Earlier this week, the Cincinnati Reds made a trade that could shore up their lineup for 2013. The Reds received Shin-Soo Choo and Jason Donald from the Cleveland Indians in exchange for outfielder Drew Stubbs and minor-league infielder Didi Gregorius.

This was a three team deal that involved the Reds, Indians and Diamondbacks. The Diamondbacks ended up receiving Gregorius. Arizona is taking a big risk by adding Gregorius as their everyday shortstop. Numerous scouts and executives think Gregorius is going to pan out and become a fantastic player in the big leagues. The problem for him was the fact he was blocked by Cozart at short and BP at second.

The ladies seem to love Stubbs and the Indians seem to as well. With the acquisition of Choo, he shores up our very shaky leadoff spot. The question is whether he or Jay Bruce will play centerfield. Choo is a solid defensive outfielder with a solid arm. However, he won’t be able to go and get a ball like Stubbs could.

The best part about this deal is the fact that we finally have our leadoff man. We have a leadoff man who can hit for some power and has speed. Even though, Choo is not in the same class as Stubbs, speed wise, he is almost guaranteed to get on base at a higher frequency than Stubbs.

Choo is a career .289 hitter with an on base percentage of .381.

This is a great trade for the Reds who continue to build their team for this upcoming season. Another thing this trade shows us is the fact that the Reds are ready to win now. This is a trade that says the Reds want to win this season.

We definitely wish Drew and Didi the best of luck as they move forward in their major league careers.

In other Reds news, the team has announced the signing of free agent infielder Jack Hannahan. Hannahan, 32, joins former Indians teammates Choo and Donald here in Cincinnati.

This is a move that I am not quite sure about. Hannahan is primarily a third baseman. Where does this put Todd Frazier in the mix at third base? Only time will tell and it will be very interesting to see how Dusty manages this lineup. There are a lot of questions that will be answered within Spring Training and the first quarter of the season.