The Cincinnati Reds began the year with a whole lot of prospects on a whole bunch of prospect lists. But at the midpoint of the season the Reds have graduated some of those guys into the big leagues and they are no longer eligible for prospect lists. Elly De La Cruz, Matt McLain, and Spencer Steer have all played in the big leagues long enough to have lost their eligibility. Andrew Abbott will lose his eligibility within the next two weeks. Abbott, though, isn’t eligible for the Baseball Prospectus Top 60 that was released today because they don’t count players currently in the big leagues, assuming they will soon graduate. Despite all of those “losses”, Cincinnati still has three players ranked on their Top 60 list. Drafted players are not eligible as none of them have officially signed yet.
The Reds top prospect according to the crew at Baseball Prospectus is now infielder Noelvi Marte. He came in at #24 on the list. Marte was the only Cincinnati prospect to play in the 2023 MLB All-Star Futures Game this past weekend. He went 0-2 with a steal and a run scored. After being acquired last year at the trade deadline when Seattle sent him and other prospects over in exchange for Luis Castillo, the Reds sent him to High-A Dayton where he finished the 2022 season.
This season the organization sent him to Double-A to play with Chattanooga to start the year. While with the Lookouts he played 50 games and hit .281/.356/.464 with 10 doubles, a triple, and eight home runs. He also went 10-for-12 in stolen base attempts. Shortly before the All-Star break he was promoted to Triple-A Louisville. The 21-year-old has only played eight games with the Bats, picking up a double and two triples so far. He’s also stolen three more bases.
While he went to the Arizona Fall League last year to work on play third base – a position he had never played prior to that point – he’s split time between shortstop and third base this season. He played in 30 games as the shortstop in Double-A. All eight of his games in Louisville had come as a third baseman.
Next on the list is right-handed pitcher Connor Phillips. Like Marte, he was acquired from the Seattle Mariners. However, he came over in spring training in 2022 in the deal that sent Jesse Winker and Eugenio Suarez to the Mariners. Phillips came in as the 44th rated prospect on the list.
The now 22-year-old began the season in Double-A Chattanooga where the Southern League was being used as a testing ground for a pre-tacked baseball. That seemed to both help and hurt pitchers in the league as it increased the spin rate on just about all pitches, but it also led to some more control problems for guys. Phillips, who turned 22 in May, made 14 starts for the Lookouts and posted a 3.34 ERA with 111 strikeouts in 64.2 innings and had just 27 walks.
The Reds then promoted Phillips up to Triple-A Louisville where he’s made two starts. The first one went about as poorly as possible – potentially as he adjusted from the pre-tacked Double-A baseball to the Major League Baseball that they use in Triple-A – and he walked five batted in 1.2 innings before exiting the game. In his second start things went better as he allowed two runs in 5.0 innings with two walks and six strikeouts while averaging 96 MPH with his fastball.
Just outside of the top 50 is Christian Encarnacion-Strand. He came in at #57 this time around. He missed the first three weeks of the season recovering from a back injury, but once he returned he hit the snot out of the baseball from day one. In the 65 games that Encarnacion-Strand has played in Triple-A this season he’s hitting .321/.392/.620 with 17 doubles, two triples, and 20 home runs.
Over the first month or so of his season he wasn’t walking much, but was crushing anything and everything he made contact with. Then, almost out of nowhere, he began to pile up the walks. Starting on May 26th and running through today, he’s put up an OPS of .967 while walking 27 times with just 33 strikeouts in 176 plate appearances. In the first 28 games of the year he had three walks and 36 strikeouts in 130 plate appearances. Much of his time in the field has been at first base, but he’s played 16 games at third base, and for two games last month he played in left and right field – though he hasn’t done so since.
Each of the prospects moved up the list since the preseason list was released in January. Noelvi Marte was ranked 29th when the season began. Connor Phillips made a big jump as he was ranked 96th when the year started. And Christian Encarnacion-Strand was unranked.
This is such a great testament to the success and execution of the Reds FO. They graduated so many top-100 and near top-100 players who’ve had tremendous success in MLB, yet we still have three top 60 guys remaining. Not too mention some guys tearing it up in instructional leagues, Duno and Cabrera. And yet several others that could appear on top prospect lists by the end of year or next.
In the past two years we scouted and traded for (among others): Steer, CES, Phillips, Benson, Marte, Arroyo, Fraley, Williamson
In the same time we graduated homegrown players: De La Cruz, Diaz, Abbott, McLain, Ashcraft, Greene, Lodolo
And we signed some studs for the bullpen: Young, Gibaut, Farmer, etc
ANYONE who thinks this Reds FO is not TOP NOTCH in practically everything they do is simply not paying attention.
and I forgot Friedl!!!
I don’t know if I’ve ever seen any FO in baseball have so much success in such a short period of time.
Friedl was undrafted, and signed after the draft. There was some confusion by a lot of teams as to his actual status. Kudos to the Reds for actually asking him and signing him to a contract.
And kudos to TJ for working hard to make himself into the player he is today. He did not always look that hot as a hitter in Minor League ball.
Reds had one good season (1956) between 1945 and 1960.
Reds and Bill Dewitt starting in 1960. Traded for Freese, Jay, Blasingame, and others to help win NL pennant in 1961. Improved 26 W over 1960 then added 5 more W in 1962.
Signed players such as Rose, Helms, Perez, May, and others in early 1960s. Drafted players like Johnny Bench, Gary Nolan, and Don Gullett in mid 1960s. The building blocks of the BRM in 1970s.
Reds led NL in Most W from 1956 to 1981. DeWitt and Howsam among all-time greats.
100%
May the words ‘looking for major league ready’ players never be uttered again.
You are so right Dave Set the organization back 5 or 6 years.
The among others include young high-performing Rodriguez and Acuna from the Naquin trade.
I do want to congratulate the Reds brain trust on putting together an exciting, athletic, competitive winning combination. Cincinnati fans have not seen anything like this for decades. They are doing things the old school way, bunting, hitting for power and in the clutch . They run like the wind and do all the little things necessary to win. They’re a joy to watch and you can tell they are having fun. Now for the hard part, keeping the talent assembled in a Cincinnati uniform. In my opinion you can’t accomplish this by giving eight million dollar contracts to someone who has four wins and eleven losses. You don’t release someone who has pitched a no hitter only to have him come back two years later and beat you one to nothing. You don’t trade All Stars Louis Castillo, Nick Castellanos, Sonny Grey or even Jesse Winker who had the game winning hit for the Brewers right before the All Star break. You can’t give out multi million dollar contracts with short term returns. The Reds are still paying Griffey Junior . The Cincinnati Reds “FO” owes it to the fans to keep this exciting team together and not make the same mistakes of the past. Trading off the talent assembled in the name of “rebuilding “ when contracts are up is unacceptable. Mr. Castellini with all due respect, sell the team if you’re not in it to win it.
