Let’s look back across the years at what Lance has done to our Redlegs.

The numbers highlighted in Boldface type indicate the statistics where Berkman did more damage to the Reds than any other team in his career.  Consider the teams he did the next most damage too:

• Runs:  He scored 115 runs vs the Pittsburgh Pirates, 22 less than he scored against the Reds.
• RBI:  He drove in 118 runs against the St. Louis Cardinals, 26 less than he drove in vs. the Reds.
• Hits:  He recorded 6 fewer hits against the Milwaukee Brewers than Cincinnati.
• Triples:  In this unlikely statistic, the man occasionally referred to as “Fat Elvis” had 4 triples against the Reds, the Brewers, and the Washington Nationals including his lone triple last season that he hit against Cincinnati.  (I should note that he recorded the 4 triples against Washington in just 70 games.)
• Home Runs:  He affinity for hitting home runs against the Reds is legend.  St. Louis is the runner up here allowing 39.  Thirteen less than he hit vs. Cincinnati pitching.
• Total Bases:  In possibly the most incredible stat.  Berkman collected 59 more total bases against the Reds than the second place Cardinals.

Keep in mind that the teams in the NL Central, who faced him the most, saw him for approximately the same number of games with Houston being the obvious exception:

St. Louis Cardinals pinch hitter Lance Berkman (12) salutes the fans after receiving a standing ovation as he came up to bat during the 7th inning against the Cincinnati Reds at Busch Stadium. The Cardinals won 1-0. Photo Credit: Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports

• Chicago Cubs:  177 games
• Cincinnati Reds:  174 games
• Milwaukee Brewers: 171 games
• Pittsburgh Pirates: 167 games
• St. Louis Cardinals:  154 games
• Houston Astros:  11 games

Also, giving credence to the idea that Lance really does pay attention to who he is playing.  In his short time with St. Louis he took the field just 11 times against the Astros at a time when his career is allegedly waning and has 10 runs, 15 RBI, 5 HRs and 36 total bases.  His OPS is an unimaginable 1.377.  They can not be happy Berkman is following them into the American League.  Here are a few more numbers:

The worst part of these numbers are the strikeout tally.  While he did face the Reds more than any club but Chicago the only NL Central opponent to strike him out less was Pittsburgh.  In fact the Cubs struck him out 62 more times than the Reds and the Cardinals, who faced him in 20 less games still managed to retire him on strikes 14 more times.

I thought I would also provide the service of alphabetically listing the Reds pitchers Berkman has homered off of both as a way of understanding his longevity and his ability so here goes:

1. Bronson Arroyo:  5
2. Jose Acevedo:  4
3. Homer Bailey:  1
4. Matt Belisle:  1
5. Jim Brower:  1
6. Johnny Cueto:  2
7. Ryan Dempster:  1 (of 6 total, guess he likes Ryan)
8. Seth Etherton:  1
9. Jared Fernandez:  1
10. Danny Graves:  2
11. Joey Hamilton:  2
12. Aaron Harang:  7
13. Jimmy Haynes:  3
14. Luke Hudson:  1
15. Kyle Lohse:  1 (of 4)
16. Nick Masset:  1
17. Ramon Ortiz:  1
18. Elizardo Ramirez:  1
19. Ramon Ramirez:  1
20. Brian Reith:  1
21. Chris Reitsma:  1
22. John Riedling:  1
23. Jose Rijo:  1
24. Kirk Saarloos:  1
25. Brad Salmon:  1
26. Tom Shearn:  1
27. Scott Sullivan:  1
28. Todd Van Poppel:  2 (0f 4)
29. David Weathers:  1
30. Paul Wilson:  1
31. Travis Wood:  1 (0f 2)

So for my part, I wish him well with the Rangers but I hope they never see a World Series with Lance on the team…because I don’t want the Reds to ever face him again!

Follow me on Twitter @JohnHeitz

This past week, one caught my eye.

On the day it was posted, the top three in the American League RBI: Josh Hamilton, Edwin Encarnacion and Adam Dunn (Hamilton and Encarnacion still sit at first and second. Dunn is now fourth). The added “beef” (as you can obviously see) was that all at one time were members of our beloved Reds.

I was actually considering using this as a sub-topic for yesterday’s The Utility Player. I quickly realized that this was a post of its own. As you read on, you’ll see why.

One downfall of Twitter is that you cannot definitely discern the tone of the tweet…unless there is a hashtag attached. Hard to express your complete thoughts in 140 characters…or less. In this case, the #sarcasm tag was not attached to the tweet. But it could have been the tone. Another could have been that it was a badge of honor that all three once wore a Reds uniform. Lastly, it could have been a jab at the front office and/or ownership.

Let’s examine…

Hamilton blasts a homer against the Angels. (Jim Cowsert-US PRESSWIRE)

It’s now evolving into an everyday occurrence where Reds fans bemoan the Hamilton deal. Sure, it would be great if he were still a Red, but as a former BRM Tweet of the Day tells us, it is 2012. We must find the means to carry on. The trade was made and Hamilton is not coming back…unless there’s another truckload of cash backing up to the loading docks at GABP. I don’t see that happening either.

