Worth the weight in gold(in a down-turned economy though)

It ends up being a golden year in Cincinnati after all. After the collapse in September led to being swept by Philly in the playoffs, The fans in Cincitucky have reason to look back somewhat fondly on the summer they spent cheering for the Redlegs. Ol' Jockety Strap has been nothing but a plus to the franchise since he became the owner of the club. He has shown that he will spend some money to get missing components and will make moves to better the club, something that had been lacking in Redland since Marge was in town drinking, smoking, and leaving dog shit everywhere.

Jockety wanted to build a club that was a strong defensive unit, and he was awarded for his efforts and his eyeing of talent to fill those positions with 3 Gold Glovers. The Rawlings Gold Glove Awards are voted on by managers and coaches from all 30 teams in the Majors.(more on this later)

Scott Rolen, Brandon Phillips, and Bronson Arroyo all were recognized for their glove work this past season. Personally, I think that Perhaps Jay Bruce could have been labled with a gold glove type season, but there may have been a few gaps in his resume that could have caused him not to be viewed that way, and I can totally see that side of the arguement as well.The outfielders, like Bruce are selected not based on individual position, but overall outfield status. So its standards are the 3 best outfielders overall, not by outfield position.

Rolen has been one of the best, if not the best, defensive 3rd Basemens since his tenure as a Big Leaguer began. The 2010 accolade was his first such since 2006, signaling perhaps a resurgance in his career, or maybe it is pointing towards a curtain call. The return to such status for Rolen puts him 3rd all-time among 3rd basemen, behind Brooks Robinson and Mike Schmidt. Not bad company.

And, for the last several season's Brandon Phillips has been among the elite defensive infielders in all of baseball. Having 1 Golden Glove to his credit already, Phillips added a second one to his mantle this season. When you post numbers like a .996 fielding percentage and turning 94 double plays with only 3 errors acredited to you, you kind of distance yourself from your peers. When he is not inciting riots in Great American Ballpark, Phillips takes his craft very seriously. He works on the

little things, and it pays off. A pitcher has to have a certain level of comfort knowing that Phillips is behind him.

The wanna-be rocker, who is a favorite with female fans, may have his struggles with opposing hitters from time to time, and is not going to be confused with anybody who is within a 90 feet radius of contention's ace, Bronson Arroyo, is worth his salary and would be a value to any club in baseball. This year, with ups and downs from start to start, he managed to do a little somehthing extra in the field to his team's cause, because let's face it, he is not going to be productive at the plate. Now, not a lot is expected of pitchers. Show up, don't get rocked, and let a franchise ride your arm into the dirt. But, the at-times thankless job for Arroyo had a very unexpected treat this year when he was selected as the Gold Glove recipient for the NL pitchers. He did not commit a single error when he was on the mound(and that is kind of misleading as to his defensive skill) and turned 5 double plays. To be honest, I have no idea who would have been 2nd to him in the voting, but I could not imagine another pitcher would have lucked in to defensive numbers like Bronson's for the season.

So, with being rewarded for a season's worth of play, these Reds should look forward to the returning nucleas of the NL Central champions for next season. I don't know if the Reds will have as dominant and productive August as we seen this season, but by the dog days of next summer, I fully expect the 'Legs to be in prime contention for a repeat title in the division and hopefully, a better showing into the playoffs. And, with the amount of All-Star caliber free agents out there now, Cincy could build on the foundation they have nicely, and maybe distance themselves from lower rung NL Central teams suchs as Milwaukee, Chicago, Houston, and Pittsburgh.

Now, I will say this in regards to the selections of the winners... The voting is very flawed and could use some tweeking...Derek Jeter, while he is a great player, did not deserve to win the AL Gold Glove for Shortstops. But, it's hard not to give it to a Yankee, especially one named Jeter.