CCIINNCCIINNNNAATTII RREEDDSS PPRREESSSS CCLLIIPPPPIINNGGSS OCTOBER 8, 2014

THIS DAY IN REDS HISTORY: OCTOBER 8, 1880 – CINCINNATI IS KICKED OUT OF THE NATIONAL LEAGUE, DUE IN PART TO ITS REFUSAL TO STOP RENTING OUT THEIR BALLPARK ON SUNDAYS AND TO CEASE SELLING BEER DURING GAMES.

CINCINNATI ENQUIRER

Fay: Reds should sign Todd Frazier, Devin Mesoraco John Fay

Much of the focus this offseason -- actually when you're out of it as early as the Reds were, the offseason starts during the season -- has been on what the Reds will do with the starting pitchers.

That's understandable when four of your five starters are a year removed from their walk year, including the ace, Johnny Cueto. The Reds can figure out a way to re-sign Cueto. Really, they realistically could find a way to keep three of the four.

But the merits of signing pitchers to long-term deals, especially by a small-market team, is debatable because of the injury risk. What the Reds do with Cueto, Mat Latos, Mike Leake and Alfredo Simon remains to be seen. You can make an argument either way.

But the Reds should sign a couple of players to long-term deals this offseason. Neither is a pitcher. I'm talking about Todd Frazier and Devin Mesoraco.

Both are arbitration-eligible for the first time. That means they'll go from making a bit over the minimum ($600,000 in Frazier's case; $525,000 in Mesoraco's case) to $3 million or so. If they continue to play like they have, they'll get huge raises in the second and third years of arbitration. I'm guessing $6 million the second year, $8 million the third.

If they don't play as well, they'll get slightly less. Even players who lose in arbitration win.

The way to control costs is to trade some long-term security for less money in the arbitration years. The Reds did this with Johnny Cueto and Jay Bruce before they reached arbitration.

That's why Cueto will be pitching for pennies in baseball terms in 2015 after going 20-9 with a 2.25 ERA in 2014.

Cueto signed a four-year, $27 million deal after the 2010 season. That was his breakout year. He went 12-7 with a 3.64 ERA. The deal was for $3.4 million in 2011, $5.4 million in '12, $7.4 million in '13 and $10 million in '14 with a $10 million club option in '15.

The easiest decision of the offseason is to pick that up.

Bruce signed a six-year, $51 million deal after the 2010 season. That was his breakout year as well. He hit .281 with 25 home runs and 70 RBI. The deal was for $3 million in 2011, $5 million in '12, $7.5 million in '13, $10 million in '14, $12 million in '15, $12.5 million in '16 with a $13 million club option in '17.

Bruce struggled this year, but he gave the Reds a lot of production at a discount rate in the first three years of the deal. If he returns to form, he'll be a bargain in the last years of his deal as well.

But back to Frazier and Mesoraco. Both had breakout years. Both made the All-Star game for the first time. Both will get paid. That's the way it works in baseball. Signing them long-term can control the cost -- players will generally take less in the arbitration years for the security of being signed long-term -- and it takes the potential acrimony of arbitration out of the equation.

Some clubs have been very aggressive in signing young players. Tampa Bay signed Evan Longoria to a long-term deal three years before he was arb-eligible. The Astros signed Jon Singleton to a five-year, $10 million deal before he reached the majors. The Pirates reportedly tried to do the same thing with Gregory Polanco -- only for more years and much more money.

It's a risk with any player. But Frazier and Mesoraco are solid bets. They've improved as players and they're great clubhouse guys.

Billy Hamilton is another guy to look at signing long-term, although it's probably wise to hold off and see if he can take the next step in 2015.

MADE-UP TRADE: The Reds need a bat for left field and the Dodgers need bullpen help. So they should offer Alfredo Simon for super prospect Joc Pederson. When the Dodgers stop laughing, say we were just joshing. How about Scott Van Slyke?

Van Slyke, the 28-year-old son of Andy Van Slyke, hit .297/.386/.525 in 212 at-bats for the Dodgers this year. He hit .240/.342/.465 in 129 at-bats the year before.

He has 18 home runs in 341 at-bats over the last two years. He is currently the fifth outfielder with Pederson on the way.

The Dodgers are struggling to get from starter to closer. Simon can do that. Or he could be a better fifth starter option than Dan Haren.

Reader Dave C. suggested the Van Slyke deal as well.

I've violated one of my rules. I don't like to propose specific trades. Why? Because some time this afternoon I'll get a Tweet asking me if the Simon-Van Slyke rumor is true. I'll have to say: No, some idiot on the internet made that up.

