "health" and Avila having played only 409 games in the last 4 years, and no obvious replacement catcher waiting at Charlotte, you really don't want to use Avila at 1b in anything but a game situation emergency/injury replacement, unless another big league caliber catcher were acquired.

 

Just naming guys who can play a game at 1B here or there. We don't necessarily need to bring in someone who can play 1B because we have options when we need it. I would hope Abreu can play 150+ games at 1B this year given this is his 3rd professional season in the US

My guess would be if it were injury related, they would have just said that.

 

Personal issues could be almost anything, none of which are good, and I feel dirty speculating about what they could be.

Thank you, I was wondering how to phrase my reaction to a question like that and I agree with how you put this.

My guess would be if it were injury related, they would have just said that.

 

Personal issues could be almost anything, none of which are good, and I feel dirty speculating about what they could be.

 

The fact that his teammates tried to talk him out of it at least makes me think it's not tooooo serious.

I hope it's that he just doesn't want to play anymore and not something more serious.

Man, really hope he and his family are alright. That seems like a pretty serious u-turn there. I think this actually hurts the team more than we are expecting personally. Going after Ethier makes the most sense to me, hope it's something they consider.

Idea came up somewhere on twitter to keep the money for flexibility at the trade deadline, but I hold the same belief that I did about the roster before the Austin Jackson signing. I'd rather try to make the team better now and get the extra win or two in the first half.

 

You hope that if the team is doing well enough to be looking to add at the break, that the fans have actually responded, and there is some extra money there to spend.

Just naming guys who can play a game at 1B here or there. We don't necessarily need to bring in someone who can play 1B because we have options when we need it. I would hope Abreu can play 150+ games at 1B this year given this is his 3rd professional season in the US

Abreu has had stints both of his first 2 seasons where he's needed to either DH or go on the DL for > a week, so "what do we do if Abreu needs to DH for a week or more" is a valid question created by this retirement, and you can't use the catcher there outside of emergencies. Frazier to 1b seems like the obvious answer.

Yep, I think he would be a good fit for this team and I would rather not have to give up any of our top 10 prospects

I'd rather not either. But I'm not too convinced he'd cost one even if they send 3-4 million our way. He's been pretty bad these last two years. They should be thankful for us to pay him 9ish million to go away, while they allocate those savings internationally or something better used for a franchise in complete rebuild mode.

 

Yep, I think he would be a good fit for this team and I would rather not have to give up any of our top 10 prospects

I'd be shocked if it took one of our top 10 prospects to get Bruce. It should be a nothing prospect.