The Cincinnati Reds have made a trade this afternoon, acquiring Ke’Bryan Hayes from the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Reds are sending #10 prospect Sammy Stafura and big league reliever Taylor Rogers to the Pirates in return as reported by Jeff Passan of ESPN.
Update (4:30pm ET):
The trade is now official. And the Cincinnati Reds are also sending an undisclosed amount of money to Pittsburgh in the deal. (original story continues below)
Earlier today we covered some of the trade rumors that involved Cincinnati and one of the players happened to be Ke’Bryan Hayes. He fell into the confusing part of that article because the Cincinnati Reds are in desparate need of offense and Ky’Bryan Hayes has had both an on-base percentage and a slugging percentage under the .300 mark in each of the last two seasons. At no point in his career aside from a 24-game stretch in 2020 as a rookie has he ever gotten on base as a big leaguer. And he’s never really hit for power – only hitting more than seven home runs in a season one time. You can see his career stats here.
What Hayes does do well is play defense. He’s an elite defender at third base. But he hits like a bench player and should be used as a bench player. Which is why it’s all the more confusing that the team not only gave up a top 10 prospect for him in shortstop Sammy Stafura, but also a big league reliever in Taylor Rogers, while also committing at least $36,000,0000 to a guy who can’t hit the ball out of the infield or get on base.
The deal seems like both a poor use of limited financial resources as well as a poor use of your prospect stable, even if the Reds do and continue to have a lot of shortstop prospects.
Hayes is under contract through the 2029 season. He is owed $7,000,000 in both 2026 and 2027 (and in 2025 at a pro-rated level), and then $8,000,000 for both 2028 and 2029. In 2030 there is a team option for $12,000,000 and a buyout for $6,000,000.
That’s a lot of money for a guy who should almost never be in your starting lineup. Perhaps Hayes can turn things around and become a hitter that he’s never shown himself to be. But you shouldn’t trade for that guy. You should trade for the guy that he is – which is a guy who has two straight seasons where he’s had a sub .575 OPS.
It’s not often you can make a trade of a prospect for an MLB player that makes your lineup and your bullpen worse
Rogers had a shiny ERA. But he also allowed a billion inherited runners to score on his watch (15 of 26). He wasn’t nearly as good as looking at his ERA suggests when it comes to run prevention.
Fair enough on Rogers, but it’s not like Luis Mey has been much better.
And Hayes still can’t hit.
Rogers was not very good at all and seemed to struggle with LH hitters.
I was curious about his 184 ERA+ despite being somewhat ineffective as a reliever.
You’ve hit rock bottom as an organization when you allow yourself to be fleeced by the the Pirates.
Stafura is my 12th ranked Reds prospect, but this is still a wild over pay.
Sell. Sell now.
Trade Pagan, Martinez, Barlow, Hays. Listen on Stephenson and Lodolo if the return is good enough. Lodolo’s trade value will never be higher than right now.
Maybe they are flipping Hayes tonight or tomorrow?
Please oh please, let that be true.
That would be the ONLY way this would make sense. Who else would want him? The Pirates were trying to unload the rest of his contract.
That’s the only thing that would make sense. We have a great defensive bench player in Espinal. What I don’t get is the Taylor Rogers thing. Why give up a half decent bullpen piece. This trade makes no sense top to bottom.
To whom for what? Why wouldn’t the team who wanted him trade for him directly? Maybe there’s deal in the works for a slugger, but do we really believe that? and where would he play?
The Reds literally could have extended Austin Hayes for two more years at $38M, maybe even less. Otherwise, they could still put a qualifying offer on him for around $20M. This would make a huge difference vs Hayes who is being paid $38M as a negative except as bench player for 3B defense.
This x 1,000,000. Any FA at the end of the season should be on the block. Lodolo would require a big package in return.
Based on this trade, I wouldn’t trust this Front Office do anything though.
Why would you trust the Reds to get a haul in return for Lodolo when you see what they got in this trade?
Somewhat agree. If Reds aren’t going to add w/ Elly & some of the best young pitching they’ve had in yrs, they never will w/ this ownership group !!
Geno was always going to b too expensive, but I felt a guy like Naylor zCould have really helped w/ a 3-5 yr plan.
Boston is searching for a first baseman. Steer / CES might have been packaged for Abreu or even Casas? Baltimore has had Catcher injuries all yr. Could a Stephenson package have returned their young – power hitting – C/1B Basallo?
All LH Power hitting type guys Reds truly lack & need. I’m afraid Tyler & Spencer will never b 30+ HR guys the team needs
These are not remotely plausible ideas.
ugh…
Going from losing last night’s very winnable game to making this trade today. As we all know, it can be quite frustrating to be a Reds fan.
I really don’t understand this trade.
Is Nick getting a new job for the Pie-rats?
Does he care about winning, seems not.
Incompetent at his job …. Unbelievably stupid move
I haven’t commented on here in probably 5 years but this trade has forced me to. What in the wide world of sports were the reds thinking why make this trade. This looks like it will turn out awful. Also how does a weak hitter help a team in need of a good hitter.
This is a dud move. The Reds should have had an established power hitter, going into the season. Candelario flopping along with other mediocre bats have us with not much beyond Elly.
Candy II. Cmon football….get here already. This is insane
Dude can’t hit and we’re on the hook for a ton which will freeze add-ons for the offseason. He’s 28? Its not like he’s a young kid that could blossom like Marte
It’s probably worse than Candy: at the time of the trade he was in the neighborhood of being an average hitter and had some power. Is this in the “let’s do something even if it’s wrong” category?
Agree and yes
Is the Reds FO collectively on drugs? We already have this guy- Espinal. And you trade a decent reliever AND a top prospect. ?
That was my thought. Hayes seems redundant to me when we already have a light hitting defense focused 3B that I hate to see in the lineup. I’m guessing Hayes is better at defense, but is the difference enough to give up a top 10 prospect? Or do we just feel sorry for the Pirates and want to help them not be terrible anymore?
My exact thought as well. Espinal can already play 3B strong defense and hit even better than Hayes. And he’s cheaper. And he didn’t cost a top prospect. Now they sure don’t fit on the same roster. What a disaster
Not that I think the trade was a good deal, but Espinal is nowhere, and I mean nowhere as good of a defensive 3rd baseman as Hayes. Hayes is thought of as perhaps the best defender in all of baseball and not just the best defensive 3rd baseman. His outs above replacement and defensive metrics are insane. Make no doubt about it, this team needs hitting and preferably a power hitter who also hits for average, but Hayes will give you the best defensive 3rd baseman in the game. Trade is still head-scratching, and we overpaid with a top 10 prospect unless Hayes all the sudden hits like he did for the first month of his mlb career.
