Reds finalize deal with closer Cordero
By Stephen Rhodes
The Cincinnati Reds fixed a major problem that dogged them last season - closing games. Dan Sewell of the Associated Press reports that on Wednesday, the Reds and closer Francisco Cordero finalized a 4-year, $46 million contract. According to Reds general manager Wayne Krivsky, the Reds pushed hard to get Cordero when they discovered that their offer was competitive with offers from other teams bidding for Cordero's services.
Cordero was second in the National League with 44 saves and a 2.98 ERA with the Milwaukee Brewers; he joins a Reds bullpen that had 34 saves and an ERA of 5.13. Relief pitcher David Weathers, the Reds' closer last season, will likely go back to his role as set-up man in the bullpen. Terms of the contract are as follows: Cordero receives a $850,000 bonus, payable at the end of this year, $8.5 million next year and $12 million in each of the next 3 seasons. Cincinnati has a $12 million option for 2012, with a $1 million buyout. In addition, Cordero has a full no-trade provision during the first 2 seasons of the contract and a limited no-trade provision during the balance of the agreement.
A 2-time All-Star, Cordero over 9 seasons has saved 177 games, including a career high of 49 while with the Texas Rangers in 2004. to make room for cordero on the 40-man roster, the Reds designated outfielder Buck Coats for assignment. I really like the aggresiveness that the Reds have shown thus far this offseason; closing games has been the Achilles' heel in recent seasons in Cincinnati. The offense is in place, with Ken Griffey, Adam Dunn and possibly Josh Hamilton manning the outfield. Also in the mix, you have Brandon Phillips, a future All-Star at second base; there's also Edwin Encarnacion at third base. Encarnacion is improving steadily and should be a fixture for a while. Catcher may be the weakness of the club; David Ross has his moments, but he is of the high-risk, high-reward mold as he strikes out a lot, but does provide some decent pop.
Their pitching has youth on their side; their ace will be Aaron Harang (16-6, 3.73 ERA, 218 K), followed by Bronson Arroyo, who needs to rebound from a rotten 2006 campaign. The third pitcher in the Reds' rotation will probably be Matt Belisle (8-9, 5.32 ERA); Belisle will grow into his spot in the rotation as he is young and developing his repotoire of pitches. The wild card in the rotation is Homer Bailey. He has the stuff to possibly supplant Belisle at the #3 pitcher in the rotation; a positive for Bailey is that he doesn't give up the long ball - a big deal in hitter-friendly Great American Ballpark.
The winter meetings in Nashville are around the corner and it will be interesting to see whether Cincinnati will be major players in any possible trades. I'm guessing no, unless they can package some AAA talent to fill positions of need. One thing is for certain - while the Reds locked up Cordero to save games, they need to address their middle relief one way or another.
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