Paul Janish hit his first home run of the year today. It's his fifth extra base hit this spring training (compared to just one, a double, last year). (The next day, Marty Brennaman said that Janish's home run flew out of the park as fast as any he's ever seen.)
Janish is now hitting .306 / .405 / .500, good for a .905 OPS. That's much better than Wilson Valdez, who is hitting .289 / .341 / .316, for a .657 OPS.
Of course spring training stats don't mean much, but Janish is certainly doing what he can to make it a tough decision for the Reds.
And perhaps increasing his trade value. Yesterday, the Philadelphia Inquirer reported that the Phillies have talked to the Reds about trading for Janish. They've suffered some injuries and are desperately seeking middle infielders.
A baseball source said Tuesday the Phillies have talked to the Cincinnati Reds about infielder Paul Janish. He's 29 and is a highly rated defender at shortstop. Janish is a career .221 hitter in four major-league seasons.
This could be a good opportunity for Janish if it goes through. He'd be on a major league roster, and playing for a contender.
But maybe the Phillies would rather have Wilson Valdez back? I think they traded him to the Reds because he's out of options, and they thought they didn't have a roster space for him. Now they do. Meanwhile, the Reds are down one lefty relief pitcher, and might be interested in getting Jeremy Horst (the guy they traded for Valdez) back.
The Reds are probably going to stay the course - keep both Valdez and Janish for depth. (They did end up needing three shortstops last year, after all.) Unless, of course, the Phillies make them an offer they can't refuse.
Labels: Paul Janish