Bob took a $47m loss in 2020, a loss in 2021, and broke even last year. Also, Bally Sports pending bankruptcy has been disruptive but not yet financially damaging. In the mist of that financial mess, this team and farm system has been assembled and developed. Yes, it meant cutting loose some contracts like Miley’s. If the Reds knew this year was going to happen, maybe Miley is retained but I think the FO thought 2024 was more likely the breakout year.
All in all, this FO is killing it and if the weekend games continue to draw north of 30k, that’s a massive boost to revenue. Before the covid financial mess, Bob was spending money. And while I think the Reds will be smarter with each dollar, I do think they’ll fill gaps when needed. With the way this FO now scouts, I hope they fill those gaps in smart, innovative ways.
Pretty cool to see this strategy being executed.
The rankings to me are somewhat peripheral to what is reality.
I think Noelvi Marte will probably be a “good” ML player, but it was hype and draft position that got him the prospect rating. He will be good, but not great, IMHO.
Would you rather have Noelvi Marte on the Reds 26 man squad in 2024, or Christian Encarnacion – Strand?
Rece Hinds in AA ball seems to be making progress to me, also. Making more contact, and he has a LOT of extra-base/HR power. Not in the Top 100 rankings of prospects, but then again…who cares?
Bernie Carbo was drafted by the Reds ahead of Johnny Bench in 1965.
Marte was an international signee by the Mariners, not drafted. He’s 21 years-old and already at AAA, learning a new position. He’s been consistently better than average every year as a pro. He has all the traits of prospects who succeed–solid K rate, good K-to-BB ratio, good speed, power, and ability to play a premium defensive position. He’s earned the prospect rating he has, as confirmed by every credible service that rates prospects.
If in fact we do give him up in a trade it better be a “humdinger” of one.
Touché.
Throw in the added opportunity of watching him many times this season, he passes the eye test really well. He presents himself as highly confident and competent both offensively and defensively. Body wise, he’s physically mature and strong as heck now at 21. I’m very impressed with Marte. If CES does beat him out, that’s not a loss at all. AAnd given the current guy getting a lot of time at 3B, Marte may end up at 1B or a corner OF spot, through the India years, at least.
Marte is 2 years younger, plays a more demanding position, and well, and come move to other more demanding positions. Sure, his offensive skill sets could simply falter as he moves into AAA and MLB, but CES’s skill set is much more susceptible to getting degraded by opposition talent and scouting exposing flaws, than Marte’s strike zone acuity and BB/K ratios.
Still – while it’s easier to see CES flaws, both could prevail.
CES not in the top 50 is crazy. He will prove the “experts” wrong….if he ever gets a chance. 🙂
First basemen who get rated in the top 100 are generally thought of to be very, very good hitters. But the fact that they have so much negative value because they are first basemen plays heavy. An .850 OPS first baseman usually isn’t as valuable as a .750 OPS shortstop.
The “experts”, by ranking him this high, are saying that among minor leaguers that play 1st base – he’s probably going to be one of the best. There’s only one true first baseman ranked ahead of him in all of the minors right now (according to this particular list).
Personally I think he’ll be better than expected.
Triston Casas made top 40 in all 3 lists prior to 2023. (BA-29, MLB-23, BP-35). Not sure why he makes it and CES doesn’t. His stats are worse than CES with only a mild improvement in plate discipline.
Casas also was #37 preseason 2023 by ESPN. BA, ESPN and MLB are really the only ones that matter since MLB uses those 3 for PPI (Prospect Promotion Incentive…must make 2/3). Something I hope CES qualifies for next year.
I believe these lists aren’t as much as how well the prospects are doing but a “prediction” of how much of a “star” the people think the players will be. Or, maybe a measure of their athleticism. Or something.
For, I can’t imagine people ranking CES “as a better prospect” right now over Marte. Maybe a better player at one time in the future. But, I couldn’t do that now.
But, regardless, I was glad to hear 3 Reds in the top 60.
If it were based on “who is better right this second” you’d have a bunch of guys like Henry Ramos on the list ranked ahead of guys like Cam Collier. It’s about projecting their future big league career.
And, for something like this, just something about it I just don’t like. Sorry. I believe it takes attention off others who deserve the attention.
But, still glad to see 3 Reds in there.
I mean, sorry, but I’ve seen it before. Kids score high in types of “future champion” programs when they haven’t even started the sport. So much money and attention start going towards them, meaning less money and attention going those much closer.
So in your expert (i.e cynical) opinion, you compare Marte, CES and Phillips with phantom figures “who have never started the sport”?
And let’s blame them for taking attention away from others “deserving attention.”
And, of course, woe unto them if they dare to “take playing time away from” someone else.
Sorry, your post just doesn’t make any sense.
That makes too much sense!
Thanks for all your input with this site Doug.
For Stoner
“So in your expert (i.e cynical) opinion, you compare Marte, CES and Phillips with phantom figures “who have never started the sport”?”
No, that isn’t what I said at all, to any degree. I specifically spoke against this.
For Stoner
What I did speak of is there are programs out there that look to earmark “players” as champion material when they haven’t even started the sport yet. Then, so much time and money go towards their development, instead of those so much closer to the elite level.
I don’t like those programs. This list almost sounds like one of those.
That’s cool, I’m glad to see Phillips so highly ranked. All 3 could be a factor on the 23 team, and almost assuredly will impact the 24 Reds.
We’ll need to start seeing some of the younger guys grabbing top prospects spots soon. Petty, Jorge, Cabrera seem like guys who could be highly rated in 24.
One thing that Marte, CES, and Phillips have in common and working in their favor is that as upper-level prospects performing well, the “risk” portion of their rating has diminished, giving them an advantage over lower-level players in the ratings. In short, being days to months away from “big league ready” boosts them up the prospect charts.
“In short, being days to months away from “big league ready” boosts them up the prospect charts.” I’d agree with you on that, and really those are the players that I’m most excited about. Pretty much anyone who is likely to help in 23/24/25.
Lowder would be another, as is Dunn who I think he’ll be a big part of the outfield as early as 24.
There are less top prospecty guys like Free, Trautwein, Hurtubise, and Hopkins that I’m guessing might also play a role the roster in the next couple of years.
Beyond all of those guys there could be some fast risers from A ball like the ones I mentioned above, that I’m excited about. The organization really does seem to be in great shape.
MBS, as you know, I follow those ‘lesser prospect list’ guys a lot. For one, every team needs them. They are cost effective and generally controllable. Snd they’re easy to root for, being more underdogs.
The ones with us that you mentioned, Hopkins, Trautwein, etc are also very good for sticking a feather in the cap of our development program, at least this year.
I think Hector has to figure in this too. There are a couple of pitchers in the lower levels who are making a name for themselves. Then there’s Arroyo, Acosta, Collier, Duno, Cabrera, the new kid from Korea, this year’s draftees. Hinds seems to be rising out of the ashes too.