Looks like Reds want to rely on pitching and defense to try to get to the playoffs unless more is brewing on the Kwan or Laureano trade front. It will be very interesting these next 27 hours.
They must also have confidence in Marte in RF as he is starting there batting 5th today.
Friedl should be back soon, so it seems like an OF or 2 may be used in a trade.
Unless he is injured or needs an off day, Marte should start every game in RF the rest of the season. Let Fraley play LF and Hays DH.
Agree Duke!
Yes this makes Marte the permanent RF (a good thing) and relegates Espinal to the bench (a good thing) and improves defense at 3b (a good thing). It does not help the offense much since it’s essentially a lateral move from Espinal to Hayes. I’m not excited about the trade either but I don’t totally understand the degree of pessimism. If Hayes can revert to being a “below average” hitter instead of “abysmal,” he is a very valuable player for a while. That’s the bet. We’ll see.
Espinal is better than Hayes, hits way better, and strong defense as well. And you gave up a top 10 prospect to get a player you already had. The prospect could have been used to get that closer or strong hitting outfielder the team actually needs. And Espinal is way cheaper than Hayes. The $9.5M a year they are paying Hayes could also bring a really good reliever or solid outfielder in free agency next year as well. So you’ve essentially used the money and prospect of two solid players to be acquired to only downgrade or add another duplicate bench player.
Espinal is not better than Hayes. Use any metric you like. Espinal is a competent defender at third, Hayes is elite. And Hayes costs 7.5m /yr, not 9.5. Everyone needs a reality check.
This is so disheartening. A massive let-down that makes little sense for this team. The Reds need a guy who can reliably hit and drive in runs, so they go out and get… a guy who can do neither.
Doug, if you can’t explain it… Unless this is a prelude to a bigger deal, then Krall simply proved he isn’t the guy to build a winning team.
Don’t see how any subsequent trades will make this one make sense.
+1000
“then Krall simply proved he isn’t the guy to build a winning team.”
Understatement of the year.
I thought Espinal was our weak-hitting, defensive savant at 3rd?
Can’t have too many of those.
Krall probably wants to move Hayes to SS. Unbelievable trade even for him.
Current wRC+: 57. Last year: 59.
Current fWAR: 0.8
Not exactly that middle of the order bat you want.
This is a head scratcher. How aggravating!
He’s not even an end of the order bat.
Is Hayes going to platoon? Marte regular RF/DH now? Who does Hayes squeeze out Lux or Fraley? They’re both destroying his offensive production. And 35-40 mil on the hook. What are they thinking?
Maybe now Marte’s in the package to land Kwan. (vomits into hat)
Or Sal Stewart? Hard to understand giving up Stafura for this deal. Arrgghhh.
I know it’s not April 1st, so this isn’t an April Fool’s Day joke but wish it was. Horrible trade. I thought we were looking to upgrade bats not downgrade. Wow.
If one didn’t know better you’d think Krall is TRYING to get fired. lol
“That’s a lot of money for a guy who should almost never be in your starting lineup.”
Agreed. And the sad thing is he’ll end up starting because we overpaid for him.
And in a couple years he’ll be released just like Candelario was, and Krall will have egg on his face yet again.
Gold Glover Ke’bryan Hayes in May-July of this year:
.230 BA / .265 OBP / .280 SLG
KH career vs LHP
.280 BA
.770 OPS
KH 2024 vs LHP
.310 BA
.850 OPS
KH 2025 vs LHP
.205 BA
.475 OPS
He is either injured, or he has lost something that Tito and Chris Valaika better help him find.
Start him the rest of this season, sure, just trade Hays, Pagan, Martinez, and Barlow first. Listen on Stephenson and Lodolo too.
Trading Lodolo is a terrible idea. I am surprised how many on here keep suggesting it.
KH deal is absurd. Should have gotten Reynolds.
I think the front office has lost something…
I’d start with their minds, what in the world are they thinking? Makes me want leather pants back
In his last 80 ABs, he’s at .200/.210/.238 with zero dingers, 19 Ks and 1 BB.
I’m convinced that the Castellini’s and Krall hate the people of the greater Cincinnati area.
In exchange for $30MM in salary, a decent prospect, and a good reliever from an already suspect bullpen, the Reds receive a guy that can’t do much else but play defense.
I sure hope there are some promising moves forthcoming because this is lame.
This trade will go down as one of the worst ever made by Cincinnati, which has a high bar.
Taking this contract in its entirety, and noting his downward trend offensively, let alone questioning his back issues an ability to play 140 games, (which he has never done in his career) leaves me ill. And we also traded prospect and MLB player?
Christmas came early for the Pirates.
I’m sure his glove is elite, but offensively, we just picked up another more expensive Espinal. Wow, just wow.
Perfectly said.
100 percent agree. Not only does this not help us this year but it further hamstrings us for years to come. This is a fireable offense for doing this to our “current window”
I mean, we traded away Frank Robinson, so agree that it’s a pretty high bar. I’m not sure this is worse than the Aroldis Chapman deal. But it’s bad.
It makes no sense on any level. The Reds will be paying this guy for the next five years. He is no better than Espinal, who is cheaper. The Reds also gave up a bullpen arm, who while not great, is at least average. This trade does seem to weaken an already stressed group of relievers (and a left handed arm at that). Not to mention given up a top prospect.
So in short, this trade looks terrible in both the short and long term.
Stupid is as stupid does. Guess who looks stupid with this deal? Getting bested by the Pirates front office. How sad.
Blocks Stewart too.
Didn’t they already have an elite defender on their roster who is actually hitting for a better average? I would love to be a fly on the wall in the Reds’ locker room to hear the players’ reaction. Maybe (fingers crossed) he is part of a deal for another player? Color me befuddled…
I won’t miss Rogers, he’s not been good. But yikes, another bad contract for years to come, limiting our payroll flexibility further. What value does Espinal have on the team now?
Maybe there will be another trade that will help this one make more sense. Don’t we have a couple young 3B pretty much ready for the show? (Marte/Stewart)
There is no comparison as to how much better it would have been to bring up Stewart.
I’m not mad at all. 3B is a problem, as is RF. Marte is now the RF, and we got a GG 3B. It cost us a really nice prospect that’s 3 years away from having a chance to help the Reds.
We’ll have to settle with just EDLC, McLain, Arroyo, Balcazar, Lewis, and Hall to cover SS.
3B is still a problem. You can’t start this guy with his bat. No one cares they traded the prospect, they care they traded a top 10 prospect for an expensive defensive replacement.
