Nothing too earth shattering here. Ramon Ortiz was a bust. 34 homeruns, 9-11 record, and a 5.36 ERA. I could go on a little more, but it all just backs up my point. Ortiz is eligible for arbitration and is still with the Reds, so at worst we’re stuck with him at a lower price.

Rich Aurilia was actually a pleasant surprise for the Reds. He started out as a minor league signee and made the team as a shortstop. Felipe Lopez emerged and D’Angelo Jiminez was dumped, so Aurilia moved over to second base and he had a nice second half. Now we need to find a new second baseman.

Former Reds GM Jim Bowden got a six month extension as GM of the Nationals, so he’ll be handling things while the new ownership team gets put into place.

And if you think the current Reds front office is inept at times, check out this story (sorry to see Mr. Dalton passed away). The Reds trade Frank Robinson prior to the 1966 season at age 30, saying he was past his prime. Robinson only went on that year to win the triple crown and he led the Orioles to the 1966 World Championship.

Sigh.

And in case you missed it, I picked a near perfect playoffs. Had the Cards played in the World Series, I would have nailed each of the series. This goes along with my crystal ball like predictions I made back in May regarding the Reds season.

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