The Reds have signed 27-year old righty starter/reliever Chad Reineke to a minor league deal. Reineke started 1 game for the A’s last year and he was 0-0 with a 7.20 ERA and a 1.40 WHIP. He also pitched in 30 games (22 starts) in AAA-ball last year in which he was 9-4 with 2 saves, a 4.75 ERA and a 1.49 WHIP. This was a depth signing for the Reds as Reineke will likely start the season in AAA. He has now pitched in 5 games (4 starts) in his major league career and he is 2-1 with a 5.48 ERA and a 1.44 WHIP.

In a move that really shows you how cheap the Reds are they have decided not to tender a contract to 29-year old righty swinging outfielder Jonny Gomes making him a free agent. Gomes played in 98 games for the Reds last season and he was 75 for 281 (.267 avg, .879 OPS) with 39 runs scored, 20 homers, 51 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. He did whiff 85 times last season but that doesn’t override the fact that Gomes gave them a lot of power when they really needed it. Gomes deserved a raise and instead he is out of a job showing just how poorly the Reds are run.

The Reds have signed 29-year old righty swinging IF/OF Chris Burke to a minor league deal. Burke played in 32 games for the Padres last season and he was 17 for 82 (.207 avg, .575 OPS) with 8 runs scored, 1 homer, 5 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. He has now played in 477 games in his major league career and he is 303 for 1,267 (.239 avg, .674 OPS) with 176 runs scored, 23 homers, 111 RBIs and 40 stolen bases. Burke will have a decent shot of winning a job on the bench for the Reds in 2010 because of his versatility.

26-year old lefty swinging 1B Joey Votto finished 22nd in the voting for the N.L. MVP Award. He played in 131 games for the Reds last season and he was 151 for 469 (.322 avg, .981 OPS) with 82 runs scored, 25 homers, 84 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. Votto has now played in 306 games in his three years with the Reds and he is 334 for 1,079 (.310 avg, .924 OPS) with 162 runs scored, 53 homers, 185 RBIs and 12 stolen bases. The Reds need to find out if they can depend on Votto who missed a few games due to depression last season. Votto has the talent to be the type of player the Reds can build the team around if they can trust him.

The Reds have brought back 32-year old righty reliever Jon Adkins on a minor league deal. He spent last season pitching in Korea. Adkins played in 2008 for the Reds and he pitched in 4 games (0 starts) in which he was 1-0 with a 2.45 ERA and a 1.91 WHIP. He has now pitched in 119 games (0 starts) in his major league career and he is 5-5 with a 4.54 ERA and a 1.51 WHIP. This was a good low risk signing for the Reds as Adkins could help them at some point in 2010.