The Winter Meetings sure have been full of fun, and sometimes wild, rumors for the Cincinnati Reds. Yesterday’s rumors included Ender Inciarte, Yasiel Puig, Alex Wood, Rich Hill, Homer Bailey, Vladimir Gutierrez, and more. Today might top all of that. The rumor moving today is that the Cincinnati Reds are interested in acquiring catcher J.T. Realmuto from the Miami Marlins.
Sources indicate the Cincinnati Reds have jumped into the Realmuto talks. Could be moving up into the candidates to acquire him.
— Craig Mish (@CraigMish) December 12, 2018
That tweet was quickly followed up by this one:
Sources indicate the names possibly in a potential deal would be hilighted by top prospect Taylor Trammell and a catcher. Possibly Barnhart.
— Craig Mish (@CraigMish) December 12, 2018
That would be one heck of a move. Love it or hate it, it would certainly be interesting. J.T. Realmuto is under contract for the next two years, so it would be a short buy. That would suggest the team has plans for other moves because they know they need to make that count.
With Realmuto, he leads the Major Leagues in WAR by catchers over the last three seasons. He would be an instant upgrade to the roster. But if the price is Taylor Trammell, plus, it’s not going to be an easy pill to swallow, either. Trammell is one of the top 25 prospects in all of baseball according to several national publications. And I have him ranked as the Reds #3 prospect behind Nick Senzel and Hunter Greene. He is a possible solution down the road to filling center field, though some scouts think he’s a left fielder because of his lack of arm strength. Don’t count me in that group.
Rumors are just that: Rumors. But the Reds are all over the hot stove this week. They haven’t gotten anything accomplished yet, but they are certainly acting like a different club than they have over the last few years. It’s a start. Let’s see if they can actually finish something.
Update: The Reds are also connected with Marcus Stroman
(this is Steve): A new pitching name has surfaced in connection with the Reds, Marcus Stroman.
Sources: #Reds remain active in trade discussions for Sonny Gray and Marcus Stroman. They believe there’s a better chance of acquiring one of them than Corey Kluber. @MLBNetwork @MLB
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) December 12, 2018