Looks like they decided to go with Ryan Wagner and save some money. Too bad they can't get rid of Milton and half the other staff.

They won't save any money... the reds will still be liable for all but the league minimum (his replacement player's salary) for the rest of the year unless someone trades for him and picks up his salary (fat chance). If the reds do trade him, they will pick up his salary as well.

so you designate Graves for assignment, and replace him with Wagner, whom Graves bailed out on Friday night...

Of course if I were in their shoes, I don't know what I do either... It is saving money though...

Wagner isn't the person either... they said that the situation will dictate who is in during closing situations.

wagner might be a good replacement down the road, but not now. of course the reds have no chance this season anyway, so i guess it doesn't really matter. but i haven't watched wagner enough to know how good he can be.

I guess the Reds will try out several candidates for the closer job. But given what Danny has done so far this year, I doubt it can get any worse.

Milton pitched 8 innings (gave up yet 2 more HRs :eek: ) and Weathers of all people came in to shut the doors for a 5-3 win.

So is Weathers going to close for the Reds? I like Ryan Wagner's arm, but pitching in that bandbox could mess up the kids confidence. You had to get rid of Graves, though.

No way is Weathers the closer. I still think the job belongs to Wagner....now we'll see if he can keep it.

Weathers got his second chance in a row to save the game last night with one out in the 9th, but couldn't hold it. At least he didn't do a Danny Graves (gave up multiple runs).

It appears Miley is not ready to throw Wagner into the closer role just yet, as he's testing to see which veteran will step up to fill the void.

On another note, I heard on the radio yesterday that the Cubbies may have some interests in Graves, but I doubt they'd take on that huge contract of his when they can wait a bit to sign him cheap.

Wagner was given the chance to save a 2-run lead last night but failed miserably. At least he didn't give up the lead and was rewarded with the W. He's now 0-6 in his career in save situations.

yipg Wrote:He's now 0-6 in his career in save situations.

Is that true save situations? That stat can be misleading, because if you're a setup man and blow a lead in the 8th inning your charged with a blown save, even though it wasn't a save situation.

GDawgs88 Wrote:Is that true save situations? That stat can be misleading, because if you're a setup man and blow a lead in the 8th inning your charged with a blown save, even though it wasn't a save situation.

hmm... good point GDawgs88, Friday's was probably his first ever chance at a save situation in the 9th inning. The other 5 were likely in a setup role where he blew the lead.

He should be alright with more experience, as he's only 22 and had only a handful of games in the minors before he was called up to the big league team.

So what do you Reds fans think of your management... John Kruk really lit them up on BBTN. Your management is constantly saying that they are a small market team and then they go throw away 9 million dollars of payroll... I mean damn... they didn't even try to trade Graves, just designated him for assignment hoping someone would pick him up and ate his salary...

Well, Graves DID flip off the fans in his last game. Personally, I don't think any team was going to pick up his salary, so the releasing or trading (whichever happens) does not bother me. I only wish they had told him to his face rather than over the phone.

I think it is about time the Reds dumped some players, whether they were under larger contracts or not. I'm tired of watching them send the guys who produce down to the minors while keeping the crappy players on the team due to their contract situation. I think for the first time in years the management has made some smart choices, whether in season or not.

I hope they find a home for Sean Casey outside of Cincinnati soon, and free up another $6M in salary. Next year they could have quite a bit of free money with Graves and Casey gone (and $12M of salary owed to both) maybe they can get in the race for a real number 1 starting pitcher.

mlbUC Wrote:Well, Graves DID flip off the fans in his last game. Personally, I don't think any team was going to pick up his salary, so the releasing or trading (whichever happens) does not bother me. I only wish they had told him to his face rather than over the phone.

I think it is about time the Reds dumped some players, whether they were under larger contracts or not. I'm tired of watching them send the guys who produce down to the minors while keeping the crappy players on the team due to their contract situation. I think for the first time in years the management has made some smart choices, whether in season or not.

I hope they find a home for Sean Casey outside of Cincinnati soon, and free up another $6M in salary. Next year they could have quite a bit of free money with Graves and Casey gone (and $12M of salary owed to both) maybe they can get in the race for a real number 1 starting pitcher.

yes but your management didn't really even try to trade him... Yet they set back and say they can''t afford players because they are a small market team and they just pissed away 10 million...

and they "reported" racial slur or whatever it was that the fan slung Graves way was ok?

jrhessey Wrote:yes but your management didn't really even try to trade him

and you know this how?

I didn't mind seeing him let go finally, but I have to say the management probably botched up his release terribly. It is easy to see that Danny's peformance hadn't been up to par since All-Star break last year, and with his huge salary not many (as any) teams are going to be interested in trading for him. The Reds probably would have to eat most of his salary anyways, so I can't see why they wouldn't at least extend Graves the courtesy of getting an MRI, put in long relieves, or whatever. Afterall, the guy did willingly switch to starting at the club's request despite being a closer all his life. But, it's only in Cincinnati can you find a management so incompetent in its player/manager treatment.

yipg Wrote:I didn't mind seeing him let go finally, but I have to say the management probably botched up his release terribly. It is easy to see that Danny's peformance hadn't been up to par since All-Star break last year, and with his huge salary not many (as any) teams are going to be interested in trading for him. The Reds probably would have to eat most of his salary anyways, so I can't see why they wouldn't at least extend Graves the courtesy of getting an MRI, put in long relieves, or whatever. Afterall, the guy did willingly switch to starting at the club's request despite being a closer all his life. But, it's only in Cincinnati can you find a management so incompetent in its player/manager treatment.

thats pretty much the way I feel...

and Swoosh, have you heard anything that says they did try to trade him? I heard it on Sportscenter and Baseball Tonight, when they ripped Reds management... Whether it's actually true or not, I don't know, but I think the Reds silence on the issue speaks for itself...