Wily Mo lashes out again..

[Reds_fan_4_life]

Pena tells Reds he won't accept part-time role anymore

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic -- Cincinnati Reds outfielder Wily Mo Pena said Saturday that he's ready to play full time with the team, or they should trade him to another club.

Pena batted .254 last season, with 19 home runs, 54 RBI and 116 strikeouts. He played in 99 games.

"The best thing they (the Reds) can do is to play me or trade me because I no longer want to be on the bench," he told the Associated Press on Saturday after a winter league game in the Dominican Republic.

Pena, 23, said he's recovered from back and quadriceps injuries that hampered his play last season and he's ready to contribute as a regular starting player.

He said he accepted bench time last year, "but for next season they are going to have to give me a permanent position or trade me to another team."

http://www.sportsline.com/mlb/story/9063754

if you were Reds Management what would you do? what can we get for Pena? how could any deal change our opening day lineup..

[redsrbetter]

I wonder if this makes DanO's decision right here. It shouldn't be that way though because he better be shopping every player on this team in order to see what he can get. But I really don't think this helps Reds fans into thinking Pena will be staying. I will be thinking that Pena has a bigger opportunity of leaving now that he has stated that it won't effect him much. I know Kearns would likely want to stick around with his buddy Dunner, so this may be a decisive factor.

[Saber]

Pena does not control his destiny. It's an empty threat.

[redsrbetter]

Yes but threats or comments like this reflect badly upon the player sometimes. Or at least the GM and manager will feel a little pressure to the situation knowing what they are doing should be tough for Pena, but that he is openly upset about it should way heavy on the situation.

[Slyder]

I wonder if this makes DanO's decision right here. It shouldn't be that way though because he better be shopping every player on this team in order to see what he can get. But I really don't think this helps Reds fans into thinking Pena will be staying. I will be thinking that Pena has a bigger opportunity of leaving now that he has stated that it won't effect him much. I know Kearns would likely want to stick around with his buddy Dunner, so this may be a decisive factor.

Plus Kearns is a local boy.

[McKain]

Well, this was a pretty bad move for WMP to make.

Maybe this would have worked two years ago, when he had a good year, but after last year where he was basically a league average player, and barely one of the top 10 players on the Reds when he did produce, making a demand like "start me or trade me" is a huge blunder. They're not going to start him because now he's come out and made a public statement about this, and they won't start him because Griffey and Dunn were better, and the Reds still have hope for Kearns to rebound to what his first two years were like.

Guess Wily Mo's going to be complaining from the bench for a good part of this year.

[Geki Ace]

It doesn't change a thing. He'll get a starting spot if any of the outfielders are traded, or he'll be traded himself.

[love_that_reefer]

Pena has every right to be pissed and I don't blame him. O'Brien has been dicking around too much and needs to do SOMETHING.

[Wally Mo Pena]

dano has already said that he's going to trade an outfielder, so this is just reporters looking to generate stories. Obviously the reds were going to start wily mo or trade him, they've already acknowledged that. Wily was just saying that that's what he wants. Big deal. If he hadn't said it so forcefully it wouldn't have been news at all.

Can you imagine the headlines: "Wily Mo agrees with general manager." It's not all that exciting.

[Saber]

O'Brien said he'd trade one?

Wow.

[CincyRedsFan30]

Let's not get too caught up on this issue, folks.

O'Brien will be gone soon and WMP will probably get his wish before the season starts.