Reds Exercise Option on Bronson Arroyo, Cut Ties With Aaron Harang

The Reds have started work on their 2011 roster by settling some outstanding issues in their starting rotation.

The team decided to exercise their $11.5 million option on right-hander Bronson Arroyo, but declined to pick up the $12.75 million commitment to Aaron Harang. Harang will get a $2 million buyout and hit the open market as a free agent.

Picking up Arroyo's option is a sign of how far the Reds came this season. Unless you're a contender, $11.5 million is a lot to spend on a pitcher whose greatest virtue is the ability to devour more than 200 innings a season.

That doesn't mean he's not a good pitcher. Arroyo has remained surprisingly effective despite a plummeting strikeout rate, but he's not good enough for that kind of investment on a small-market club unless you think you can contend. After 2010, the Reds have every reason to think they can and that made their decision easy.

That said, word that Walt Jocketty is talking about extending the contract is a bit harder to swallow. Arroyo will be 34 before the start of next season and the Reds have a clutch of talented young starters -- or, in the case of Aroldis Chapman, soon-to-be starters -- ready to step into the mix. Arroyo is only two years removed from a god-awful season and the probability of another one is going to keep going up as he gets older.

The Harang decision wasn't any harder for the Reds. After a good three-year run from 2005-2007, Harang has gone from mediocre to terrible over the last three years and wasn't on the playoff roster for the NLDS. His past success will likely get him a look from a team trying to catch a cheap starting option, but Harang shouldn't expect anything more than that for the 2011 season.

Continuing their run of unsurprising personnel decisions, the Reds also declined a $4 million option on shortstop Orlando Cabrera on Wednesday. Cabrera posted an OPS+ of 78 last season, a bit lower than his normally dismal offensive production, and his fielding isn't good enough to justify that kind of salary next year. The Reds could certainly bring him back at a cheaper number, and could likely improve upon him without spending as much as well.

Finally, the Reds picked up outfielder Jonny Gomes' option for $1.75 million. If he turns in another .266/.327/.431 year with 18 homers, he'll be worth that price. Too much of a drop won't make him an albatross and there's always a chance he'll turn in another year like 2009 and be a tremendous bargain.