Hendrick, Allen and a few others are falling off the cliff it seems. This is why you need so many high end guys.
Yes – It’s very much overlooked amongst the other activity, but if either Hector or Acuna make it MLB that will be a huge plus. If both make it, simply a steal of a deal. If either becomes a regular, an all time great deal.
Naquin was -.4 WAR for the Mets and his now in the minors.
It’s way too early to be dancing on Jay Allen’s grave. He got injured at Dayton in his 3rd game of the season, and he’s played 3 games at Dayton since his injury. He is all of 20 years old, looked fine on rehab in Arizona, and had a 11% BB rate last season.
Can’t disagree on Hendrick.
Ed, agree on Allen. I think one thing that occurs when a guy goes out and other guys step up is the ‘what have you done for me lately’ thing. Fair or unfair. In fact, that’s a big part of how Henry Ramos got overlooked in the Red Sox system — guy fouled one off and broke his kneecap. Next thing you know, he’s bounced around.
Ivan Johnson has dealt with a bit of this dynamic, coming back from an injury. Miguel Hernandez at AAA will be as well. But just keep them coming, even if.
This article makes me very happy. Rather shortly, assuming all 3 continue to show production in Louisville, there will be another infusion of ELITE talent added to the roster before we even talk trades. The front office will have some tough decisions on their hands. Phillips is an easy call for me as a shot in the arm for an overworked bullpen–it manages his innings buildup responsibly and is like a de facto trade acquisition. Positionally, will they choose the low ceiling veteran-y presence of Senzel (82 OPS+)/Newman (83 OPS+)/Casali (32 OPS+!) over the higher ceilings of Marte and CES? With such a low bar you’d think it’s an obvious decision, but in Newman’s case I bet he sticks, given Marte is only 21. With Senzel it seems untenable to keep him on the roster given his extreme splits and how limited he is because of it.
What I hope not to read is how any of these 3 are ‘blocked’.
“Blocked” is media speak that paints the situation as untenable and encourages us to read their articles speculating about who “should” be available for trades. I bet front offices use the term, “depth” and consider it something of value.
Yup. Was Steer blocked? No, he moved to 3B then 1B then LF. Was Elly blocked by McLain? No, he learned to play 3B. McLain has learned to play 2B. Barrerro has learned to play CF.
Basically, if you are a SS you are an upper echelon athlete and you are never “blocked”.
For Hype
How injured was Hamilton, a former SS, while playing CF?
Being a SS may mean you have “athletic skills”. That doesn’t mean the player has “specific skills” for the position.
It’s exactly like with Larry Bird. He was slow, couldn’t jump, overall, a poor athlete, no “athletic skills”. But, when it came to more “specific skills”, like shooting, rebounding, passing, etc., few were better.
2 huge reasons why IF wouldn’t make good OF: 1) they don’t learn how to play the wall, keep running into it, getting injured, and/or 2) running into fellow players as they run into the power alleys fielding drives. “position specific skills” that they need to learn if they are going to field the position well without getting needlessly injured. Not talking having to be fast, having to have a good arm, etc., more “general athletic skills”.
Billy Hamilton was a fantastic CF, just below gold glove caliber. Yes he got hurt. Would he have gotten hurt playing SS? We will never know because he stopped playing SS in the minors.
The idea that player X got hurt due to a position change is speculation, not fact.
Billy was also rated as not having “soft hands” for SS. He had all the other skills. So the move to CF was his best available option to make The Show because the team didn’t see him as a SS.
Is anyone else intrigued with Blake Dunn? Curious to see if he lands on Doug’s prospect list when he does his revision. This guy looks to be getting better and better.
Dunn’s numbers at AA: 321/408/455
Plays an excellent centerfield with both a good arm and very good range. Great base runner as well. For outfielders he is certainly my sleeper in the system.
I’ve noticed him as well. Also wondered where he might show up on the Reds prospects lists. Keeping it up upon reaching AA got my attention.
To me he is a mudder. Generally, before the first couple innings are over the guy has dirty britches. The guy looks like a throwback to a different era. If his numbers do continue to be solid in AA, it would be great to see him get a shot in AAA before the season is over.
Blake Dunn just reached 400 AB’s in his minor league career. Here is his line so far:
.286 batting average; .412 OBP; .864 OPS; 16 home runs; 58 stolen bases
Let’s project that to 600 plate appearances and he could possibly have a line like 22 home runs and 70 stolen bases. Very intersting.
Coming into the draft, Dunn was one of our more interesting picks given his elite athletic abilities. Dude was just injured in his year one. But he does project out nicely.
I have a hard time finding a comp for him because he’s built like a strong safety, rather than a high waisted Benson type or a Friedl type that looks like a point guard that we often see in the outfield.
I just looked the other day and was intrigued by several.
I see Dunn as a possible starting OF for the Reds, or at least as 1 of a 4 man outfield rotation. The 3 Lefties and Dunn would make an excellent OF if Dunn keeps producing when he jumps levels. AAA is next, but probably not until next year.
Never liked the term blocked especially when the player doing the blocking is on the down side of a career.Good thing to see 3 Reds make the list but they can’t just hang around.Play them at the big league level or trade them for players you need to fill a hole.Keep the pipeline full and keep it moving.CES right now needs to be here Friday for example and to say where he is going to play or how does he fit makes no sense.A third string catcher and a utility player who DH’s or plays out of position at first appears to be keeping him in the minors.Silly for sure.
While nothing is ever guaranteed, this looks like we still have a solid stream of prospects that may help in the years to come. Or some of them may help now as part of a trade. Either way, the future remains brighter than most of us thought it would as does the 2023 season.
lacking in OF’s.
Krall is not trading any pitchers named Williamson/Abbott/Petty/Phillips/Stoudt/Richardson/Aguilar. Hes also not trading any top prospect that is 2024 ready- Marte/CES.
We all love to play amateur GM and I am really intrigued to see what Krall does between now and the deadline. The new Enquirer reporter had quotes from the Brewers/Corbin and some from Cubs and Pirates anticipating deadline moves. Corbin paraphrasing….said the Reds are our top competitors but the Cubs are a good week away from being right there. He also said reds need more pitching.
If the Reds think Greene and Lodolo are going to be ready in a month and Abbott and Phillips and Williamson are part of the rotation in 2024, then its free agent SP rentals and bullpen rentals that dont cost much. I dont trade any of these top young prospects unless there is a pitcher out there who is Shane Bieber version 2021 that is a SP1 or 2 and controlled for years. I just dont think any team trades controlled young cheap SP anymore. I also dont think the Reds want to commit to long term decisions in July 2023 and need more data.
I love Jon India but I do think I would let the season play out in the infield positionally as its no longer implausible Elly and McLain arent 4 WAR players and Steer becomes a solid 8-10 year righty bat. Its looking like India is now 4th behind those 3 and what if Marte blows up AAA and CES already is. I want that infield/DH rotation in 2024. I love India but I want to see the second half of 2024 play out before I er motley consider training CES or marte for pitching.
