Journal-News.com

Jared Burton’s hurting, so is the 8th inning safe?

By Kyle Nagel | Saturday, July 19, 2008, 04:17 PM

CINCINNATI — While warming up in the bullpen last night, reliever Jared Burton felt pain in the right-side torso muscle that had caused him discomfort before the All-Star break. he felt fine during the break and thought he was back near full-strength, but the bullpen session proved otherwise.

“You can’t replace that game intensity,” Burton said. “I was warming up and started cranking it, and I could feel it.”

The Reds placed Burton on the 15-day disabled list today with the strained latissimus muscle on his right side. They also promoted reliever Todd Coffey from Class AAA Louisville for another chance to prove he can stick with the Reds.

Burton, though, had been a key bullpen addition for the Reds in the past two seasons, particularly this year when he solidified the eighth-inning spot that haunted the team last season. With closer Francisco Cordero waiting in the ninth, the eighth became an even more important inning to hold leads for the big-money closer.

Manager Dusty Baker said David Weathers would work in that set-up spot while Burton is on the DL and Coffey would fill in when needed. Baker said he needs to see Coffey “with my own eyes” before placing him in a specific bullpen role.

What does this mean for the eighth inning? Is it safe with Weathers? He was respectable last season in the closer’s role, although he didn’t get as many chances as he could have with the eighth-inning blowups.

Baker even called Weathers’ role “semi closer.”

Still, Reds fans — and even Baker — would likely feel much more comfortable if Burton were still getting the team into the ninth inning.

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Edinson Volquez and his wild All-Star ride

By Kyle Nagel | Wednesday, July 16, 2008, 01:40 PM

See, this is what happens when you let a Cincinnati Reds pitcher into the All-Star game.

Edinson Volquez turned a comfortable National League lead into a tie game in the seventh inning with this series of events:

Justin Morneau double.

Ian Kinsler groundout, with Morneau advancing to third.

Dioner Navarro strikeout (things looking promising).

J.D. Drew 2-run home run (whoops).

Michael Young strikeout.

With that, the AL tied the game 2-2 on the way to a 15-inning finish. But don’t think that Volquez was upset.

Edinson Volquez couldn’t wipe the smile off his face. And good luck getting that All-Star ring off his finger.

Participating in his the first All-Star Game of his young career, Volquez came into the visitors’ clubhouse at Yankee Stadium grinning Tuesday afternoon, just hours before he would take the field as a National League All-Star. And despite the NL’s 15-inning, 4-3 defeat, he’d leave with the same trademark grin.

But really, who can blame him?

“I’m having fun,” said Volquez, the NL’s ERA leader. “It’s the All-Star Game. You can’t be nervous. You’re here to enjoy the All-Star Game.”

Still, Reds fans had to be hoping that Volquez would outperform the other NL pitchers so the country could see their little slice of success in an otherwise disappointing season. It’s the All-Star game, so everyone’s trying to have fun, but a lot of folks saw that home run come against a pitcher with a red hat and a wishbone “C” and said, “Well, of course.”

The task now for Volquez is to lead the Reds pitching staff in the second half. With Aaron Harang ailing and Bronson Arroyo underperforming, Volquez has stepped to the front of the rotation. He’s young and a first-year team member, but it’s crucial for Volquez to inspire the entire staff, starters and relievers, for the season’s remainder.

He speaks both English and Spanish, so he connects with both groups of pitchers. He has nasty stuff. He has that playful personality with which everyone gets along.

But now it’s time to see Volquez’ serious side.

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Here’s your chance, Josh Betts

By Kyle Nagel | Tuesday, July 15, 2008, 11:07 AM

It wasn’t a long mention, but Josh Betts was in the papers today:

The only other quarterbacks on the roster are Josh Betts, who spent last season on the practice squad, and Adam Tafralis, a rookie free agent out of San Jose State.

As news comes that Colts quarterback Peyton Manning had knee surgery and will miss up to six weeks, Indianapolis fans are suddenly uncertain about their QB position for the beginning of the season. The main focus, of course, is Jim Sorgi, the former Wisconsin quarterback who has backed up Manning for the past four seasons.