You can start him, he’s got a 1.2 WAR. That’s the 4th highest WAR on the team. Last year was a short year for KBH with 96 games and he had an 0.8 WAR.
He had a 4.0 WAR in 2023. Only EDLC has had a higher WAR on any 2020’s Reds team.
Sub .600 OPS doesnt seem to fit with this team, regardless how good his glove is. Exhibit 1 about the flaw of WAR in my opinion.
No way a sub .600 OPS should equate to a 4.3 WAR if that stat wants to hold any weight.
I’m not anti analytics by any means but sometimes they seem flawed. Like espn’s QBR in NFL. Sometimes it seems completely removed from traditional player metrics.
This comment section (and even Doug’s writeup to a lesser degree) is insane. Clamoring for the reds to buy buy buy at the deadline (when prices are highest and the team has a ~20% chance of even making the playoffs) and when they do, absolutely panicking. FWIW, fangraphs calling this a “no brainer” for the Reds and scratching their heads at the Pirates end of this deal. Stuff like this tells me at least certain corners of the Reds fan base has lost touch with reality and is just looking to kvetch on the internet.
I’m Ke’Bryan Hayes “plays the game the right way!!”
He is an excellent defensive third baseman.
He will have to be added to the 40 man, and the 26 man, so my guess is Connor Joe has to go…somewhere.
Also meaning that Noelvi Marte will be (likely) in RF most days. Or does he move to first base?
Dumping Taylor Rogers (pro-rated) salary for Hayes is likely about a push. I think Stafura was at Low A, which makes room for Tyson Lewis to play more SS there, as he was promoted to Low A.
Trade? Meh.
Does this also mean the Luis Mey is now up here for good, to fill Rogers spot in the BP?
Connor Joe getting DFA’d would be a silver lining to a dark dark dark cloud of this trade.
I agree. Connor Joe has not been productive.
Lewis is mostly playing short. Stafura had been moved to 2nd.
And DH, he’s been playing DH as much as SS in Daytona
Giants are paying Rogers’ salary, aren’t they?
Half.
From February:
https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/43813114/pirates-kebryan-hayes-reworks-swing-lower-back-issue
BRADENTON, Fla. — Ke’Bryan Hayes is not entirely pain-free and might never be “100%” again, but the Pittsburgh Pirates third baseman is confident he can get pretty close.
The 2023 Gold Glove winner was limited to just 97 games in 2024 because of a chronic lower back issue.
That’s….amazing. Pardon me while I pour a tall bourbon.
So, it still look like Nick is an ID10T.
What was he thinking. Let’s lose more games. We need a hitter, so lets get the worst one there is.
I hope they can find something in the physical and back out of this.
So, I’m guessing that Connor Joe sticks around until Greene is activated and soon. Otherwise, the Reds are down a pitcher. This trade is so senseless that there must be something big in the works – surely.
This front office gets ZERO benefit of the doubt. I may not watch or listen to another Reds game this year. I’ll get my baseball fix watching minor league ball.
I agree with most opinions. I would have called up Steward and moved Marte to right.
Doug, Do you think that the Reds are trying to get the 2023 version of Hayes were he had an OPS of 762?
I am sure they are, but there are no signs of that anymore.
Reds traded.for the 2nd worse offensive player in the league.
Have to move Matre to RF losing one of their better bats in Fraley.
And now have Hayes for 6 years in his decline years.
This feels like a Francona Move.
Does this point to Lux being on the move?
I have to think another move is coming. Maybe Marte being moved?
Hayes 106 career at-bats at Gabp. .264 w/4 HRs (.738 ops). Thats not horrible but still
If Marte replaced Steer then I could live with it. They seem committed to Steer and his 1 extra basehit in a month, but idk why? I know he’s hurt, but he wasn’t that great last year. Hayes could possibly pull off the .720 ops that Steer did last year
Hayes isn’t even the hitter he used to be and has a chronic back issue. There is zero reason to expect more offense from him except for maybe he lucks into an extra HR or two playing in GABP.
Of course this is what they chose to do. His .236 average and 2 home runs should be enough to get them into the playoffs. And the money owed? Good god. Nick Krall has no idea what he is doing and should never be in the position he is in. How much more proof does one need to see?
I swear this is Candy II. He was a C+ player ONCE so lets sign him up
I hate this just as much if not more than the Candy contract, and I ripped that deal from day one.
?
This is worse because the taste is still fresh in their mouths from the Candy deal. Not sure how anyone defends Krall or anyone in the front office. Believing in their results is all you need to do. Track the deals he has made: take a piece of paper, draw a line down the middle, jot the players traded on one side and the ones he received on the other. It’s laughable.
This is mindboggling. Makes ZERO SENSE.
I’m livid. And depressed.
Does this trade mean the Reds were BUYERS or SELLERS?
Buyers give away the future to get better now.
Sellers get worse in the present to hopefully improve in the future.
But this trade downgrades the Reds’ lineup in the present, and gives away future production at the same time…
It means we should SELL NOW
“But this trade downgrades the Reds’ lineup in the present, and gives away future production at the same time…”
Congratulations to Mr. Krall. He’s done both. lol I don’t care about Rogers but there are other teams that are basically DESPERATE for pitching who would have taken him in a better deal. It wouldn’t be too hard for it to be a better deal. lol
They sold a decent reliever and a top prospect to get a crummy player, I’d say they’re selling
Everyone’s heard of get-away-day. At this point, its give-away-day. How many bobbleheads where included?
I’m in the boat with all the folks calling this a prelude move. But prelude to what?? It seems like a massive overpay regardless give the salary the Reds have taken on.
MASSIVE overpay. Hayes is a terrible hitter. He’s nowhere NEAR average. He’s terrible.
He would’ve been a notably bad-hitting 3B in 1977 with those numbers – .234/.281/.290 with 6 HR over the last 2 seasons combined.
If this is just a prelude, I advise everyone to cover your eyes and ears for the main act.
lol Is this a nightmare or is the real?
Even if it is Jim, they gave a division rival a prospect and helped ease their payroll bloat by taking one of the worst contracts in the league off their books. They made the Pirates better anyway you look at it.
What In the world?! Why do we live in the worst timeline??? Ever since the Cubs won the World Series…..
The event that bumped the earth off its axis? Yes, I can see that.
Can we turn off the swear filter just for this thread?
Lol, I like it, not the filter but the trade. Is it an overpay? Yes, but it’s dealing from depth, and depth that’s buried aways away.
KBH has a 1.2 WAR this season, making him the 4th most valuable position player we have on the roster in 2025.