Right now…its pitching and I think Krall will find some rentals to add depth but wont compromise 2024/25/26.
2nd half of 2023 play out before remotely considering trading CES/marte for pitching.
Edit function for fat fingers and autocorrect….needed, lol
I wouldn’t trade CES, but CES, and India seem like possible trade chips. I want CES to be a middle of the order bat for years to come. The problem is I think he doesn’t fit the profile of more athletic, better defender, and faster players that Krall says he wants.
To me Steer has given Krall the option to move CES since Steer has taken so well to 1B. He also has a corner infielder power bat.
Votto days are numbered. CES is the 1b
Big time power bat. If Votto wants to blow up 2nd half and renogiate a 1 year 11 mil deal as a part time DH/1b in 2024 if hits 15 more home runs….ok’
Otherwise …CES is the Reds future 1b starting really really soon….like maybe Friday.
I would think anyone is tradebait. It all depends upon what the other is willing to give up.
I mean, seriously, if the Angels were willing to trade Ohtani and $500 million geared for his new contract, for CES, you will seriously try to say you wouldn’t take it? I’d consider it.
Now, would that happen? More than likely no. That’s why I said, it all depends.
@Old I hope you’re right, like I said I really want CES in the middle of the lineup. I have no other reason why CES wasn’t brought up here by now. You could say once Votto returned that there’s no room, and there’s an argument there, but CES was mashing since go, and the Reds needed a 1B/DH, yet CES stayed in AAA. The learning 1B is a non answer as well. Steer learned it up here, so could have CES.
Like I said, CES and India seem like trade bait to me.
2024 Steer 1B, McLain 2B, EDLC SS, Marte 3B seems both very athletic, and the best possible fielding version of an infield to me. That’s actually my preference, with CES as the DH. Votto would have to be an absolute monster for the Reds to pick up his option, and I don’t see him negotiating a lesser contract.
“I wouldn’t trade CES, but CES, and India seem like possible trade chips.”
If had to make a choice of who to trade either India or CES it would be hard not to choose India. CES, even in the majors, will be a better hitter (BA), have a better OP, and much more power most likely. I don’t want India to go either but if he does it just makes it easier to move Mclain to 2B and EDLC to SS. CES can play some 3B this year and move to 1B eventually when Votto retires (whatever that year is) :). Marte can then move to 3B. None of this has to happen though. All of these guys can find positions to play on a regular basis. It will be harder when Marte does come up but that won’t be for awhile anyway. Question for all. Who would you rather have in the lineup every day between India and CES right now? Hard question.
I agree with you Old School…sorta. To me the untouchable list of prospects has six, maybe seven names, on it. Marte, CES, Petty, Phillips and Hubbart for sure and possibly Aguiar and Dunn. Aside from these players everyone else is considered available… depending on the return.
I continue to read that, while not actually shopping him, the Reds are talking to other teams about CES. Of course talking is probably all that will happen. I would hesitate to include him in any deal unless it was for a Shane Bieber type, who still has a couple years of team control.
Krall could also trade an Arroyo or Collier for a similar pitcher. I believe these guys will have a future in the big leagues, it just may not be in Cincinnati. There are just too many quality youngters ahead of them. I see Marte at 3B, maybe as soon as next year, but the rest of the half dozen shortstops in the Reds organization just have nowhere to go. I say “don’t mortgage the future” but use these types as bait to make the current/future ML team better.
@old, good synopsis of where we are. I think we will make a SP acquisition, and hopefully will be a difference maker. Whether it’s just a rental or not, only Krall knows the specific cost on that.
But bottom line is Reds have to go for it this year without disrupting the core for future years. It can be done. No one knows how ripe the division will be in future years, but what we do know is that it’s ripe this year. Never wait for next year.
+1000 for the last paragraph. Teams can plan widows but they cannot control events that open opportunity.
A well thought out scheme should allow for adaptation to seize opportunity without derailing the master plan
Agree to a point, but, you can only play 9 hitters and I wouldn’t trade Marte, Phillips or CES, but everyone else has to be on the table. Either you play them or trade them but don’t just hold onto them.
And, saying that, if we got a 1,2 or 3 starter for a couple of years, maybe we do give up a hitting gem… They need more balance.
Yeah, I gotta say, if I had to pick one to go from the group of Marte, CES, and India… it would be India. He is a minus defender – which has been on display quite a few times lately – and he has struggled to hit, especially in the #3 spot. (But can you realistically put him back in the leadoff or #2 spot with Friedl and McLain there?) India’s average is now at .250 with an OPS+ of 97 this year, after hitting .249 last year with an OPS+ of 91 last year.
The problem is, he’s a pretty instrumental leader on this team. You can’t really trade him right now. I mean… you could, and maybe the young guys could handle it. But honestly, is India going to bring you more in a trade than you’d get for Marte or CES? I doubt it, actually. Even with that ROTY on his mantel. So if you’re looking to make a run this year, and you want a top tier pitcher, you’re kinda stuck keeping India and trading Marte or CES, or maybe Arroyo.
I think the Reds will pick up Votto’s option. It is 7m if they don’t and 20m if they do pick it up, so basically 13m for 2024. In 67 PA he has 7 HR. Younger player like Cruz are already looking up to him. So unless he falls off a cliff in 2nd half I would think the option would be picked up.
My hopes for 2024 lineup.
1 Friedl CF
2 McLain 2B
3 De La Cruz SS
4 Steers LF
5 CES 1B
6 Votto DH
7 Stephenson C
8 Benson RF
9 Marte 3B
I think India is a good team leader but he has trade value so I would move him. As far as the rest of the bench I could see Senzel and Fraley sticking around.
The rotation is a bigger concern to me. For a while I assumed the Reds would bring in 1or 2 SP’s in free agency. Maybe just for familiarity, they do the old Ricky Henderson trick where the A’s seemed to trade him away and bring him back every other year, and they bring back Sonny Gray and/or Tyler Mahle. However, with Abbott’s success the expectations of the 2024 rotation is getting crowded.
When you break down the options you have.
1 Outside FA( I do think the Reds will bring in one.)
2 Greene
3 Abbott
4 Ashcraft
5 Lodolo
6 Phillips
7 Williamson
8 Lively
9 Stoudt
10 Dunn, Guittierez, Antone.
I think at this point I would be looking for quality over quantity. Don’t get me wrong I feel a lot of the Reds pitchers have potential. But hypothetically what would it take to flip Lodolo for say a Justin Steele. Lodolo might have more potential and is under team control for an extra year but Steele is more established and is 9-3 on Cubs. I don’t really know what else besides Lodolo the Reds would have to give to acquire Steele but that is the type of trade I think the Reds should be trying to make.
