http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2012/02/re...tomko.html

Quote:Reds To Sign Brett Tomko

by Ben Nicholson-Smith

The Reds have agreed to sign right-hander Brett Tomko to a minor league deal, MLBTR has learned. The 14-year veteran split the 2011 season between the Rangers and their Triple-A affiliate.

Tomko appeared in eight games for the Rangers last year, posting a 4.58 ERA with 7.1 K/9 and 5.1 BB/9 in 17 2/3 innings. The 38-year-old Paragon Sports International client also pitched 108 1/3 innings for Texas' top affiliate, starting 18 games. Tomko broke in with the Reds in 1997, spending three seasons in Cincinnati before being traded to Seattle in the Ken Griffey Jr. deal.

It's official. The Reds won the Griffey Jr. trade.

Hopefully he is pumping his body full of HGH and he can contribute.

Met this guy at the Hollywood Video in West Chester. He was doing an event, signing autographs, eating Little Caeser's Pizza with everybody, etc. and playing some MLB game on the Playstation. I was super excited when it was my turn to play him (I think I was like 8 or 9). On his very first hit it went to my pitcher and I had no clue how to throw the ball to first (never played the game before), so I just tried to tag him out. Instead of just tagging him, my pitcher cold-cocked the base runner, who crashed to the ground on the 1st base line. Tomko jokingly cringed when he saw that and gave me so much crap about it the entire afternoon in front of everybody in the store. He was only kidding but I was pretty embarrassed. He felt so bad he signed a game-worn jersey and gave it to me. Still have it to this day.

Bottom line, really nice guy and I'm glad he's back with the Reds organization.

I went to a Reds game about 10 years ago and Tomko was the starting pitcher for the Padres. We somehow had amazing seats - in the 3rd or 4th row, right behind the visitors' dugout steps. Prime heckling territory. My buddies and I had just recently reached legal drinking age, so we were all hammered going into the game. The Reds scored 9 or 10 runs in the first, with Aaron Boone hitting 2 HRs in the inning, and I think a 3rd later, all off Tomko. We were razzing Tomko the whole time. After he got out of the inning, a guy from a couple rows ahead of came over and told us to stop because Tomko's mom was sitting 2 rows in front of us.