Wittenmyer & Williams: How Joey Votto, Tommy Pham could help fix Cincinnati Reds
Williams: I saw you had the other day Elly De La Cruz and his agent, Scott Boras, basically shooting down the possibility of a long-term contract with the Reds. Good scoop, but isn’t it a little early for talk like that?
Wittenmyer: That’s the point. Talented, young players are signing long-term deals earlier than ever. Just look at Corbin Carroll in Arizona and Bobby Witt Jr. in Kansas City. That’s why I asked the question now. Reds president Nick Krall has been open about his hope of getting extensions done with some of the team’s young core. And with all the media-rights uncertainty with cord cutting, it seemed possible it could make sense for both sides.
Williams: Boras seems pretty certain about the future for Elly – and it’s not in Cincinnati. I guess that’s the curse that goes with the blessing of developing players with superstar potential. Or at the least curse of a Boras client who is one of those guys.
Wittenmyer: Yep. So buckle up for any possible talks with Matt McLain or even top infield prospect Edwin Arroyo when they get healthy.
Williams: This puts a sobering reality on trusting the process.
Wittenmyer: It’s just part of the financial reality of the game. There’s a lot of years of club control here. De La Cruz and McLain aren’t eligible for free agency for another five years after this season.
Williams: Tick, tick, tick. This puts the Reds on the clock to get the process pointing in the right direction again.
Wittenmyer: This is why I was beating the drum last summer about trading for pitching. You don’t know how these opportunities are going to play out year to year until you’re in the middle of it. Five years is a long time in a career, but it’s a short time for a team trying to win a championship.
Williams: Especially a team that hasn’t won a playoff series in 29 years. It’s the longest draught in American major league sports. Talk about sobering. That’s enough to make a Reds fan start drinking again.
Wittenmyer: It’s not even June and this season is enough to make a Reds fan drink. They have trouble hitting the ball. They have trouble catching the ball. And they’ve been having trouble holding leads.
Williams: At least their starting pitchers are OK.
Wittenmyer: That’s the only reason to think they have a chance to dig out of the hole they’re in. But they’ve got a long way to go to show that this team has playoff potential.
Williams: Well, what you do to fix it? Go get Joey Votto?
Wittenmyer: Don’t laugh. That couldn’t hurt. He hasn’t played for the Blue Jay yet, but the sprained ankle he suffered in spring training has healed. Votto’s relationships with the players in the Reds clubhouse alone could benefit this team.
Williams: Here we go again. Are you really still clinging to the thought of Votto playing for the Reds again? Come on, man.
Wittenmyer: He’s not going to hit any worse than whoever he would replace on the roster. And he might even help. I don’t know that that’s a world-changer, but it beats doing nothing.
Williams: What they need to do is take advantage of some of the teams that are already selling. I said that a couple weeks ago, and I feel even stronger about that today.
Wittenmyer: Where you gonna go? Who you gonna get?
Williams: For starters, I’m going to go where the fans are starting to go – away from Great American Ball Park. And then go find some help for this depleted lineup. I mentioned Angels infielder Luis Rengifo a few weeks ago. He hasn’t been traded yet. Heck, go try to get Tommy Pham. Look at what the one-time Red has done for the White Sox since signing a minor league deal in mid-April. He might wind up being their All-Star.
Wittenmyer: Pham? That would be a slap in the face to all these Reds hitters who are coming back from the injured list in the next few weeks.
Williams: Funny. But the Reds can’t wait that long, even if those guys hit the ground running when they get back.
Wittenmyer: The reality is probably as simple as this: If their starting pitching can’t dig the Reds out of this over the next month, then it’s probably time to start trading some of those guys they signed over the winter. Then they can try this again next offseason, with their core intact.
Williams: I’m not saying they should go all in. Nothing about getting Pham says “all in.” I’m just saying there’s still enough time to salvage this season and the schedule lightens up in June when they should start getting guys back. Try to get a veteran bat to stabilize things until then.
Wittenmyer: Now you’re starting to sound like David Bell. The most important timeline here isn’t the next four months. It’s the next 5½ years. They’re better off being ready to “win now” next Opening Day with a healthy McLain and more seasons De La Cruz in the middle of their infield.
Williams: You’re not necessarily wrong, but that future starts now. Tick, tick, tick.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: How Joey Votto, Tommy Pham could help fix sputtering Cincinnati Reds