Imo, it’s all speculative guess work on my part. But I’m figuring that your 24 starting lineup is close to my assumptive one with the exception of Votto & how his remaining year pans out. I have a feeling that India gets swapped this upcoming offseason so that McLain can shift his shorter wingspan to 2nd base(as Larkin filtered out to us in a brief but calculated way), and they want EDLC’s length, range & cannon, pops better at short. Larkin also eluded to the next wave that’s coming. Likely Marte at 3rd, CES/1B/DH. Votto CES are both slow, likely precludes both together along with Tyler at a catcher’s speed. That leaves CES for a cheaper controllable option of the two, a platoon of 2 veterans a right & a lefty. I’ve got Marte, CES & Phillips as the 2nd wave for 24. Also gotta create opening for farm earned promotions to reward their efforts to show the high & low A guys that you hardworking pays off. Infuse your parent club with younger cheaper more controllabe player & purge out the still older but valuable assets, and the Reds still have a young team with, speed power, energy, crazy upside. There’s your young team that you let grow up together. Sign a FA #3 starter & an 8th inning stud that can also close for you.
The year of sorting has gone well & may lead us to a stepping playoff year that is vitally important to get a taste of the joy, fun, the stress as well. It’s a hugh maturation part of the process & where hard work gotten you & what you still need to work on , and leave that hungry taste in their mouth for the 2024 season. Then breaking in Marte & CES will be easier. Moving India in the off season will be easier & wax old.
I’ve never seen a 10-man rotation before 😉
I’m with you in that assessment Old School.
Shout out to @ GMR…How ya doin’?
4 feet of snow in March and historic floods in Vermont in July.
I’m fine, Old-school. Thanks for asking. My town came out of the flooding pretty well–basements flooded along the river and one road wrecked. I live 1000 feet above the river, so I’m lucky and have time to worry about Ludlow, Barre and Montpelier; they got devastated, and Ludlow has no road access to the outside world.
Glad you are ok. Mother nature is a beast.
Yes, agree – glad you’re doing okay GMR.
Thanks, Guys. That snow in March was kind of fun. This isn’t.
To me, these 3 represent the last of the untouchable prospects. In the right deal for controllable pitching, I’m listening on everyone else. But again, taking on salary in order to not part with prospects is the obvious move given the rock bottom payroll. The Reds are genuinely in a ridiculously favorable position to add talent w/o mortgaging the future. The trade deadline will tell us loud and clear if ownership finally got the message about being cheapskates.
At the same time, no one would consider the Padres or Mets to be cheapskates. Sometimes the money you don’t spend is better than the money you would have. Just food for thought.
That spending philosophy pretty much sums up the Cincinnati Reds over their long history with perhaps a couple exceptions.
Though not technically eligible, first round pick Rhett Lowder is a for sure top 100 prospect right now as soon as he signs. Still have 3 guys (4 when Lowder signs) on that list after all the graduations is a tremendous accomplishment for the Reds FO/Scouting department.
From what I liked to hear about Lowder. . .So many talk about the 100+ fastballs. But, then so many of those never make the majors because they can’t control it.
I like the pitchers who still might be able to get a little bit of zing on the ball but can locate every pitch they want and when. From what I’ve heard about Lowder, he’s that kind of pitcher.
+5,000
I don’t watch alot of stuff on our minor leaguers, but you have to like the trajectory of most of the kids we’ve been drafting with Krall. I think most of you might be rushing this Marte kid, but he’s not even 22 yet. I’m thinking 2025 for him. I’ve watched more on this Connor Phillips kid. He just turned 22 in May. He’s rushing it up there around 96 as a starter, so I’m thinking if they trust his control, then he could help in September out of the pen. He’d probably be at 98 and his breaking stuff is nasty so go out and let it rip for 30 pitches or so.
Finally, I’m tired of talking about it, but CES looks like the real deal to me. He kind of reminds me of Maglio Ordonez. I doubt he’ll be hitting .363 when he’s 33 years old, but he has a nice lift to his swing and hits to all fields. I think if he played regularly he’d lead the Reds in HRs atleast until Elly gets launch angle figured out.
And of course, CES playing half the season in GABP should be a positive.
Is there really such a thing as RUSHING a player if he shows he can play?
EDLC is in the majors at 21, and McLain is only 23.
And both of them played less than 40 total games in AAA.
And their best pitcher (Abbott) only had 7 starts in AAA before getting the call up.
“Rushing” those guys seems to be working out well.
Yes, there is such a thing as rushing. I give you Ricky Karcher, who has walked eleventy-billion batters in his minor league career but kept getting promoted despite it.
To clarify, I didn’t mean a specific example of one being rushed. There are clearly examples of rushed players. One could argue Barrero was rushed to the majors.
I meant as a “rule of thumb” – that a player needs to play a certain # of games at AAA, or reach a certain age, before being promoted, or else that player has been “rushed”.
The original comment which I was replying to was one which argued Marte was being rushed because he was only 22. And my point, by showing examples, was that there is no such thing as being rushed based on some arbitrary age or # of games. But it is on a case-by-case basis.
Well with Marte his numbers are only solid, especially when you consider that Matt Reynolds is Jeff Kent in AAA. Haven’t looked but weren’t McLain’s #s similar at 21-22? Let him develop. Scouts I’ve read said Marte won’t be a star, but I’m sure they said the same with Steer and Freidl
Marte in AA is 21years old with a .281/.356/.464/.820. Lg Avg is 23.7 years old with a .238/.340/.399/.739. I’d have to call that much better than solid.
I’m thinking the Reds should trade Marte BACK to Seattle for Luis Castillo. He signed a reasonable deal and we need a real ace and Seattle is awful. Marte has nowhere to play with us for the next 5 years, heck throw in the other prospects listed here too.
If Seattle offered (not likely to happen) Castillo for Marte it would be hard for me to pass it up.
Actually the M’s went 7-3 last 10 going into the break. They’re 6 behind Texas and only 4 behind for the last wildcard. Thats part of the problem…very few teams are really out of it with this format
Yeah I know. I’d like to have Castillo back though.
Sure I would offer Marte back to Seattle for Castillo. Problem is, Seattle gave us Marte, Arroyo, Stoudt, and Andrew Moore for him. Castillo is also controlled for several more years than he was when seattle traded for him. They would want substantially more than just Marte for him.
One thing in our favor is that they owe him a lot more money than the Reds did although the contract is pretty team friendly for what he gives relatively speaking. Having said that they’re not going to trade him.
Good comp although that wasn’t your intent. Something like a #3, #5, and #10 prospect for a perennial All Star level pitcher with 1.5 years of control. I am in. Now you qualifies as the pitcher. Mitch Keller of the Pirates has another 1.5 years of control. Something like Collier, Richardson, and Hinds? That just gets you 1.5 years but that may actually be an ideal fit considering the pipeline. The Mariners had to pay for Castillo and their playoff chase of 2022.