We’ll love that defense as we lose game after game 3-1.
Duke, Or 1 – 0, 1- 0, 1 – 0 like we did earlier this year.
Frustrated, but could not agree more.
Trusting “made up stats” is what got this organization to where its at in my opinion. The guy is hitting .236 with 2 home runs and has a bad back. I dont care about his WAR. Does WAR factor in his terrible contract too?
It factors in his elite defense
I don’t have a hemorrhage on the trade today as Rogers and Hayes salaries are a wash. What are you going to do with him next year when Sal Stewart is ready?
If he is now the fourth most valuable position player on Reds roster, that says far more about the roster than it says about his value.
What the !@#$%^&*()_+_)(*&^%$#@!
“WAR (Wins Above Replacement) is a baseball statistic that measures a player’s value by estimating how many more wins they contribute to their team compared to a replacement-level player.
It accounts for a player’s total contributions across various aspects of the game, including offense, defense, and baserunning for position players, and run prevention for pitchers.
2
The calculation involves comparing a player’s performance to that of a theoretical replacement player, who is a low-cost, readily available player from the minor leagues.
2
WAR is adjusted for the position of the player, meaning that players in more defensive positions, such as catchers and shortstops, receive higher WAR values due to the greater value they add to the team’s defense.
2
Different sources calculate WAR using various methods, such as FanGraphs’ fWAR or Baseball-Reference’s bWAR, which can lead to slight variations in the final value.
2
Overall, WAR serves as a comprehensive metric to evaluate a player’s overall impact on their team’s success.”
Maybe we can teach him to walk or get HBP more often. Just don’t swing. Ever. And lean over the plate a lot.
hahaha lol
WHAT. ON. EARTH.
How does this deal even pass the initial smell test? I mean, why would we even say, “Sure, let’s talk Ke’Bryan Hayes”?
This is awful. AWFUL. It seemed impossible but just gave up value – GOOD value – to make our hitting WORSE!!!
Sorry guys… I’m just flabbergasted.
Another dude they’ll be paying to play somewhere else….probably the El Paso Roughriders or Seoul Glitter Monsters
Savanah Bananas or somebody in the league they are said to be starting.
No rhyme or reason for this . It’s a lose lose trade . Now we’ve got about $25 million stuck on non -hitting 3rd baseman while trading a top 10 2cnd round pick with a 50 grade fv Santiago Espinal is a better hitter , who also plays good defense who’s already on your team .we could have used the money and prospect capitol for a need
Bringing up Sal Stewart would have been a lot better move created fan excitement. Instead of blocking him. This is just confusing as Doug said
For an organization that has been notoriously tight with the wallet, you would think the front office would find a better way to more wisely spend $30MM.
It’s not just about overspending for a guy that doesn’t bring much to to the table. It’s also about not having that $7-8 MM to spend on other areas that really need to be improved.
Think I mentioned last week that I had heard Reds Field staff were not as impressed with Stafura as the non on-field prospect evaluators. This move will give the Reds the right-handed hitting outfielder they have been looking for in Marte.
Getting a Gold Glove Major Leaguer for a prospect is agood deal, Anyone believing he will be a bench player is fooling themselves.
Your right the Reds would not have made this big time trade for a bench player cause they all ready have that in Espy.Hayes start at third .
But the biggest issue is the O. HE DOES NOT HELP at all.
No one is fooling themselves. We’re all sober enough at the moment to know that his sub .600 OPS will be in the lineup. Meanwhile, the FO hopes we the fans just see a new name in there and don’t notice his sub .600 OPS. Oh, did anyone mention he has a sub .600 OPS? That’s what makes us wanna NOT be sober: his sub .600 OPS.
Yes, the Reds don’t pay this type of money just to keep the bench warm. Never! So, pencil him in the lineup
Well he will be a bench player because he will blow his back out in a week
And the chronic back pain? Does that get better in the next few years since it’s chronic and he ages? This guy will get cut in 2 years and will be a loss of 15 million plus.
Doubt seriously it gets better. If you are 40 and have an office job maybe yes. A major league 3rd baseman? Doubt it very much. It ruined one of my favorite players from another team. Joe Crede from the 05 WS champion White Sox.
Stafura is young but I did notice, he has 180 strikeouts in 611 at-bats at low-A between ’24 and ’25. But also 115 walks in that same stretch (754 plate appearances).
We must remember trading guys like Taylor Trammell, Jeter Downs, and Josiah Gray caused a lot of consternation too. None likely to be a factor at the MLB level going forward.
That is a good call out, Matt McWax. all three of those guys appeared to be studs and none of them turned out.
Except we traded those guys for players who had value.
You called it, MK. There is likely a reason Stafura was not promoted and Balcazar/Lewis were, above and below. And there are short stops lined up back to 17 years old in the system behind Stafura ready to take his place.
More jocularities from our favorite FO, it seems.
Just about the time you think you have seen everything well you are reminded you haven’t.How do those guys keep their jobs?Don’t know how you could justify a trade like this at all.If the Pirates don’t think he is part of their plans which to be honest has to be set much lower then ours then we are insane to pick up the money or the player.
This seals the deal. Krall has got to go. It can’t be soon enough for me. The Pirates and the rest of MLB are laughing I’m sure.
We not only got fleeced, we got fleeced by the PIRATES of all teams.
Ke’Bryan Hayes plays third base like a human highlight reel… but only if the reel cuts off right before his at-bats. The glove? Gold. The bat? More like bronze on a good day, and plastic wiffleball on others.
He’s the kind of guy who’ll snag a 110-mph liner down the line, then follow it up by grounding out to the pitcher with a swing that looks like he’s just waking up from a nap.
Pirates fans kept waiting for his “breakout season” like it’s a Marvel post-credit scene — it’s teased every year but never actually showed up.
And let’s talk offense: He’s got pop in the bat… like, just enough to occasionally threaten a warning track flyout. Pitchers challenge him with fastballs down the middle because they know he’ll either foul it off or politely hand the ball to the second baseman.
In short, Ke’Bryan Hayes is the ultimate defensive wizard trapped in a “cleanup hitter’s” body — except someone forgot to install the offensive software.
C’mon, this is ChatGPT slop. At least put effort into posting here.
+1
Espinal says, “I’d like to make that kind of money. I’m just as good or better than this guy is”. lol
But Espy never hit 15 homers in a season. They say Pitt is the hardest place for right-handed batters to hit. Perhaps GABP will help Hayes out. If he turns things around, the trade will be a steal. But perhaps it’s his back which has limited his power.
