With the Cincinnati Reds signing 1B and reigning MVP Joey Votto to a three- year, $38 million deal Sunday, the Reds' overall offseason work now looks adequate.  Barely.  The Reds have largely remained inactive and unproductive this offseason.  They have failed to add a leadoff hitter, improve an average- at best- bench, and still do not have a hammer to go at the top of the rotation.  Here is a breakdown of their significant moves and a grade for each...

EXTENTIONS
1.  Jay Bruce signed to a six- year, $51 million contract with a $13 million option for 2017:  this was the Reds' best offseason move by far.  They locked up their next  superstar for two or three years beyond his arbitration years and probably saved money in the process.  Grade A+

2.  Votto's three- year, $38 million deal:  though there are many who question the length of deal, Votto was probably standing firm on just three years.  With that parameter to work with, the Reds figured that in return for giving him his free agency in three years, he could give them a discount on his salary over those three years.  Votto would have probably earned $8 million in arbitration this year so that means he is getting $30 million total in 2012 and 2013.  This is less than the $34 million that Ryan Howard earned in years five and six of his career and Votto is much better than Howard.  Grade:  A

FREE AGENT ADDITIONS
1.  Dontrelle Willis, LHP:  since he was signed to a minor league deal, Willis is really not much of a risk.  If he is effective as a left handed reliever in Triple- A, the Reds did very well here.  The key here is letting Willis prove himself at Triple- A and NOT in Cincinnati where he could really hurt if ineffective.  Grade:  B

2.  Jeremy Hermida, OF: Hermida is a virtual lock for the Opening Day roster because he is a left handed hitter.  He and Fred Lewis will probably be the only left handed hitters on the bench.  The problem is Hermida, once considered the Marlins' top prospect, has struggled mightily lately in the Majors.  In 222 at bats with Oakland (his fourth organization in the last 17 months- never a good sign) last year, Hermida hit .216/ .268/ .351 with a .619 OPS.  The good news is that this guy was batting third for the Marlins just three seasons ago and he is only 26 years old.  Maybe he's a late bloomer.  His talent says that he is worth a shot.  Grade:  C-

3.  Resigning Miguel Cairo to a two- year, $2 million contract:  Cairo had one of his best years in the Majors last year at the ripe age of 36.  He played every infield position and posted a .290/ .353/ .410 stat line in 200 at bats while doing so.  He was finally valuable again- the first time since 2004 when he was with the Yankees.  So what are the odds that he is valuable again for a second time since 2004 in his age- 37 year?  Virtually none.  Odds are that he will regress back to his normally awful .250/ .300/ .340 averages that he posted between 2005 and 2010.  And remember, he is signed for two years.  Grade: F

4.  Resigning Ramon Hernandez to one- year $3 million contract:  thank goodness it was only a one- year contract.  Hernandez's clock is about to strike midnight because catchers' clocks run a lot faster than everyone else's and he is already 34.  In fact, his clock may explode this year.  Due to ineffectiveness or injury, top prospect Devin Mesoraco may be in Cincinnati to replace Hernandez by July.  Grade:  C

5.  Edgar Renteria signs a one- year, $2.1 million contract:  Before his hot three weeks at the tail end of the 2010 playoffs, Renteria was talking about retirement.  He had been benched in San Francisco for his mediocre .276/ .332/ .374 offensive output as well as his lack of range at shortstop.  Then, the Giants' Kung Fu Panda proceeded to eat his way out of starting slots at third AND first base, and Renteria got another shot in late September.  Being a playoff or World Series MVP only means that the player was hot for a few games- what did he do the rest of the season?  In Renteria's case, it was hurt his team.  This is an awful signing.  Renteria's numbers the previous two years mirror 2010 (2009:  .250/ .307/ .328; 2008: .270/ .317/ .382) so he is clearly on a steady downhill spiral.  Is there any positive to this signing?  There are two; the contract is for only one year and this is not nearly as bad a signing as Orlando Cabrera was last year because Renteria is not slated to bat 500 times.  Grade:  F

6.  Fred Lewis signs a one- year, $900,000 contract:  Lewis is a good backup outfielder.  He can play all three outfield positions and he will be an average hitter at best... if he was a catcher.  Playing an outfield spot and hitting .262/ .332/ .414 in 2010 in what is considered a career year for Lewis is not impressive.  On a better note, Lewis does have a career line of .280/ .354/ .442 against right handed pitchers so a platoon in left field with Johnny Gomes is not a bad move, but its still league average production at best.  Grade D+

LOST FREE AGENTS
1.  The only free agent to depart the Reds that will have a negative impact on the Reds is left handed reliever Arthur Rhodes who signed a $3.9 million deal with Texas.  He put up some pretty amazing numbers last year (2.29 E.R.A. with a 1.02 WHIP in 55 innings) and there is nobody ready to replace him.  Grade:  D-

2.  Orlando Cabrera is still a free agent and will probably not get a major league deal this season because he was just plain awful is every aspect of the game last year.  Dusty Baker still wheeled him out there at every opportunity possible and the fact that nobody else wants him should tell you something about Baker.  Grade:  A; addition by subtraction.

3,  Laynce Nix is still a free agent also because he refused a minor league assignment by the Reds in November.  This was a mistake by Nix because 1.  the Reds were low in depth in the outfield and he still could have made the major league team and 2. he really is not that good.  Grade B; nothing lost here

LOW IMPACE ITEMS
1.  The Reds drafted nobody in the Rule 5 Draft.  The Rule 5 Draft rarely has players of any significance.  There is nothing to worry about here.  Grade:  INC

2.  The Reds changed their High-A affiliate to Bakersfield of the California League.  This may not be much to many Reds fans, but Bakersfield is largely considered the WORST facility in ALL of the minor leagues.  It is so bad that there is a movement to condemn the field.  The Reds need to explain this move and quicly fix this move.  Grade:  F

OVERALL: There was vitually nothing done to improve the club this offseason.  The additions of Renteria, Hermida and Lewis do not offset the moves of NL Central rivals Milwaukee (adding Shawn Marcum and Zach Greinke), St. Louis (adding Lance Berkman and resigning Jake Westbrook) and Chicago (trading for Matt Garza).  The rest of the division has caught up to the Reds, but all three teams are not nearly as deep in the pitching deparment as the Reds.  With a couple of solid moves, the Reds could have iced the pennent race in December, but instead, the Reds are banking that the great years from Joey Votto, Brandon Phillips, Bronson Arroyo and others were not career years, but just standard years.  This sounds like 1991 all over again.  Overall grade: D

MLB cincinnati reds, 2010 mlb offseason, offseason grades, joey votto, jay bruce