There are times I think Tyler Stephenson may be the odd man out in both the infield rotation and starting nine, as opposed to India as often suggested.
I’m guessing Stephenson’s catching defense is about what we will see for the next several years. And he is clearly not the top defender we have, or likely will have.
India’s defense isn’t stellar by any means, either, whereas McLain and Elly have high level defensive skills for middle infield and more. It seems like India as well as Steer, however, may be more successful with a defensive position switch than Stephenson, ie to 3B, 1B or a corner OF spot. The same is likely true of Marte and CES in the not distant future.
Stephenson’s value is as a good hitting catcher, vs a light hitting 1B. Realistically, backup catching and DH may be where he tops out. And I’m fine with that, as these young pitchers truly need a strong catcher such as Maile behind the dish. It just may not play out to a big contract for Stephenson, though. And that may make him a greater trade candidate over India.
In essence, this would mean an infield of a defensive catcher such as Maile, CES, MCLain, EDLC and Marte (5), and an OFDH group of Steer, Benson, Friedl, Fraley and India (5), with a bench of a catcher and a pair of backup middle/corner infielders (3), say Robinson, Newman and Arroyo.
Clarification: Stephenson becomes the top trade chip because he becomes more expensive yet doesn’t provide the defensive value required of the catching position. If he stays a reasonably priced good hitting backup catcher/DH, that may change his value to the team. But I wouldn’t be looking at a lower paycheck as I climbed the ladder, and I doubt he would either.
I don’t disagree with 1 thing @DaveCt. The problem is that league average catching seems to be very hard for our Reds to find and/or develop. Once we have it, it is really hard to give it up.
Whereas good second baseman are more plentiful and we seem to have several coming up. I think its India who will eventually go but it won’t be during this season and it will be a gut-punch to the existing players.
You’re likely correct, that India departs before or instead of Stephenson. Or they may both price themselves out of Cincinnati at the same time, which would be fine by me. I will never begrudge anyone trying to get their payday. But the overpay is where teams run into trouble all the time (with this much talent, we should be able to avoid overpays). Pitch-Com is going to change the catcher position more than we can probably imagine, anyway. The Yadier Molina ‘handling the staff’ ability will probably become a lost art.
An aside, Molina never bothered me one bit. Any Reds fan would have loved having him on their team. Guy could reach so far into people’s heads it was amazing.
Its a big 2nd half for India’s future. He’s a big part of the team emotionally, but he’s got to pick up his production. Personally, I’d like to add CES and run with all of them next season. Pickup up a quality starter and co-closer type at some point and bring them back next year. All the pieces should be there!
Whether we keep India or not I’d personally like to see a lineup often of:
EDLC
McLain
Steer
CES
All rookies at the top.
Wow and just think Stepheson was the next big thing after they traded a defensive catcher in Barnhart.
Now a year later Stephenson “isn’t good” according to some. Needs traded and all of sudden sits as a backup. Hysterical…
Once again taking a cynical, 20/20 hindsight position, setting up a straw man based on a hypothetical ‘someone once said…’ so you can pose as the real expert.
Barnhart was let loose as his salary was creeping above his declining performance, plain and simple.
Stephenson was always lauded for his bat and his defensive skills were secondary.
But of course you don’t remember that.
Now that Stephenson is catching less often, and his relative defensive liabilities are more apparent, folks are reconsidering his overall contributions.
He isn’t hitting as expected…still recovering from injury?…and better DH options are available.
But of course that means nothing to you, if you have another opportunity to make a snarky rhetorical comment and cluck away at your clever ‘insight’.
The important thing to you, apparently, is that no opinions or observations are ever allowed to change or adjust to circumstance.
Nothing much to add to Harry, here, other than the observation of how much has in fact changed for the positive in a very short amount of time. So much so, that there is ample talk of moving one or both of India and Stephenson as they approach their arbitration years rather than free agency.
@Harry, I have opinions just like everyone. And far from a expert. ALSO your attacks at my comments is getting old so knock it off.
Trying to be nice to you doesn’t work, so seriously don’t comment on my stuff. If all your going to do is act like a asshole
Defensively Stephenson is average to slightly below average according to Statcast metrics. He’s just below average in blocking and framing, above average for pop time, and has an average arm. The defensive metrics don’t paint a picture that Stephenson is a defensive liability.
Maile and Casali are above average across the board, but neither is elite defensively.
Offensively, Stephenson is slightly above league average and trending up (as one may expect the further he gets from shoulder surgery). Maile is below average as a hitter and Casali is sniffing dust with the lizards–neither is trending in a positive direction either.
The Reds have to be pleased to have a league-average catcher as their QB1. Doug rated the catching position in the Reds minors as an “F” in the offseason. Since then, we’ve added Duno (a 16-year-old in the DSL and years away), and Chuckie Robinson has hit well at AAA after resigning as a MiLB free agent. In short, catcher is still a thin position on the Red’s farm.
Given the totality of the situation, the Reds are unlikely looking to move Stephenson. In fact, his playing time as a catcher has been increasing as his offensive production has increased. The backup catcher is a bit of a weakness. Perhaps Robinson offers a future upgrade.
Imho Reds should use Senzel and Newman as trade bait for a veteran starter that can give us innings. I absolutely would not move India. Whether you think he has a future with the Reds or not isn’t relevant to this season; Redsvol’s last comment is dead on, and what this team is doing this season is magic!
As far as I’m concerned that’s fine with me. I don’t particularly want to lose India either. Would much rather lose Senzel and Newman. Who knows what’s going to happen though? I’d rather lose India than CES though I think if I had to make a choice.
Don’t see either of those guys having enough value to justify someone giving up starting pitching. Neither is particularly young, so only a contender would want them, but they probably wouldn’t want to part with pitching. Barrero could entice someone who thinks he still has some development potential, but Arroyo is still the premier trade chip the Reds have in my opinion.
“Arroyo is still the premier trade chip the Reds have in my opinion.”
Probably right.
If they did trade Arroyo, what starting pitcher would he bring back?
Newman and/or senzel are not bringing back much value on trade. Certainly not a starting pitching that has any value to us.
Agree.
Newman and Senzel are much more valuable as role players for the Reds versus what we could likely trade them for.
“Hey man, I’ll trade you my raw broccoli for your fries.”
“No, that’s stupid.”
“What if I throw in this unwrapped stick of gum in my pocket?”
Ain’t the trade deadline fun?
I’m looking for information so if we have a infield,and Minor league infielders could we nt use Senzel for pitcher BAIT?
He’s not young and often injured. He might still hit lefties or help out, but he’s a throw-in on a trade at best.
The question is what happens if Votto keeps banging away like this? Good problem to have, but Benson, Freidl, and Fraley are rock solid and that leaves Steer, Joey, and CES for 1B/DH? Something would have to give? Many on RLN mention Fraley, but do we want to give up .914 ops vs righties? He hits with 2 outs too!
I’m not trading what I’m not sure I can replace.
