By John Fay
The Cincinnati Enquirer

The e-mail has been voluminous, to say the least. Interestingly, as the weekend wore on, people started to accept the Reds' trades. Read on:

Question, from Greg from Lexington: Isn't it time for chief operating officer John Allen to join Bob Boone and Jim Bowden? The Reds' front office has proven to be a sham the past several years. The trades have been poor and taxpayers were duped into buying a new stadium and offices that primarily benefit owners looking to protect the value of their investment. Fans get nice seats at high prices to watch millionaire players who, with a few exceptions, lack Pete Rose's passion for playing the game. It is sad to witness the front office's incompetence taking this organization from the Big Red Machine to the Big Dead Machine.

Answer: Allen has become the target of fans' anger. But my take is he's following an ownership mandate not to lose money. He has been arguing semantics over "fire sale" and "salary dump" rather than just saying: "Hey, what we tried didn't work. We're sorry. We thought we were going to be better. We weren't, so we tore things up and started over."

Q, from Tim: I disagree with all the whining. True, we'll need some luck to get Ken Griffey Jr. back in one piece, but there is still an above-average offense there next year. And maybe, with Jose Acevedo coming around, Ryan Wagner being lights-out, Brandon Claussen living up to his status as the No. 1 Yankees prospect, Ty Howington and Dustin Moseley getting closer and closer and the bullpen still being viable, the Reds could have a formidable (and inexpensive) pitching staff in 2004 and beyond. I'm optimistic; how about you?

A: There are a lot ifs in that statement. But you're right, if things fall just right, the Reds could hang in there. The National League Central isn't exactly the American League East.

Q, from Ron in Western Hills: All of the Reds fans are unhappy about the trades! It was a given when Bob Boone was hired that when he was fired (as all managers are), Aaron Boone would be gone shortly thereafter. All of the Reds' moves involved getting pitching, and we all have seen what the pitchers we had gave us in terms of wins and losses. We have received two starters who can be used right now and others who have a lot of upside to them. The Reds should be much better next season with the starters, and fine in relief. Brandon Larson was the starting third baseman in the spring, and the money that is available after the trades (assuming they don't throw it away on Barry Larkin) could get another starter and a decent middle infielder.

A: The big question is, will the prospects live up to their potential? By my count, the Reds were 3-for-their-last-45 on trades for pitchers coming into this year.

Q, from Todd: I would like to know what the people in the front office of the Reds are doing. How can they get rid of a fan favorite, Aaron Boone, and not feel any remorse about it? Getting rid of Boone will damage the team and decrease ticket sales.

A: Management did express remorse over the Boone trade.

Q, from Adam: Now that the Reds' management obviously has thrown in the towel for this season, all tickets to Great American Ball Park are free for the rest of this season, right?

A: Wrong. But plenty of good seats are available.

E-mail jfay@enquirer.com