There’s little question that Hamilton’s story is a movie in the making. Keep this in mind. There are instances where the talent cannot overcome the intangibles. I;m not referring to the addiction and issues with alcohol either. Hamilton may have been viewed as one of those individuals. Here’s an example of such from Hardball Talk’s Aaron Gleeman with “participation” from John Fay. It’s short, so you can take the time to read it.

With Encarnacion and Dunn, neither were exactly fan favorites.

Encarnacion was originally drafted by (oddly enough) the Texas Rangers. He and Ruben Mateo were sent to Cincy in exchange for Rob Bell. In 2005, Encarnacion made his MLB debut. He had a bat, but that was about it. And on occasion, that wasn’t all that either. During his final half season, he struggles to keep his average over .200.

His defense was considered even more of a liability. In his first four-plus seasons as a Red, he committed 78 errors in 514 games.

As for Dunn, he was “home grown” talent, a description should would dismiss. I had many opportunities to witness his raw power when he was a member of the Dayton Dragons. As with Encarnacion, Dunn was viewed more as a bat with little glove, little defensive offering. Both were also on the receiving end of fan tirades for a perceived lack of effort. This happened on many an occasion.

Dunn is having a rebirth in 2012. (David Richard-US PRESSWIRE)

Take a moment here. Imagine if the Reds had granted a contract to Dunn that the Washington Nationals did (which was two years, $20MM). Message boards, blogs and forums would have gone into a tailspin if the front office made such a decision. And now, Dunn is in the seond year of a four year, $56MM deal with the Chicago White Sox. He’s due $14MM this season. That’s only the start. We’ve heard Mercurial Marty’s take on Dunn.

The difference: Hamilton quickly became a fan fave while Encarnacion and Dunn were not. The hindsight on these deals cannot be argued or denied. But at what point do we “get over” such. No, it’s not like the line from Airplane II where the guy says he’ll “never get over Macho Grande”.

The “badge of honor” deal? Not sure I would be one to boast of this intel. It doesn’t exactly paint a positive picture of the Reds. Every team can make boneheaded moves. No team is immune to them. They simply happen.

One that can make a little more sense is that the tweet is showing a complete disdain of the trades. That theory would hold water if…

Hamilton was sent packing by Wayne Krivsky. That may have been his demise. Current GM Walt Jocketty sent Encarnacion to Toronto and, at the time, the Reds were viewed as “winners” be acquiring Scott Rolen. Rolen did aid the Reds in capturing the 2010 NL Central title. Rolen hat the bat and the glove. Sometimes, that fact is forgotten. Jocketty was also responsible for the Dunn trade. Neither team benefited from that deal.

Three deals, two different GMs. The front office aspect doesn’t wash either.

The one constant is the ownership…and I’m not sure it’s plausible either.

I don’t know for sure, so I’ll ask it. Would Bob Castellini have a hand in every deal that’s done? I’m leaning the way of “no” here. You have to own a certain trust with the guy you put in the GM position, don’t you? I have confidence in saying that Mr. C had knowledge of both the Encarnacion and Dunn trades, but left the decision to Jocketty. Walt may have asked for a blessing on those.

Reds owner Bob Castellini (Frank Victores-US PRESSWIRE)

I honestly don’t think that’s the case with the Hamilton trade. I say that because Hamilton had only one season under his belt. If Castellini did play a role, it may have been because of those lack of intangibles as previously noted.

Sarcastic? Badge of honor? Disdain for the big guys? Not sure I would say any of those. Maybe it’s was simply a wish that would never happen. All were still in Reds uniforms.

Yes, it’s frustrating, almost infuriating, when you see a former Red do well for another team. We can dissect these deals all we want. We cannot alter the before and after results from any of the players involved. All we can do is move on from these. We must move on from them. Lingering in the past isn’t always a good thing.

But it did all lead to a fun exercise…right?

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Oct 12, 2011; St. Louis, MO, USA; St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Albert Pujols (5) talks with Milwaukee Brewers first baseman Prince Fielder (28) in the second inning of game three of the 2011 NLCS at Busch Stadium. (Image: Jeff Curry-US PRESSWIRE)

The off season is coming to a close and pitchers and catchers will soon report to Goodyear for Spring Training. Most importantly, yesterday’s signing of Prince Fielder puts a wrap on all of the big name talent changing scenery in 2012. I think it’s ripe time to start looking over the transactions that have been completed and determine a hot stove winner. It’s time to evaluate the General Managers and Owners and determine, not necessarily who acquired the most talent or spent the most money to do so, but who got the best bang for their buck and which organization used the resources at their disposal to most effectively maximize the benefit to their club. The expenditure of money isn’t an instant disqualifier, nor is the conservation of it, only the mismanagement of it. I would like to take a look at some of the more active front offices and determine who used their resources most effectively to fill positions of need. It is my hope that in writing this, I will determine Walt Jocketty and the Reds front office used their resources very effectively.

I’m not going to cover every team in Major League Baseball. For the purposes of this study, let’s stick to the handful of teams that have been widely considered the focus of Winter. I am talking about the Rangers, Angels, Marlins, Red Sox, Tigers and of course, the Cincinnati Reds. I intend to make a case for why the Reds now find themselves in a position to be the biggest hot stove winners of all.
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