Kuzul

Scott Rolen had a great MLB career, but it may be time for him to say goodbye to the Cincinnati Reds and the game.The Reds traded multiple players, including Edwin Encarnacion for Rolen back in 2009. Some questioned the move because of Rolen's age and injury history. However, the move paid off.Rolen made an immediate impact from the moment he came into the clubhouse. The Reds finished 2009 on a tear and carried the momentum into 2010. In two of his three full seasons with the team, the Reds won the National League Central.Not only did the Reds do well, but Rolen also added to his great career. He won a Gold Glove in 2010 and made the NL All-Star team in 2010 and 2011. He made the key play by taking an extra base in 2010 and started at third base for the NL in 2011.In 2010, he had ...

Unless you gave up on the Reds after their 4-8 start, you are well aware that this team has hit a stride.Not only have we seen the usual heroes like Joey Votto, Brandon Phillips and Jay Bruce, we're also starting to also see a bit of a youth movement.Devin Mesoraco has found a little pop in his bat and young guys in the pen like JJ Hoover are joining in on the fun, but the one name who stands out over all these young men is third baseman Todd Frazier.Frazier, who has earned the nickname "The Toddfather," is on a roll and fits in very well with this Reds team. With the injuries to Scott Rolen and Miguel Cairo, Frazier has gotten his opportunity and has run with it for miles.The issue at hand is when or if Rolen returns to Cincinnati, how does Reds manager Dusty Baker use these ...

Yet more worrying news came out of the Cincinnati Reds camp today. According to Jon Heyman of CBS Sports.com, the shoulder injury to veteran third baseman Scott Rolen has the Reds' training staff worried that he may not return for the remainder of the season.Currently labeled as indefinitely out, Rolen's injured shoulder is the same injury that prematurely ended his 2011 season. It was hoped that Rolen would return sooner rather than later, as original reports stated that he could avoid missing extended time.Rolen was batting a meager .172 prior to being placed on the disabled list, with two home runs and 11 runs batted in. His batting average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage are all career lows.In the last year of his contract and pushing the envelope at 37 years old, Rolen could have played his last game in a Reds uniform if he is indeed out for the ...

The Cincinnati Reds have the pieces necessary to become a serious World Series contender in 2012. But as of now, they have yet to put together a consistent string of wins to make it appear so. The Reds have committed a large sum of money to Brandon Phillips and Joey Votto over the next decade, so they have a core intact for the future.  We can sit here and bicker over whether it was the right call to spend such a large amount of money on two players, but that is not what this article is about.The Reds need some help from a few guys on the roster if they want to succeed.  We will start with Scott Rolen.  Rolen has been one of the best—if not the best—third basemen in all of baseball over the last 10 years, but he is showing signs of age in the young 2012 season. Rolen ...

With a bad team, arranging the batting lineup is akin to rearranging deck chairs on the titanic, but on a contending team like the Reds, I believe there are a few adjustments that could be made that will help the team as a whole.Without further ado, with numbers to back up my thoughts, I present what would look like a good everyday starting lineup for the Cincinnati Reds.Begin Slideshow

Typically, in the game of baseball, there are positions that are expected to generate a lot of offense, and some that are more defensive-oriented with little power threat.In general, the latter positions are usually second base, shortstop, center field and catcher. But the corner infield and outfield positions have historically produced higher offensive numbers. But, so far in 2011, one position has neglected that precedent—third base.Some examples for this power outage are injury-related, some are due to aging athletes playing past their prime, and some are just anomalies. But whatever the reason, many teams around baseball have had poor power numbers from their hot corner patrols.Case in point: Last season, Major League third basemen combined to hit .263 with 567 home runs, to go along with a .418 slugging percentage. In 2009, they totaled 588 home runs, and slugged at a .421 mark.But so far in 2011, third baseman have ...

I always despised when a baseball announcer used the words, “future Hall of Famer.” Were they attempting prognostication or trying to be a modern day Nostradamus? The times that phrase was uttered about baseball great Pete Rose is incalculable. Of course, as everyone now knows, Rose shot himself in the foot by gambling on baseball games. That action proved to fail the litmus test for all those Cooperstown prophets. Yet, here I am asking you if Cincinnati Reds third baseman Scott Rolen will someday be enshrined with the baseball legends of days gone by. He is in his 16th year and still going strong(er). I must admit, even though I am a self-proclaimed baseball purist, it is titillating to engage in conversation about marginal players. As a purist (and not a homer), I would give you a quick two-thumbs down on Rolen. He has nowhere near 3,000 hits. He isn’t ...

Cincinnati Reds  Last Year: 91-71, First in NL Central  Manager: Dusty Baker    Projected Lineup C- Ramon Hernandez (R) 1B- Joey Votto (L) 2B- Brandon Phillips (R)  3B- Scott Roles (R) SS- Paul Janish (R) LF- Johnny Gomes (R) CF- Drew Stubbs (R) RF- Jay Bruce (L) The Reds won the NL Central in large part because of a consistent lineup that finished in the top five of most major offensive categories. Joey Votto, the 2010 NL MVP, leads the way in the No. 3 spot in the lineup. He has an amazing combination of hitting for power, average, plate discipline and speed. He will strikeout like most power hitters these days, but his 35 home runs, 15 stolen bases and .315/.410/.570 line will make up for it. Brandon Phillips, who will hit in front of Votto, knows how to handle the bat and provides good power for a second ...

Everyone knows the Reds have a vault of young talent. Everybody knows about Joey Votto, Drew Stubbs, Jay Bruce and Aroldis Chapman. Most have heard about Chris Heisey , Mike Leake, Travis Wood, Devin Mesoraco, Juan Francisco, Yonder Alonso, Todd Frazier and Chris Valaika. Here comes a serious question: Have you ever heard of center fielder Dave Sappelt? I had not before this spring training. He is currently leading the Reds in home runs, RBI, hits and total bases. Among players with more than three at-bats, he also leads in batting average and slugging percentage. I realize this is just the first couple of weeks of spring training, but I am getting excited about the young man. I was watching FoxSports Ohio the other day and saw his long home run against the Milwaukee Brewers. Am I saying he is going to beat out Stubbs for his job? No. He ...

It seems that almost every day a new list of strongest arms in the MLB is published. The problem with almost all of these lists is that they only include outfielders.There is definitely some logic behind this, because in general outfielders do have stronger arms than infielders, and get to show them off more.But, believe it or not there are infielders who have great arms too, and for once they are going to get the recognition they deserve.The problem with rating infielder arms is that there are two very different ways to look at it, accuracy or power. This list has some players that are better at one and some that are better at the other.What makes an infielder's arm especially special is if they can master both of these skills, strong, powerful throws on a line to the glove.Feel free to offer your comments below on what players should ...