Not that I think The Reds need (or want) Brandon Webb, but the Reds DO spring train in Arizona...and he is from Kentucky...and stranger things HAVE happened...I mean the back of Webb's baseball card is more impressive than Jeff Francis' was...
Strange, I had been wondering what ever happened to Webb? Wow! What is it that is said around here? You can never, ever have enough pitching! If Webb can still throw that sinker in GABP, not so bad.
Probably worth a look anyway. I'm skeptical about recurring shoulder injuries but might not be as concerned with a junk balling pitcher if he was deemed healthy, cheap , and going to be a scrap heap low risk, "scrap heap" situational reliever. I sure wouldn't want another starting pitcher with Arroyo/Leake type arm confusing the rotation issue. I suppose it depends on what other teams need and are willing to pay him, also. He was a good one for a long time.
Webb was arguably a Top 3 NL pitcher covering his first 6 years with Diamondbacks, but hasn't pitched successfully in MLB since 2008?? That's four seasons ago. Would be a great story/comeback for the KY native. I don't see how he could get more than a minor league deal after all his injuries. However, Reds can always look at someone with low risk/low $$ attached to them.
I think Wilbur Wood, the Niekro Bros. and the recent Mets middle aged phenom, could throw the knuckler with the wrong shoulder for 30 starts...control, pain tolerance and park size not considered...
Trevor Hoffman got an awful lot of outs without a strong arm, but again, I don't know if it stabbed him every pitch for the last 3 years of his career, either.
For all the reported "TJ" successes, there sure are a lot of walking wounded trying for a 4th or 5th second chance out there.
The fact that Brandon Webb still WANTS to try says something, just not sure what... I guess that's what the workouts are for.