@TRM>> Krall said last year that the plan was to build from with and attempt to sustain using the same philosophy. If he says true to the plan, the choices to trade are India, Stephenson, or Fraley whether now or in the off season because all 3 are arbitration eligible for 2024. Senzel fits too; but, as you noted, he is a throw in or sweetener at best.
I don’t subscribe to putting a lot of weight in a guy’s OPS handedness splits in determining his total value. I believe for comparative value, it is best to default to overall OPS. Why? Because with guys like Fraley, Newman, and Senzel with severely skewed splits, the overall OPS serves as a measure of the real world effectiveness of protecting the player from his weakside deficiency.
Fraley’s current overall OPS/OPS+ is .837/120 which makes him a valuable player. However, that is 7th best OPS of the Reds among the guys starting every day or as a platoon player vs RH pitching. More notably he is only the 5th best LH hitter among this group (counting the switch hitter EDLC as an LH hitter for this purpose). Based on CES’s numbers at AAA there is every reason to believe he will match or exceed Fraley’s performance, including versus exclusively versus RH pitching.
But Fraley is an outfielder, which we have little depth. I know we have Fairchild, but he’s my #4 outfielder, not a starter. The only one I consider trading from those three is India.
@chad> Steer to LF Benson to RF (Senzel as platoon if needed). CES/Votto 1b/DH.
Didn’t want to muddy the waters, but Fairchild’s overall MLB OPS is just a tick lower than India’s (.750/.743) and better than Stephenson (.713), Newman (.693), and Senzel (.691). He really is the square peg in a Reds round hole system.
SF was thriving as nearly an everyday player in the ~month before he was sent down because the roster crunch came down to him or Benson who was doing even better. I don’t think it is unrealistic that SF would come close to or match his OPS/OPS+ for 2022 of .800/116 (~110PAs) in that situation or as a traditional “4th OF” who gets around 400PAs a season and isn’t pulled mid game because of a platoon match up. The Reds would be doing both themselves and SF a favor to move him to an organization which would use him that way.
@Jim, as the Red’s lineup has stabilized, Fraley’s PAs vs. LHP are only coming in low-leverage situations. The current roster gives them the flexibility to minimize PAs for our split-heavy guys that didn’t exist during the season’s first two months. While I believe Steer can make a fine OF in the future, he simply doesn’t have the reps to replace Fraley in the OF right now if CES were to take over 1B. After an offseason of prep, he should be there.
From a production standpoint, moving India is obvious. Not being in the clubhouse, it’s difficult to know what moving India would do for the team’s chemistry. Would they be glad the team addressed the most pressing need, or would the very young players lose cohesion as the “glue guy” had departed?
I think this is one of those agree to disagree situations.
I think Fraley’s handedness is huge weapon. He starts against all righties and is an amazing bullet to fire off the bench when a lefty starts.
That strategy has won us several games this year.
Moving Steer permanently to outfield then leaves an open spot in the infield/DH rotation that’s currently in place. CES could fill that, but Reds don’t seem to be in hurry to bring him up.
The Reds should be both in a ‘win now’ and ‘win next few years’ mindset. You can have it both ways. We’re rich with infielders, but only have three true starting outfielders. All three OF are performing well to very well and all under team control for several years.
Either way, it’s so much more fun to debate these kind of topics versus everything that went on last year.
A couple points on Fraley:
1.) Usage
The Reds are using Fraley specifically as a lefty at bat against righties in the heart of the order. He doesn’t play against lefties, nor should he. Fraley has 21 AB’s against lefties since May 1 and 9 Ab’s against lefties since June 1. Fraley is averaging 2 at bats per week against left handed pitching and those are low leverage at bats.
2.) Handedness
Handedness matters because 75% of pitchers are RH. IF it were 50/50 then widely disparate handedness splits would matter. But they arent. Because Jake Fraley is on the strong side of the platoon, he is a weapon in the Reds order against good righties. Most hitters have some degrees of splits but the number of players that hit righties and lefties well above average are few and most were playing Tuesday night in Seattle. Even RLN favorite Stuart Fairchild actually has some modest handedness splits. Against righties, he is well below average. Fairchild has a career OPS of .714 and wRC+ of 91. HIs 2023 numbers are even wider with a wRC+ of 85 against righties.
3.) Production
Fraley is raking since the 2022 AS break against RH pitching. His wRC + is 145. His OPS is .915. In over 400 PA’s, his slash line is .302/.390/.525/915
He has 21 home runs 70 RBI’s. Those are Silver Slugger level numbers coming from corner OF. You simply slide Senzel or Steer or Fairchild in for him against lefties as the Reds are doing and the offensive output coming out of the corner OF spot is immense.
Keep Fraley where he is in the 5 hole as a big time run producer with the high octane jackrabbits in front of him.
Does anyone think we will see any roster changes before the Brewers series starts on Friday? Jim, Doug, any rumors floating? I would expect at least one change, but I predict if there aren’t any, then there will not be, until the Sept. call-ups unless a trade is made or an injury happens. If I were calling the shots, I would make a big announcement that people have been waiting to hear in order to help put butts in the seats for the big series this weekend. Crowds are going to be good anyway, but sellouts would be awesome. End the catcher madness!!! Time for “Coach Casali” to give us his best “Crash Davis” impression and start his second career.
I thought the Reds were waiting for the AS break to end the three catcher experiment and likely bring up Fairchild. I hope I’m right.
Typically I think they have come together as a team on the Thursday following the AS game to assess that everyone is accounted for and that nobody has injuries or illnesses and also in some years do a light workout. However, I have not seen anything yet.
Certainly, if any planned call ups were in the works, I’d think the guy(s) would be in place today unless there is some CBA provision regarding the earliest mandatory reporting time. Louisville reopens at home too (Friday); so getting someone to Cincy for an unanticipated call up should not be that much of an issue.
‘Coach Casali’ sounds good to me. In training for eventual field management.
As an exercise with no actual value, what could could the Reds get in return for a package of Hector Rodriquez and Jose Acuna?
Please do not take this as an endorsement, because I would be very hard press the part with either of those players. But it is kind of fun to think what we could get for what is in essence two months of Tyler Naquin.
I’ve been beating the drum on what a great deal this has been, and could be. Just raising the question you pose shows how good it is so far – i.e. how much more could the Reds get today by trading them (hint – a lot more than 2 months of Naquin)?
Tyler Naquin
Just read a article from sports page of the enquirer. A excellent writer up about Votto and what he brings to the team. The over all value he brings .
Ashcraft – Friday
Abbott – Saturday
Lively – Sunday
As per listed on ESPN
I’m shocked the Brewers aren’t pitching Wade Miley against us after his last start.
Wade Miley is with his 8th. ML team at the age of 36. I’m still confused why the Reds got rid of him after he went 12-7 in 2021. He was probably asking too much money for an ‘old guy.’
