I’m a little surprised that this announcement was made today:
The battle for the Reds’ final roster spots has decreased by one contender.
Outfielder Bubba Crosby was sent outright to Triple-A Louisville on Saturday afternoon. Crosby was out of Minor League options and had to clear waivers first. He has 72 hours to accept the assignment and will become a free agent if he declines it.
“We just felt he was behind a couple of other guys for that spot,” Reds general manager Wayne Krivsky said. “At the same time, doing it when we did — he has the choice of maybe hooking on with someone else or reporting.”
I’m surprised because Crosby had been signed to a major league contract, and was out of options. I thought that might give him a slight edge in the competition to make the club.
UPDATE: Some aren’t too pleased with this news, and I tend to agree that Crosby, in the end, was a casualty of Josh Hamilton’s emergence.