Could’ve used that prospect to actually help get a player that can actually help the Reds. How can these guys get paid millions for these type of mistakes that any sensible baseball fan would know that this is not helpful
Selling high on Fraley I guess, low on Steer if thats where Marte goes? If they deal off Marte I’m done. I will absolutely walk away. I’m still not over dealing Josh Hamilton
No one is buying Fraley. He’s now just a bench OF for us.
Fraley hit that ball halfway up the sun deck last night and off a good pitcher. He’s a good platoon player…..with an injury history somewhat
Better then Conforto at this point
Not over dealing Josh Hamilton?
And I never got over Macho Grande! – Ted Stryker
i’ll say it again for the mouth breathers, but without profanity. This team is unserious about winning.
This trade is the latest example.
Well we know now why Krall doesn’t trade prospects. He doesn’t know what the crap he’s doing.
Makes me long for the days where he stood pat.
Just because you decide to jump into the trade foray doesn’t mean you will always come out ahead even in the short term.
Krall is a certified Castellini “Yes Man “ and has absolutely zero clue about being a Major League front office executive …. Utterly
embarrassing watching him both move after move after move . Any other owner that gave a crap would have sent him out the door on his keister by now ….
Meant watching him botch move after move after move …
Hayes (2024-25) – .234/.281/.290, 6 HR, 788 PA
Espinal (2024-25) – .248/.299/.330, 9 HR, 682 PA
I didn’t think this was possible, but Hayes is a POOR MAN’S Santiago Espinal!!!
What the absolute *%^%*()
Don’t worry though, we are paying poor mans Espinal four times as much as Espinal.
And Hayes is signed thru 2029!!!!!! We’re stuck with him for 4.5 more seasons!!!
I am so ticked off at this team…. what on earth………..
well the question now becomes what about Stewart. He is played almost exclusively at third this year.
But Doug has stated not good defensively (although some say he has improved).
Does Stewart now become the DH when he gets promoted?
KS>>> Stewart is probably a 1b or OF (LF if Marte is RF). Benson or Fraley is gone. Steer a short timer. Collier???? And they’d already decided they weren’t going to give Hinds a real look. Hopefully, they get something for him.
I came here to post this exact same thing. This is the craziest move I can remember in quite a while from not just the Reds, but from any time. As Duke said, the Front office managed to make the team offense, bullpen, and farm system all worse in one move. They better have another move in them and soon to help explain any part of this at all.
But he makes about double what Espy does, doesn’t he?
I personally wish to withhold judgement till after the deadline to see if there is another shoe to drop.
I’ll reserve comment too not to be classy but because I am so dumbfounded to even make a coherent response to this…gambit I guess.
Well that shoe that drops better mean Hayes going somewhere else. This is the kind of move that a team like the Dodgers would do who don’t care about money except they wouldn’t make it because they care about winning.
World Series, here we come
Ha ha! I just posted something similar to your prediction.
?
Look at the comment right after yours. Print those World Series tickets!
Print out those World Series tickets! It’s going to be a Red October after this huge move.
? was supposed to be a smiley face
Oh okay. Got ya!
“where else are you going to go??” Certainly not down to GABP 🙁
Is anyone else still high on Steer? Hayes could be the 3B version of him, but the $ committed is crazy?
Hayes as a hitter has really only had one season (.760 OPS) that was better than the disappointing season that Steer is having in 2025 (.680 OPS)
This is very tough to understand. Maybe it’s just the first of few more moves. It seems this is attending the 3B defensive problems but I think if Hayes continues hitting as of now, it does not make sense, Espinal can do the same at 3b and they are giving a top prospect for nothing even when Krall said they are reluctant to trade top prospects, it’s really so contradictory… I would take the idea of trading Stafura in a deal for another better player … this got the things worse right now…Hope something more comes to improve the team
I groaned when Tito pinch-hit Espinal for Fraley the other night. This screams for more of those sad times ahead.
Just the prelude for tonight’s sweep, can’t stand the aggravation.
The majority of our team can’t hit. Why are we trading for one more?
The trade we should have made with the pirates. Is trading general managers
The pirates obviously have a better 1. They just traded a constantly hurt non hitting 3rd baseman and his sunk contract of 36 million ( he might have gotten some advice from Boston about the Devers situation) just getting rid of him and contract was a win. But they added a top 10 2cnd round pick with 50 fv rating. Wow
Never thought I’d miss the days of JimBowden. 1995 he rebuilt the pitching staff in 10 days, acquiring Burba, Portugal and David Wells. Krall HAS to get pitching help before this is over.
Moustakas
Candelario
Hayes
The Reds sure seem to have a thing for paying bad hitting 3B’s to be on their roster.
@amdg
Reds are cursed since trading Suarez 🙂
… fireable offenses right there ….
Oh, man. Just saw this on @BaseballValues on Twitter:
Today the #Reds reportedly acquired 3B Ke’Bryan Hayes (-$8.9M surplus trade value) from the #Pirates in exchange for IF Sammy Stafura ($6.7M) and LHP Taylor Rogers (-$1.3M).
The deal is rejected by our model as an overpay by Cincinnati.
Traded for a guy with a bad back . This should go over real well.
If Bednar was thrown in I’d understand it, but cmon? Dude is under contract til 2030?
Why do they insist on continuing to pay guys that are long gone? Elly, HG, Chase….all gone the second they can get out
Agree. Bednar was a target I was looking at.
They got him for his glove.
I’m not at all saying that it was a good trade, but Tito and Krall HAD to know that this guy was never a great hitter and now he has a bad back and a not-exactly cheap contract.
2023 was his only season that he was an above average MLB hitter. (103 OPS+; MLB average is 100)
His bat was great in June of ’23. He missed July. And then he was great again in August and September. Take out those 300 PAs and his career OPS is .660ish (MLB average for every day players is probably.720ish)
2023 OPS: .760
2024 OPS: .575
2025 OPS: .570
He has a bad back.
From February:
“Hayes has spent the past few months reteaching himself how to do everything from sitting in a car to lifting a bag to standing upright, all with the idea of trying to make his symptoms as close to “nonexistent” as they can get.”
~
+3.9 WAR in 2023 (when he hit well)
+0.8 WAR in 2024
+1.2 WAR thus far in 2025
They got him for his glove.
Yes, people only talk about our terrible offense and neglect the fact that our defense is even worse.
The offense isn’t terrible. It’s MLB-average.
And I think the defense is probably also an average MLB defense. I don’t know for sure.
But evidently it just got better… for what that’s worth.