Betts, meanwhile, has been third on the list. For the Colts, that means the former Vandalia Butler and Miami University QB has been relegated to the practice squad, because Indianapolis keeps only two quarterbacks on its active roster because of the reliable and (so far) durable Manning.

But with Manning out, Betts has his best chance yet to make a move. With Manning almost certainly out for training camp, Betts will likely get more repetitions and more looks. As the story notes, the Colts could sign a free agent to fill some gaps as well.

Then there’s Betts, who in the spring married the stepdaughter of Centerville High School football coach Ron Ullery. He has good size and a very strong arm, but his decision-making has caused some problems since games at Miami.

It’s just difficult to please fans who want Manning, as we can see from the first few paragraphs in this June story from Muncie, Ind.:

There was an Indianapolis Colt quarterback sighting in Muncie on Wednesday.

It just wasn’t Peyton Manning.

Reserve signal-caller Josh Betts was in town along with defensive end Jeff Charleston as the Colts’ “Make it Personal” tour made a stop at the AAA Hoosier Motor Club office on Clara Lane.

There were a few in the crowd estimated at 1,000 who admitted to being disappointed that Manning, the team’s All-Pro quarterback, wasn’t in East Central Indiana to greet fans. But they still lined up for autographs from Betts, Charleston and two Colts’ cheerleaders.

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Jefferson’s Adreian Payne: 14th-best player in his class

By Kyle Nagel | Monday, July 14, 2008, 02:21 PM

Noticed for the first time today Rivals.com’s list of the Top 100 players in the Class of 2010. The Miami Valley has a player in the Top 20.

Adreian Payne, the Jefferson High School big man considered one of the country’s most-developing players, is No. 14 on the list. And, he seems to only be helping his stock. Last week, Payne was impressive in the Adidas It Takes 5ive Tournament in Cincinnati playing for his stacked All-Ohio Red AAU team.

Earlier today, I talked with Jefferson coach Art Winston about Payne, and Winston said schools ranging from Georgetown and Kentucky to West Virginia and Florida have called with interest.

Last month, Payne played well in the Nike Hoop Jamboree in St. Louis and got an even better review from Rivals:

The lengthy Payne (7-foot-4 reach and 9-foot reach) made a statement from the get go by knocking down midrange jumpers, snagging rebounds and swatting shots anywhere in his vicinity. Still very much a work in progress, Payne likely has as much upside as any prospect in the camp.

Stay tuned. Payne could turn out to be one of the hottest area players in recent years.

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Kellen Winslow could be perfect for Central State

By Kyle Nagel | Thursday, July 10, 2008, 12:28 PM

Ron Strollo, the Youngstown State athletic director, called today on his way to Springfield for a son’s youth baseball tournament. I had left a message for Strollo yesterday to talk about Central State, one of his school’s football opponents next season.

The CSU-YSU game is a hugely important one for the Marauders, even if they’re on the Youngstown State schedule for an easy win. Two years ago, the program was playing seven games and in no position to challenge one of the best programs in Division I-AA.

Even last year, CSU — in just its third season back as a football program — lost to a junior college at homecoming. By a lot.

But this is one of those years in which I-AA teams can play 12 regular-season games instead of 11 because of an extra Saturday during the season. YSU needed a home game, and, Strollo explained, he respected the Central State name from the school’s time as an NAIA power and wanted to play an Ohio school.

The program, though, has much room to grow. CSU, of course, has 13 other sports, but none has the drawing power or fundraising ability that football does, which is why the administration desires a person with a football background and fundraising skills to be its next athletic director.

Kellen Winslow Sr., the NFL Hall of Famer, is one of the three AD finalists. Many will wonder what Winslow would want with the CSU job. His son does play in Cleveland, and it could be a stepping stone if Winslow wants to get into the AD business.

Winslow is just the type of guy CSU wants. Strong background in football, big name for fundraising, strong personality.

If he takes the job, Winslow could get CSU more games like the one against Youngstown State, and not just becuase of what the Marauders have done in the past.

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More on UD’s non-conference schedule

By Kyle Nagel | Wednesday, July 9, 2008, 08:59 AM

Once we got the e-mail yesterday announcing the dates for Dayton’s non-conference schedule, I took out a piece of paper and briefly studied the teams.