So Milw has announced their starters then? Burnes, Peralta, and Houser/Rea?
Burnes, Peralta, and Houser per MLB
Why would Miley skip the Reds? Maybe he’s dinged up again?
They just smacked Rea around pretty good
Teheran – 6.23 era in Gabp over 17 innings
Houser – 5.36 era in Gabp over 43 innings
I’ll take any of those guys over Miley any day of the week
Wish they would cause he got these young hitters last time and no way that soft stuff works the next time and not at GABP.Counsell is way to smart for that.
Actually Miley has been 93-94 mph the last few times I’ve watched him. Atleast as hard as our lefties. He has good #s vs Joey and they won’t bring up CES. Trust me we’re better off with these righties
Mentioned this on another post the other day, but it will be interesting to see what the Twins do the remainder of the month. Do they continue to try to win the worst division in baseball as they sit 0.5 game back of the first place Guardians and a game under .500? Or do they look to 2024 instead and trade off impending free agents- specifically Sonny Gray?
A team pretty much can’t sell when it is .5 games out. I think that they will try to extend Sonny Gray.
That’s the thing…I think it depends what happens in the next 2.5 weeks. If they fall 5-6 games below .500, does it make sense to keep him? Would Gray even sign an extension there or want to go back to free agency?
They have 16 games to play, assuming August 31 (a Monday) is the deadline. Six of those are against Oakland and Kansas City, with 3 more against the White Sox, who are expected to be tanking.
So, they could go 5-11 in those games, but they probably won’t.
Outside of the obvious, seeing Sonny Gray pitching his heart out every fifth day again would be fine by me.
How do you think we would react if the Reds were 0.5 game back — heck, even 3 or 4 games back — with 2 months left and they packed it in on the season? “Sell the team, Bob” would be back in full force.
I think you gotta play out the hand in that position.
Wouldn’t it be great to see CES hitting behind ELDC starting this Friday?Last piece to the puzzle and this offense explodes to even greater heights.First time he hits one out of the stadium,play off tickets get printed.GO REDS
I’ve given up hope of seeing the “one whose name can’t be spoken” until September. I pray that I am wrong, but I can’t help but to think the FO must know something that we don’t. Everything else just defies logic. I think it either Friday or September… Hope it’s Friday.
Well I don’t know that they know but there are a few things that we all know. Those are that he’s hitting .321/.392/.620 with 20 HRs and 58 RBI. Those are undeniable facts.
@melvin And that he hits virtually the same OPS from both sides of the plate. No platoon razzmatazz or overhead for a platoon partner required to enjoy his performance
Yeah Jim. I prefer real “EVERY DAY” players if I have a choice without platooning. It’s much better from a standpoint too that is doesn’t matter what hand of pitcher a manager may bring in or start. Just makes more sense in a lot of ways. I too like Fraley a lot for example but if I had to make a choice between him or CES it would be CES for sure.
Agree, I like and prefer everyday players. But a team with the payroll such as Reds must take advantage of platooning.
CES is not coming to the Reds to play outfield, so preferring him over Fraley won’t help much.
wkuchad – It’s true he doesn’t play outfield, at least not much yet anyway. However he doesn’t have to. For example you could have a lineup of something like this on a regular basis if in fact Fraley is gone for whatever reason.
EDLC 3B
McLain SS
Steer LF
CES 1B
Votto DH
Stephenson C
India 2B
Benson RF
Friedl CF
None of those guys need a platoon partner in my view. Not saying I’m campaigning to trade Fraley necessarily. He has a lot of value. There are ways to make it work for all of them.
I put a decent chunk on Reds Over 83.5. The September schedule is very favorable and the home crowds should be good. As long as they hang in there with Milw, SF, and Arizona. They should on paper atleast.
Anyone catch the smack Corbin Burnes said about the Reds
Basically said “The Reds are more then just 1 starting pitcher away”
Like they have some kind of a juggernaut or something. Reality is they’re 6 hitters away from winning a playoff series.
He’s not wrong. Hoping Greene and Lodolo both come back healthy and effective in August while adding nothing would be foolish. You can’t go into any postseason series with the top three rotation members being Abbott, Ashcraft, and Lively and hope for any success. You need a healthy and effective Greene and Lodolo. Preferably you have those two, Abbott, and a Gray/Bieber/Cease-type ace.
No, he’s not wrong, but its not his place to s talk their main competition either. Their lineup is terrible and its not like Burnes and Peralta are both tearing it up this year. Idk when/if Woodruff gets back, but they’ve got 6 each with Atlanta & Philly + another 7 with Miami in the 2H. I also like our chances to improve by trade better then theirs. We have more prospects to deal and we have a ton of $ coming off the books next year which helps higher costs this year. Elly is going to fill up the seats too
Milwaukee thinks they have our number. So far they do. We have to reverse that.
The only guy in the rotation that has 100% team wins in his starts is Weaver. Regardless of the reason that is impressive but he never gets mentioned positively.
MK, I, for one, appreciate Weaver. He’s got a gamer mentality, if not the stuff to go 6 innings. I thinks once we return to semi full strength starters, he goes to the pen and becomes a good 2-3 inning bridge to the 7th and 8th innings. One time through the lineup, he’ll be just fine.
In somewhat related news, Jim Callis at MLB.com ranks the Reds as having the best draft haul in all of baseball
I’m not sure how long Nick Krall is under contract with the Reds, but I have to think that he is getting on the radar of some big market teams with what he has done here in the last few years.
From FANSIDED – just one of many ideas out there.
https://blogredmachine.com/posts/reds-aroldis-chapman-off-board-royals-reliever-scott-barlow-on-radar?utm_campaign=FanSided+Daily&utm_source=FanSided+Daily&utm_medium=email&sc=c3a8b03aa4675c74ec4c35e25be58c93e3c61b5ef7e6fc8f70a8923b59647687
I’d rather get Graveman or Middleton from the White Sox. When Graveman’s on it’s almost impossible to get the ball in the air
India dropped to the 5 hole. Fraley up to 3.
Steer in LF against a righty, Fraley at DH.
At OS>>> You know what 1 change from this would satisfy me 😉
And for now, I’d be OK with the 3rd catcher going to open the spot for CES and the guy removed would become the traditional LH hitting bench bat for use in leverage situations when he was guaranteed to face a RH pitcher. I’d also swap Newman or Senzel out for a true OF to work off the bench regardless of handedness.
I am all for finding a new role for Casali off the 26 man and finding another destination for Newman who has provided value, but at this juncture and on this team, he has no role and upgrades for a playoff run abound. CES could help with power and a good righty bat and Fairchild could help with a righty bat and outfield speed and depth.
I love Votto as a power hitting lefty 6 hole hitter for now. I dont love him as a baserunner, regular first baseman or regular hitter against lefties. That will be the interesting tell on CES. If Votto is playing everyday against lefties, then CES is regrettably blocked, regardless of the 3 headed catcher.