Yep, a glove is exactly what this team needs when they leave RISP or manage 2-3 hits or (to support quite a few pre-trade posts from earlier) need a boost to the slg% at the top half of the order. Last night was a perfect example of what can happen when you replace guys who can swing with guys who cannot early in the game. So, heck, might as well just start ’em (and overpay ’em).
And where the heck is Sal Stewart going to play next year or later?
Can Stewart play 1B?
They are playing him at 3rd for the BATS. Maybe DH
1B for Stewart. Steer fields well but is short and cannot hit a lick anymore.
1B, or DH, he’s not a very good defender at 3B, or 2B.
He is going to have to. Good lord.
Krall either is planning on trading Hayes to Arizona for Suarez or he has lost his mind.
I so hope that you are right.
Yeah but the Pirates should have been happy with the Reds just taking his contract. No Krall throws in a prospect
And a half decent reliever!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Pirates already flipped Rogers to the Giants for 3 prospects, one being Blake Tidwell. It gets even funnier.
and cash
and cash
@justin I suppose the Pirates owe Roger’s for 45 minutes of salary lol
And some Money (Per Doug’s update)
They obviously wanted to move on from Rogers. He and some guy from #18 or higher probably should have been enough. Sending Stafura seems an overpay. That is, unless Hayes can get back to his ’23 form. He was a major part of Pitt’s young movement, which has fizzled out to a large extent. Obviously they’re re-rebuilding now.
When I said #18 or higher, I meant 18-30 or an even higher number, not a higher rated prospect, of course.
He has definitely lost his mind.
Fraley must be gone. I’m so disgusted with this ownership group. 2023 looked so promising
Malpractice by the front office. Can’t think of a worse trade since getting Pennie’s on the dollar for Chapman.
^^^^Spot on.
We sure do get veteran “presents” every year.
Feels linear and robotic:
Marte bad defense at third – that bothers us.
Get good defense at third.
Who plays good defense at third?
Who will give up their good defensive third baseman?
What will the Pirates need for the DRS god and how much will they pay of his salary?
Hmm, didn’t like our first offer (lesser prospect).
God, Marte’s defense bothers us, I just can’t look at it again
Hmm, didn’t like our first offer (good prospect, cover chunk of owed money).
But I’ll just die if I have to see another misplay at third. No one else can field 3rd in the org. OK we pay it all.
Done.
Oh wow, did you stat guys see how many “offensive runs” he saved and what about the back trouble?
Oh well, too late.
Happy trade deadline, Cincinnati.
Well, looking on this in the MOST optimistic light, maybe the next step is Ke’Bryan Hayes and another prospect or two go the Arizona Diamondbacks for Geno Suarez. If Arizona trades Geno, then they WILL need a 3rd baseman.
And maybe the Reds pick up some of Hayes’ contract.
And that is most generous, optimistic outlook on this dismal trade.
Dismal.
Very generous. Very optimistic. Especially knowing that 1) four teams with more chips and more smarts are vying for Suarez, and 2) the front office just made this trade … what makes anyone think the same front office has something genius up its sleeve?
I would have been happier if they traded for his Dad Charlie Hayes. At 60 he might be better.
Tyler Rogers just traded to the Mets. Well I guess this gets the twins closer together geographically.
Had the Reds landed Tyler, they would have been closer still if this trade didn’t go through or if only Stafura was sent to Pitt.
On the bright side, the comment traffic on RLN took off like a rocket in the last 90 minutes. Good for you Doug!
I guess Sheldon reporting the Reds were interested in Hayes that it wasn’t click bait like some were sure of.
We would have been a lot better off just starting Espinal at 3B the rest of the season. Wouldn’t have tied so much money for so long to a player that doesn’t move the needle at all. Could have traded Taylor Rogers to another bullpen starved team for at least a middling prospect. Can’t wait to see their next trade or two to improve our chances of a wild card spot. I love the Reds but a move like this makes me think of finding a side team.
Can we bat him 10th? With his skill set, instead of losing 2-1, we will now lose 1-0. As long as his back holds out. Sell the team Bob
Reds always always always never focus on hitting when getting players. They are good at getting pitchers like Greene (when he is healthy) Lodolo, and Abbott. But remember Senzel, he couldn’t hit. Looks like McClain can’t hit (so far), Stephenson, Steer, Encar Strand, Lux, Fraley, Benson, Marte, either can’t hit consistently or probably will hit for below average.
The Reds management NEVER focus on hitting when they are acquiring players. If I was at one of their meetings, with all their management, that is one question I would bring up to them. Why?
They thought they were with Moose and Candy and the OPS’s plunged. Maybe, this is “opposite George”.
The deal is official. The story has been updated to reflect that the Reds are also sending money to the Pirates in this deal.
Money as well? There’s got to be more. Hayes isn’t worth all that
It gets worse….how
From the Fangraphs roster resource payroll page for the Pirates:
$ owed from CIN (Taylor Rogers trade (prorated portion of $6M from Giants)) -$1,935,484
It appears the cash in the deal is simply the pro-rated portions of the $6 M the Giants sent to the Reds along with Rogers to pay his $12M salary down to $6M for this year.
From The Athletic’s SJ Nesbitt, who covers the Pirates:
“Hayes, 28, is simultaneously one of the most valuable defenders in the sport, and a drag with the bat. His .571 OPS over the past two seasons is 40 percent worse than league average. Where might his bat play better? Why, in Cincinnati’s ballpark! Many still believe there is more in Hayes’ hitting profile. Maybe the Reds can bring that out.”
He gives the Reds a B+ on the trade. Pirates get a B-
The other writer of the article gives the Reds a C+ and the Pirates a B+
Trade grades: With Ke’Bryan Hayes add, Reds bank on the glove and hope for the bat
https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/6525713/2025/07/30/kebryan-hayes-reds-pirates-mlb-trade-grades/?source=user_shared_article
Oh, well there we go then, if SJ Nesbitt says so …
He’s a professional writer with an opinion.
He could be right. He could be wrong.
I don’t understand why the knee-jerk reaction to so many national sportswriters’ opinions is so cynical and negative.
I don’t think the trade was great. Seems like most fans here at RLN hate the trade. Doug evidently thinks the trade was a dud. But Nesbitt thinks it was a pretty good trade for the Reds. And he wrote an article about it. I read it. I considered his opinion. I’m glad I did.
@Leonard Smalls
Glad to see some people here with an open mind.
People gotta relax. The Reds have a ton of shortstops in the farm system and they can’t keep them all. In case you missed it, the Reds just drafted a shortstop with their first round pick and Stafura is unlikely to turn into the next ELDC.