Wofford was first. It was 16-16 and finished fourth in the Southern Conference’s South Division last season. OK. Then Delaware State (14-16), Bethune-Cookman (11-21) and Mercer (11-19).

Things rallied later in the home schedule with George Mason (23-11) and Miami (17-16, but always an entertaining game).

But it was easy to see immediately that Dayton fans probably wouldn’t be very pleased with the home non-conference schedule, 10 games against Wofford, Delaware State, Bethune-Cookman, Mercer, Troy, Coppin State, UNC Greensboro, Marshall, George Mason and Miami.

When I talked to Ted Kissell and Brian Gregory about it, I knew they were expecting questions about the lack of a BCS conference school on the home schedule, but it’s not a new topic. Last fall, we did a story about UD’s non-conference schedule before the season, and both explained that it’s very difficult to get those schools into UD Arena.

At the time, Matt Doherty — now the coach at SMU but the former coach at North Carolina — said he was approached about playing a game at Dayton while with the Tar Heels and nixed it immediately. He said it was too tough a road environment to take a chance.

“Over the past couple of years we’ve been able to compete with those teams and beat those teams,” Gregory said early Tuesday evening about BCS programs. “That has made things more difficult.”

From Kissell: “In the old days, a lot of games were scheduled on the basis of relationships, either athletic director or coach, when the coach was making $75,000 a year, so was AD. Those days are long gone. There’s just so much at stake. I think that you have to create the perception of your program with opponents’ fans, not just the coaches. The coaches know we’re good, ask Rick Pitino or Jamie Dixon, but it’s about creating perception with fans. When they look at Dayton on the schedule, you want them to say, ‘Hey, that’s a great game we have.’ That’s how you give yourself a chance.”

That’s a good explanation, but not one likely to appease the UD fans paying big bucks for seat licenses and season tickets. Gregory and Kissell both mentioned that the Flyers got a good draw in the home conference games, with NCAA tournament teams Xavier, Saint Joseph’s and Temple all coming to UD Arena.

But fans are looking at the first half of the schedule and aren’t impressed with the names on the jerseys.

Like always, though, that will change if the Flyers are 14-1 or 13-2 by Jan. 7, 2009.

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Who’s more disappointing: Reds or Indians?

By Kyle Nagel | Tuesday, July 8, 2008, 09:58 AM

The headline on Bill Livingston’s column in the Cleveland Plain Dealer is “Blame for season starts at the top.”

C.C. Sabathia’s trade, to many, signals the Indians’ willingness to admit to their season is all but lost. Here are a few graphs from Livingston:

It remains unconvincing, after a deep playoff run, with the spike in season ticket sales that always follows postseason success, not to have shaken some money loose from the pockets of the Dolan family to get a veteran hitter. Shapiro says no one was good enough. (Clearly, Dellucci wasn’t.)

Of course, a season can only be disappointing if expectations exist of success. The season was metaphorically over by Memorial Day most of the years between 1960 and 1994, and in 1994 it was over for real before Labor Day because the owners and players squabbled over the slop buckets.

From 1995 until the turn of the millennium, the Indians faced great expectations and met all but the ultimate one of winning it all.

With the marked superiority of the American League over the National in recent years, last season’s collapse becomes all the more galling. In part, the Indians failed because Sabathia did not pitch in the postseason like the Cy Young winner he was, but Boston’s Josh Beckett did.

Good point on expectations, which is why I wonder which team has been the greater disappointment, the Reds or the Indians.

Cleveland clearly has the worse record, standing last in the AL Central at 37-51, 14 games behind the Chicago White Sox.

The Reds, by wins and losses, are better. They’re 43-47 and 10.5 games behind the Cubs in the NL Central.

Reds fans, though, didn’t face a general manager — as Livingston wrote about the Cleveland GM — who was in a “state of denial.” Cincinnati had a new manager, inspiring young pitching talent, Walt Jocketty in the organization (even if he wasn’t GM at the time) and a regular lineup most thought was very solid.

There were definitely expectations for these Reds they haven’t met.

Does not meeting previous success make it worse, or is it a failure to live up to strong hopes that drives fans crazy?

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