[jammin' jamey]

I am shocked that there are not more Reds trades to report on at this point.

I think Krivsky really dropped the ball somewhat. I can live with not trading Dunn or Griffey because I expected that other teams would not offer fair value for either one. But why is Jeff Conine still with the team? He is obviously not in their plans for next year (he has said he will likely retire), so why not give him one last shot at a title? I'm sure some playoff contender would have loved to add him to their bench, the Reds really should have shipped him off for whatever the best offer was.

Don't be surprised to see Conine/Hatteberg/Stanton pass through waivers and possibly dealt before September 1st, which is the deadline for players to be traded who would be eligible for a postseason roster. Conine was traded that way last year.

I wasn't surprised too much about Dunn, considering how his contract is structured and the fact that Reds ownership is giving GM Krivsky some heat about pulling too many strings and trades. I'm all for keeping Dunn, if the payroll is raised to sign more quality starting pitching. The Reds will gamble that their youngsters in the pen will get better. Also, don't forget about the Jorge Cantu trade the Reds made, which went totally unheard in the media. He's a 25-year kid who's knocked in over 100 RBI's. Nobody on the Reds roster 25 or younger can stake claim to that.

Again I'm guessing, but the Reds feel they are only a few bullpen/1 more solid starting pitcher away from truly contending in a weak NL Central. Thus, they haven't blew up the roster. If the Reds don't raise the payroll in the offseason and only pickup Dunn's $13 million option, they will conduct a fire sale at this time next year unless they are winning and the key will be the bullpen improving.