Rodgers walks too many people. Couple that with the fact that he is giving up homeruns at a rate below his career norms while pitching at GABP and you have someone who’s ERA is soon to balloon.
As for Hayes, the Reds are hoping he can get back to his earlier form. Even if he doesn’t because of his back issues, his salary is reasonable given his ~ 1WAR production.
I don’t love the trade but it’s definitely not the disaster that many here are making it out to be.
They could have used their surplus to actually add someone of value.
No one is really bothered by the fact that the Reds traded a shortstop prospect. They are bothered that the the Reds traded someone with even a tiny bit of value for the worst hitter in baseball.
EXACTLY!!
The thing is he is one of the best defensive 3B in baseball. Even as one of the worst hitters in the MLB he is still on track for 1 WAR. This is a trade with some upside potential since the hope is his bat can only go up.
With him and EDLC at SS there aren’t going to be many ground balls going though the left side. At worst, the Reds are paying a 1 WAR guy like a guy making 1 WAR.
citizen54,
He has the dreaded back issues. Playing at that level (MLB), probably not going to get better.
We really needed the offense, and did not get it.
Doubt there are any more trades by the Reds
I even agree that Stafura was the SS to trade, I just hate that THIS was the target.
They’re paying a guy with back issues, that can’t hit, through 2029. That’s insane
Having a ton of shortstops isn’t the issue. That’s like saying, “Well, I gave the guy 20 grand for a set of bald tires because I have a ton of money.” The issue is the return on investment and filling a need, which everyone in baseball has known for two years is a bat. The need for hitting now becomes an even bigger need. And worse, the Reds constantly use the excuse of “financial constraints.” This trade flies in their own faces.
It’s a trade with upside now for a guy with a little bit of surplus value in Sammy Stafura in the future. It’s not like the Reds were going to be able to parlay Stafura into middle of the lineup bat.
Probably could have parlayed him into something better than “worst hitter in baseball who also has a chronic back injury” that the team also committed more than $36,000,000 to, right?
He is one of the worst hitters in baseball whose floor is around 1 WAR. If he even hits a little better than he does now his contract will have positive value, if it doesn’t right now. That $36 MM a year you keep bringing up comes out to $8.5/yr. Hardly a back breaking amount, even for the Reds.
What funny is that the Reds got Hayes(.8 WAR) who has a wRC+ of 57 for a middling prospect and everyone is complaining. Yet everyone here wants to trade the farm for Luis Robert Jr (.7 WAR). who has a wRC+ of 76 and is nowhere near the defender that Hayes is.
Well, at least this means the RF platoon is gone now. Not exactly the way I envisioned it. lol I don’t know what Krall is going to do with Fraley/Benson now.
Benson goes back to AAA. He, Hinds, CES, Stewart, HRod, Rios, and Baez proceed to put up the kind of numbers at AAA Reds fans yearn to see at MLB.
Unless there really is another bigger deal in the works.
I’m sure all of those guys are tickled pink about this trade.
Just playing Espinal everyday would have been better. Or if they were worried about defense, they would have been a stronger team with Elly at 3rd, McLain at SS and Lux at 2nd.
Defense is underrated, and this guy is otherworldly. This gives the Reds a world-class defensive infield. I’ll take an average hitter who can play 3rd the way KBH does.
Wish you were the GM of a baseball team with that mindset because, wow, I’d have a few deals you can’t refuse.
Hayes is not an average hitter
I’d take that guy too. Problem is that Hayes is not an average hitter. He’s literally the worst hitter in Major League Baseball who gets regular playing time.
“I’ll take an average hitter who can play 3rd the way KBH does.”
I think that’s backwards. I’d rather have an average fielder who can hit/drive in runs.
Plus 10000
I’ve figured it out. Big Bob secretly fired Krall and put Little Phil in his place. Wait til you see the next deal.
Krall’s Master plan is in the works!
Maybe this move makes a little more sense if the Reds trade for Steven Kwan or some other legitimate starting outfielder, or even add Ramon Laureano?
I think when Francona was in Cleveland a lot of their recent good teams weren’t very good offensively, but had very good pitching, and probably very good defense? Perhaps that’s what the Reds are going for here. They’ve kind of given up on the idea they are going to have some great offense unless Marte becomes great soon, and Steer, Stephenson, Mclain turn it around this year. So they’re just going to try and have the best Pitching they can, and improve the Defense.
It’s an interesting move for sure. I thought the Yankees would go for Hayes a week or so ago. I think it’s ok who they gave up for Hayes. Maybe Strafura becomes good, but not likely for years if it occurs.
I feel like there are a few more moves coming, so we’ll have to see what the final plan here is from Krall and the front office. My first thought, is how will the rest of the team react, will this move excite them in some way overall? Again, I think there’ll be more moves, so we’ll see.
Again, why would anyone think there’s some master plan in the works after this one? Do we really think AZ or Cleveland were just waiting for a team to pry Hayes from the Pirates so he could be included in a package for one of their own impact players?
Yeah I don’t really understand those comments either. Arizona would be asking for a player like Stewart in return for Suarez.
Well, I’m joking a little bit about the master plan. But what if Krall sends a big package to Cleveland for Kwan, or Oakland for Rooker, and then you all of a sudden have an above average defensive Third Baseman, and an above average Offensive hitter in Right Field? That probably won’t happen, but I’m curious to see what other moves are coming.
The back issues Hayes has had concern me. I think they think his Defense can help them moving forward in 2026 while they supplement with better Offense elsewhere , but chronic back issues for Hayes I think are the biggest risk to this deal.
Me neither. Not sure why people think this.
Why do I root for this team???
Reds do not have a good consistent hitter. Occasionally
Someone will get 3 or 4 hits in a game and go a week
without another one. No one can hit in the clutch
Here are the bright spots I can find about Hayes’s hitting:
.265 BA in last 30 games
.265 career BA and .740 career OPS at GABP
.275 career BA and .790 career OPS at Wrigley
How they hit at GABP should come with an asterisk as they are facing Reds pitching, this year notwithstanding.
The last 30 day numbers are encouraging to see.
It should be interesting to hear Krall’s comments on how the FO thinks this deal helps us.
Reds are doubling down on pitching and defense. Hayes is not only a GG third baseman, hes a GG at a premium position. McLain is a GG Caliber elite defender at 2b.
This is not a deal about 2025 or the next 30 days. Its about infield defense the rest of this year and next year and 2027 probably isn’t happening anyway.
Reds came into ST not knowing who their 3b was. Was it Candy? Was it Steer?Was it Lux? Was it Marte? As of yesterday, they still didnt. They all flopped or didnt have the arm/physical tools. Espinal did but is a utility infielder who wont be on the team next year. They clearly dont think Stewart or CES or anyone else in the minors is either.