PLAYOFF PAYOFF: The postseason has been terrific and wildly unpredictable. Who had the Royals and Orioles sweeping? Who had the Kershaw-Wainwright score at 10-9? Who had Detroit losing three straight games in which a Cy Young winner started? Kansas City and St. Louis, No. 30 and 29 in MLB in homers, are winning games with home runs.

The biggest takeaway for me is bullpen struggles were not limited to the Reds. The 'pen cost the Tigers the series. The 'pen put the Dodgers in a 2-games-to-1 hole.

STILL THE ONE: The Enquirer Bengal crew is having Devon Still on Beyond The Stripes at 7:00 tonight at the Moerlein Lager House at the Banks. I heard some of Still on with Lance McAlister and Dave Lapham last night.

Wow. If his story doesn't dampen your eyes, nothing will. Should be a great show tonight.

Nippert Trust sells Reds stake to new owner Bowdeya Tweh

The Cincinnati Reds' newest owner is a top official from a New York-based global private equity and advisory firm.

Frank Cohen, senior managing director of Blackstone's real estate group, bought a minority interest in the team previously held by the Louise Dieterle Nippert Trust. The team said in a Tuesday news release that it approved approved the sale Friday.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Businessman Bob Castellini remains the current principal owner of the Reds. There are currently 19 investors in the team, according to the Cincinnati Reds' website.

Carter Randolph, manager of the Louise Dieterle Nippert Trust, told The Enquirer in June that a Los Angeles-based investment banking firm was hired to help sell the trust's minority stake in the Cincinnati Reds. The firm Park Lane specializes in helping to sell sports franchises. The move to sell the stake in the Reds is part of a larger effort to sell assets owned by Nippert trusts.

At $600 million, the Cincinnati Reds are ranked No. 20 on a Forbes list of valuations for MLB teams. Bloomberg News estimates the team is worth $680 million.

Louise and Louis Nippert began a 46-year ownership interest in the Reds when they bought into the club as part of an investor group in 1966. The group that Louis Nippert was part of bought the team from Bill DeWitt Sr., which paved the way for a two-sport facility to be built on the river and for the Cincinnati Bengals to join the National Football League.

The Nipperts ultimately bought a majority stake in the Reds in 1973 and retained that interest through the Big Red Machine era until 1981. The couple sold a majority share in the team in 1981, but retained a smaller share of ownership in the team. Louise Nippert retained a minority interest in the club until she died in 2012.

Cohen, a fourth-generation Cincinnatian, graduated from Seven Hills School in 1991. He graduated from Northwestern University with a bachelor's degree in political science and he also graduated from the Honors Program in Mathematical Methods in the Social Sciences.

Cohen is a director for Equity Office Properties Trust, CarrAmerica Realty Corp., TRZ Holdings and Blackstone's industrial venture affiliate, as well as on the Kellogg Real Estate Advisory Board at Northwestern University.

MLB.COM

Winter ball for Lutz By Mark Sheldon / MLBlogs – Mark My Word

When Reds OF/1B Donald Lutz was near the final day of the regular season, he was preparing himself for a quick trip home to Germany to see family and friends. After about a week, he planned to head straight from there to Mexico to play winter ball again for Obregon until around Christmas.

“I need at-bats,” Lutz said.

Indeed he does. This will be a pivotal off-season for Lutz, who will be out of Minor League options when he arrives at Spring Training 2015.

One of the mysteries of the 2014 season, especially near the end, was why more at-bats didn’t come Lutz’s way to get a better idea of what he could do. While he’s been prone to strikeouts, he’s demonstrated some nice left-handed power when he gets a hold of one. He’s also shown, in the Minors at least, that he can often hit well when playing more regularly.

Over three stints with the Reds in the big leagues this season, Lutz got into only 28 games and had 54 plate appearances. He batted .176/.222/.255 with 19 strikeouts. He got only five starts at first base and five in the outfield.

In 23 games at Double-A Pensacola, Lutz batted .360/.412/.685 with six home runs and 16 RBIs.

In 52 games at Triple-A Louisville, Lutz batted .236/.307/.395 with six homers and 33 RBIs. His best month there was in July when he batted .303 (10-for-33).

Last winter, Lutz played for Obregon to get at-bats to make up for lost time after he suffered a broken finger at Pensacola following his first big league stint with the Reds.

Lutz will be 26 in February, which is generally old for a prospect. But he’s only really been playing baseball since he was 16. It will be interesting to see if the Reds think he has a future with them or not next spring.

Reds approve sale of minority interest MLB.com

CINCINNATI -- The Reds approved the sale of a minority interest in the ballclub to Frank Cohen, it was announced on Tuesday. The transaction, which was finalized on Friday, sold the shares belonging to the Louise Dieterle Nippert Trust.

