Cincinnati Reds Talk Shin-Soo Choo

August 18, 2012; Oakland, CA, USA; Cleveland Indians right fielder Shin-Soo Choo (17) hits a home run during the ninth inning against the Oakland Athletics at O.co Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Ed Szczepanski-USA TODAY Sports

The Reds have been in search of their next lead-off man since before last season ended. Cincinnati struggled to get on base at the top of the order throughout the 2012 campaign, which kept the power hitters like Joey Votto and Brandon Phillips from being used to their potential in the line-up.

Many Reds fans have been discouraged that the organization hasn’t been as aggressive in their search for the club’s next lead-off man, as many all-star players have already been taken off of the table during the offseason. Even more discouraging, was the fact that the Reds closed out the winter meetings with still no prospects to fill the void in their lineup.

Now that Cincinnati has taken care of their in-house deals, the team is finally getting serious in the search. It has been reported by CBS.com that the club is deep into talks with the Cleveland Indians to deal Shin-Soo Choo to Cincinnati for outfielder Drew Stubbs and short stop Didi Gregorius.

Choo is in the final year of his contract with the Indians and would be the answer Cincinnati has been looking for. The veteran right fielder had a .373 on base percentage last year. He also finished the season with a .283 average, hit 16 home runs, and picked up 67 RBIs.

Though, defensively, Drew Stubbs will be sorely missed by the Reds, if the trade were to go through, it would boost the Reds in on-base percentage and will provide more stability on the offensive side of the plate.