The words roll smoothly off the tongue like a threadbare tire on new tarmac, so here it is: “it’s not over ‘til it’s over.” The Cincinnati Reds could still solve their shortstop conundrum via trade before the Goodyear sun sets on Joey Votto’s fresh red kicks. Absolutely.
But, sorry, yeah, it feels pretty much over.
Having been squashed by the recent penny-pinching whims of ownership, the creeping murmur of the moment suggests the Reds will hitch their shortstop wagon to a patchwork of infielders and pray for divine intervention from the baseball gods in the form of fortuitous bounces, bounce-back seasons, and, well, the Shift.