Louise and Louis Nippert began their 46-year ownership interest in the Reds when they bought in as part of an investors group in 1966. The Nipperts held a majority interest from 1973-81, and Ms. Nippert kept a minority interest from 1981 until her death in 2012.

Cohen is a senior managing director for The Blackstone Group, an investment advisory firm based in New York. However, he is a fourth-generation Cincinnatian and a 1991 graduate of Seven Hills High School.

CINCINNATI BUSINESS COURIER

Nippert Trust sells its stake in Cincinnati Reds Steve Watkins

The Cincinnati Reds have a new owner.

The Louise Dieterle Nippert Trust, one of 19 shareholders in the team, sold its stake on Oct. 6 to Frank Cohen, senior managing director for The Blackstone Group, a New York-based global private equity and investment advisory firm.

Carter Randolph, one of the trustees for the Nippert Trust, confirmed that the Nippert Trust has sold its ownership unit. The Cincinnati Reds announced this afternoon the name of the buyer.

Cohen, who is new to the Reds ownership group, is a native Cincinnatian who is a huge Reds fan. According to the Reds, he is the fourth generation of the Cohen family to be raised in Cincinnati. He is a 1991 graduate of the Seven Hills School.

Cohen has been involved in more than $50 billion in real estate investments, according to Blackstone. He played a key role in acquisitions of Equity Office Properties Trust, CarrAmerica Realty Corp. and Trizec Properties. He was in the acquisitions group at Chicago-based real estate investment management firm Heitman before joining Blackstone.

He serves as a director for EOP, CarrAmerica, TRZ Holdings and Blackstone’s industrial venture affiliate, as well as on the Kellogg Real Estate Advisory Board at Northwestern University, according to the Reds.

“I grew up in Cincinnati, I’m a lifelong Reds fan and I love the Reds,” the 42-year-old Cohen said. “My grandfather took me out of school to go to every Opening Day. This is a connection to my hometown. For anyone who grew up in Cincinnati, the Reds are ingrained in the psyche.

“This is about loving your hometown team and having the opportunity to be part of that, although a small part.”

Reds primary owner and CEO Bob Castellini wasn’t available to comment on the new owner. A Major League Baseball spokesman said he didn't know details of the sale.

Andrew Kline, managing director of Los Angeles-based investment bank Park Lane, which specializes in sports deals and which handled the Nippert Trust sale, said he couldn’t comment.

No sale price was revealed, but one investment banker told me before the sale was completed that the Nippert Trust ownership unit could bring around $40 million. A partnership unit is estimated to represent a 5 percent stake in the team. The banker compared the Reds value roughly to that of the San Diego Padres. That team sold for $800 million two years ago. Forbes magazine estimates the Reds are worth about $600 million, but the banker said Forbes valuations tend to be 25 percent to 50 percent too low.

The stake in the Reds had been in the Nippert family for nearly 50 years, after Louis and Louise Nippert bought into the ownership group in 1966. They were Reds majority owners from 1973 to 1981.

The trust sold its ownership unit because of a Major League Baseball policy that prohibits charities from owning teams. The Nippert Trust is set up so that it has to distribute all of its assets, which at one time totaled well more than $100 million, to charity. It can’t distribute the Reds ownership to charity, so it had to sell it.

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Nipperts' minority share in Cincinnati Reds is sold Associated Press

CINCINNATI — The Reds have approved the sale of minority share in the team to a senior managing director for The Blackstone Group based in New York City.

The sale involves a share in the team owned by Louise and Louis Nippert, who had majority interest in the team from 1973-81. Mrs. Nippert retained a minority share in the team until her death in 2012. The share was sold by the family's trust.

Frank Cohen bought the share. He grew up in Cincinnati and went to Northwestern University. Cohen also is a director for EOP, CarrAmerica, TRZ Holdings and Blackstone's industrial venture affiliate.

Bob Castellini is the majority owner of the National League team.

TRANSACTIONS

10/07/14 Toronto Blue Jays claimed Bo Schultz off waivers from Arizona Diamondbacks. RHP Sean O'Sullivan elected free agency. Arizona Diamondbacks sent Joe Paterson outright to Reno Aces. Arizona Diamondbacks sent Brett Jackson outright to Reno Aces. 3B Kevin Kouzmanoff elected free agency. DH Corey Hart elected free agency. Los Angeles Angels designated C John Buck for assignment. Los Angeles Angels claimed Alfredo Marte off waivers from Arizona Diamondbacks. Los Angeles Angels designated RF Brennan Boesch for assignment. Los Angeles Angels claimed Roger Kieschnick off waivers from Arizona Diamondbacks. Arizona Diamondbacks sent Bobby Wilson outright to Reno Aces. Milwaukee Brewers sent Jeff Bianchi outright to Colorado Springs Sky Sox.