Cincinnati Reds general manager Walt Jocketty is a savvy bargain hunter. His ability to locate low-cost, high-production players helped him build winner after winner during his time in St. Louis.
Reds fans will appreciate his prowess this season as they watch Ryan Ludwick hit at the Great American Ballpark. The former Cardinals outfielder should flourish contributing to a loaded lineup in a stadium suited to his skills.
You will recall that Ludwick lost his stroke after the Cardinals sent him to San Diego in the three-way deal that brought Jake Westbrook to St. Louis.
Hitting in Petco Park is like hitting at the airport. The nearest fence is a long, long way away.
Soon Ludwick was trying to jerk the ball, leading to his unfortunate slash line of .228/.301/.358 in 160 games for the Padres.
“Playing in San Diego screwed me up,” Ludwick told the Cincinnati Enquirer. “I'm not using that as an excuse or a crutch, but it turned me into a dead pull hitter. I got away from what I was as a hitter.”
He finally escaped when the Pirates acquired him during last season. This spring he can hit the restart button while trying to earn at-bats in a very strong Cincinnati lineup.
“People might find it hard to believe," he told the Enquirer, “but this is the most excited I've been in my career. It’s a dream come true.”
He has hit .276 with six homers and 21 RBI in 105 at bats in Cincinnati. “Great American has one of the fairest right-centers in baseball,” Ludwick said. “It fits my swing perfectly. I’m going from the biggest park in baseball to one of the smallest. It’s nice.”
Jocketty signed Ludwick to a modest one-year, $2.5 million deal. The Cards, meanwhile, took a two-year, $26 million plunge on Carlos Beltran.
It’ll be interesting to compare and contrast the outcome of these signings. Ludwick will have to fight for his at-bats, but Tipsheet predicts he will win over manager Dusty Baker with his aggressive play.
“If I play well, I’ll play a lot,” Ludwick said. “If I don’t, I won’t. He’s got a lot of weapons in the outfield. He’s going to go with the guy who is hot. He wants to win. I don’t think anyone is going to sit a tremendous amount.”
MYSTERIES OF THE UNIVERSE
Questions to ponder while Murray State slowly backs out of the national college basketball limelight:
Will Roger Goodell devise new rules on how NFL players should handle Super Bowl defeat?
Speaking of that whole "dancing after a defeat" thing, is it time for "Jersey Shore" to cast Rob Gronkowski?
Shouldn't team mascots stay out of Valentine's Day?
Shouldn't it be illegal for amateurs to attempt hammer throws?
QUIPS ‘R US
Here is what some of America’s leading sports pundits have been writing:
Les Carpenter, Yahoo! Sports: “A divorce should come soon; Peyton Manning is not going to stick with the Indianapolis Colts. Now begins the dance between the broken quarterback and the desperate suitors. The Washington Redskins seem like the perfect fit, but what about the Miami Dolphins or Seattle Seahawks or Arizona Cardinals? Or what about this? What if Manning just walked away for good? Strangely, retirement hasn’t been discussed much in the endless debate about who has been the least fair to whom: the Colts to Manning or Manning to the Colts. But what remains for Manning to prove now that he is nearly 36 and at the end of a Hall of Fame career with his neck cut open multiple times by a surgeon’s knife? What glory would he get from pulling the Cardinals to 8-8?”
Don Banks, SI.com: “If you thought the Cam Newton-Blaine Gabbert-Jake Locker competition made for some interesting drama last spring, you ain't seen nothing yet. The Andrew Luck vs. Robert Griffin III discussion is 10 times more intriguing and is just getting started. I spoke to the draft's top two quarterbacks last week in Indianapolis, and they both clearly want to be No. 1. But while Luck approached most topics with caution, RG3 is not the type to back down from a fight or politely tip-toe when it comes to his intentions. He believes the momentum is on his side, and he's determined to show the Colts why he's the best bet in the coming 11 weeks or so.”
Mike Freeman, CBSSports.com: “When Gisele Bundchen was videotaped defending her football husband from his alleged butterfingered wide receivers she had inadvertently hit on what will perhaps be the second biggest story of the upcoming offseason: how will the Patriots respond to their Super Bowl loss? The irony is that more than a few team officials around the NFL privately agreed with Bundchen, but it's more than that. There has been a belief the Patriots' failing to replace Randy Moss with another speed option would eventually bite them in the rear. That seems absurd to say about a team coming off a Super Bowl run, but this season's success is more the greatness of Tom Brady. He's so good he can overcome the fact New England has no speed threat at wideout. The Patriots might be the most watched team this offseason not named the Colts because it's believed that coach Bill Belichick will reload by attempting to greatly increase the level of athleticism and speed on both sides of the ball.”
DJ Gallo, ESPN.com: “His reputation in America as a dandified soccer player? Forever secured! Good job, Becks. You have to start wondering if (David) Beckham's arrival in America -- where he has met most every negative American stereotype of European soccer players via injury and fashion -- was actually a plot by the English Premier League to destroy soccer in the world's richest country. They saw the MLS as a future threat and dispatched Beckham in an attempt to kill the sport here. A brilliant plan.”
MEGAPHONE
“I don't know what makes me so cool that they want me to do all this stuff. It's just a lot of fun. Anytime you win a Super Bowl, there's a lot of stuff that comes with it. After that, it is just being the same old you, taking the same old garbage out of my mother's house, doing the same old things. It is safe to say that I will not be spoiled by success. Especially when I have the type of mother that I have that won't allow that.”
Giants receiver Victor Cruz, on the spoils of victory.
