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Dunn uneasy, but Reds ready to put him at first
Team may still trade Pena to Nationals
By Hal McCoy
Dayton Daily News
DALLAS | Sean Casey cried when the Cincinnati Reds traded pitcher Chris Reitsma, and he cried when they traded third baseman Aaron Boone, and he cried when they released pitcher Danny Graves.
And when the Reds traded him Tuesday to the Pittsburgh Pirates, Casey cried for himself.
Casey was traded for left-handed pitcher Dave Williams on Tuesday, but the deal still had not been confirmed by the players passing physical examinations administered Wednesday, a formality.
The trade means Adam Dunn moves from left field to first base and solves the outfield problem — Austin Kearns to right and Wily Mo Pena to left, if he isn't traded to the Washington Nationals.
Dunn is displeased and sort of pleased, not happy to see Casey go and unsure about a move to first base.
"This is one of those things you hate to see," said Dunn, en route Wednesday to a deer hunting excursion. "Casey has been as big a part of the Reds as anybody over the past 10 years. It will be tough not to see him on a daily basis.
"He won't look good in black and gold (Pittsburgh's colors), although I'm told black makes you look skinny, so that should help him," Dunn added.
Dunn didn't want to talk about setting roots at first base until he talked to manager Jerry Narron, but said, "I played there a little in high school, but mostly pitched twice a week. It is good that the manager believes I can play there after I worked so hard not to make a spectacle of myself in left field. I'm really not that comfortable at first because I feel more like a designated hitter. I like to move around more, do some running to keep my legs loose, and you do more of it in the outfield."
Narron said he is comfortable writing Dunn's name as his first baseman.
"There is no doubt in my mind that Dunn can do that job," he said. "If that's what he really wants to do, and he really works at it, no question he can be good. At the end of last season (when Casey was hurt) he had no problem moving to first. He is a great athlete, and there is no doubt he can do it."
One man surprised about the trade was former Reds manager Jack McKeon, manager of the Florida Marlins until the end of last season, and a huge Casey fan.
"I would have liked to have had him in Florida last year, and if we had him, we would have won the division," he said. "The Reds are losing a key guy in the clubhouse, and they'll really miss that leadership. Williams is OK, but he is a project. I would have gotten more for Casey — somebody like Oliver Perez."
The Reds did want Perez, or top pitching prospects Zach Duke or Paul Maholm, but the Pirates wouldn't let go, and the Reds settled for Williams, a No. 4 or No. 5 rotation guy who had shoulder problems last September.
"He is a very solid left-handed major-league pitcher," Narron said of Williams. "The Pirates won 67 or 68 games (67) last year, and he won 10."
The happiest guy is new Pittsburgh manager and Hamilton native Jim Tracy, happy that the Reds were unable to pry away the Pirates' best pitching prospects and even happier they acquired Casey.
"I love Sean Casey," he said. "How often can you get a guy who had an off year and hit .312, a guy who has struck out less than 100 times combined the last two years, a guy who has struck out five times in the last two years with a runner on third and less than two outs," Tracy said. "That is unheard of.
"You can't strike the guy out, especially late in the game in crucial situations," he added. "Adam Dunn might hit the ball into the Ohio River, but late in the game, if you bring in the right pitcher and he makes his pitches, you can strike him out. You can't strike out Sean Casey."
And even more appetizing to Tracy is Casey's personality and genuine love of the game.
"I know how I played and how I treat people, and when you looked into the other dugout you knew Casey was genuine in everything," Tracy said. "You see a guy who loves the game the way he does, and you want the guys on your team to see it and feel it."
Even though the Casey deal is done, the Reds may not be. The team is involved in three-way talks with the Washington Nationals and Toronto Blue Jays that would send Pena to Washington, the Nationals would send Brad Wilkerson to Toronto and the Blue Jays would send right-handed pitcher Dave Bush — 5-11, 4.49 in 24 starts last season — to the Reds.
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