This also says more about the December 1 non tender date and roster building and budgeting for 2026.
Martinez $21 million- gone FA
Rogers- $6 million gone Fa
Hays(Austin that is) $6 million- gone FA
Lux $ 5 million- non-tendered and gone
Fraley $5-6 million? Non-tendered and gone
Pagan $ 8 million- gone FA
Tyler Stephenson $6-7 million-non-tendered and could be gone.
Espinal $ 5 million- non-tendered and gone
Thats $60 million gone( not counting the dead contract of candy)
2026 OD starting lineup
LF- TBD
CF- Friedl-cheap controlled
RF- Marte-cheap controlled
3b- Hayes $7 million
SS- Elly-cheap controlled
2b Mclain-cheap controlled
1b-Stewart-cheap controlled
C- Trevino $5 million
Rover- Steer -cheap controlled
TBD- CES/Hinds/Stephenson/Benson/Rodriguez
Sp -Greene $8 million
Lodolo- probably signed long term but cheapish
Burns-cheap
Abbott- cheap
Singer $10 million
Lowder-cheap
Bullpen- start over, rinse and repeat and cheap.
Several mid tier arms in the $4-7 Million range.
Im not advocating for this but its clear reds have a plan on pitching and defense and who 3b clearly is NOT
Third base is not and never has been “a premium position”.
Have u watched the 2025 Cincinnati Reds play defense at 3b? Candy? CES? Marte? Lux?
Have you watched the 2024 Reds at 3b- Candy/Steer/
2023 Reds? Candy/steer
2022 Reds? Moose/Brandon Drury
Reds haven’t had a 3b since Suarez in 2021 and he was bad then defensively.
Clearly 3b is a weakness for some time and is defensive priority for the Reds in 2025 moving forward. Not saying Hayes is the solution but 3b has been awful for 5 years and no one on the horizon who can play competent defense at the hot corner.
There’s a difference between “the Reds have had bad defense at third base” and “third base is a premium position”.
https://www.fangraphs.com/leaders/major-league?lg=all&qual=y&season=2025&season1=2025&ind=0&stats=fld&pos=3b&type=1
Best defensive 3b in bb and not close
Not defending just saying the Reds chose defense at 3b because terrible internal options
I’m very well aware of how good of a defender he is. I’m taking issue with the idea that third base is a premium position. It’s not. It never has been.
“Reds are doubling down on pitching and defense.” Pretty much since April, anyone watching the Reds has known that the needs are 1) a bat and 2) relief pitching. Last night’s game exemplified those needs. Never have I heard an analyst or even a fan suggest, “They really need a defensive-minded third baseman who struggles at the plate.” Where in the heck did that come from? The fact they traded away one of their more reliable relief pitchers while contenders are clamoring for relief pitchers … I mean, please justify this, but the “doubling down on pitching and defense” is not gonna do it.
Im not advocating or justifying anything. I am simply saying the Reds are moving on at 3b from their internal options- both present and future and thats pretty obvious.
Understood. And I think we agree that if we’d seen the Reds’ cards first — a top-10 prospect and one of their more reliable relief pitchers (a very hot commodity right now) — we would have believed they’re getting something pretty exciting in return.
One place i agree is the Reds know Stewart is not playing 3B in the ML’s.
His destination has been 1B, not 3B, not 2B (and completely, totally, unequivocally not the OF), and it has been 1B since signing.
What that does with both he and Collier remains to be seen, but I’ve saying for some time that one of these two is a trade chip as they will not both play 1B with us.
To clarify, Stewart will not play 3B under Francona, who has suffered through Candelario, CES and Marte this year, and, I believe, is done with experiments.
Agree Dave. The outfield just got crowded
+1
I appreciate your thoughts on this.
If CES ever gets his bat going again, I’d take another look at him at 3B (or would have, if not for this crazy Hayes trade). CES has played a total of 104 innings at 3B at the Major League level and committed only 2 errors. Not much of a sample size but certainly not a disaster.
I’m starting to think that CES will be traded tonight or tomorrow.
Not sure what his trade value might be – probably pretty low, and maybe the Reds could hope he’ll have more value if he plays and produces in some September MLB games?
If no additional players are brought in before opening day, this is my lineup
1 Friedl (CF) 2 McLain (2B) 3 EDLC (SS)
4 Marte (RF) 5 Lux (DH) 6 Steer (1B)
7 H Rod (RF) 8 Steph (C) 9 KBH (3B)
Arroyo (INF) Callihan (INF)
Benson (OF) Trevino (C)
I don’t like Steer as the 1B, but Stewart should take over at some point in 2026.
I do hope they add 2 impact bats, and yes it will cost $50M to $60M, but that’s what the offense needs to get to WS contender level.
We will be watching Haye’s weak at bats for the next three years while guys like Stewart and Collier will struggle to get at bats.
I have really been trying to have a positive outlook of this team, but this deal is making me lose interest in this team at an alarming rate.
I would have been OK with the Reds standing pat the deadline, but this deal makes me think Nick Krall made the trade for the sake of making a trade, which is almost always a bad idea.
What in the world was he thinking!
And sent money in the deal as well !!!!!?????
Unsurpassed stupidity by Krall in this deal ….
I am afraid for any further deals this clown now gets to put together … complete
moronic move
I do look forward to hearing from Krall on this because I am baffled. I don’t recall a team ever seeking out a no-hit, defensive wizard for 3B as a move to improve its chances in the playoff race.
You’ll still see Stewart and Collier hitting for the Reds.
You will be glad you are not watching them play 3B.
I have strange suspicion Stewart gets traded by tomorrow.
Krall basically said to the media in the last hour that Stewart and HRod aren’t going to be traded.
My thought, too. Bet he is getting asked about quite a bit.
There’s one day left, Maybe we can trade Hayes if we eat half his contract.
This trade fits Reds ImO completely. Just make a trade to be in the news. “Breaking News: ESpN reports Reds…”.
Utterly baffling. I cannot steal-man a rationale for which this makes sense. Bad contract, bad bench player. Just baffling. Such a grossly stupid move has me contemplating finally handling in my Red’s card after many years of frustration. I’m hoping Portland gets a team in the near future.
…What?
Wait, why did they…
What?
I.. I can’t…
WHAT?
Yeah, pretty much my reaction too. Quite mind boggling.
Santiago Espinal is an elite defender at third base. Hays is no better than Marte offensively. I’m as confused as everyone else. What’s new?
Ke’bryan Hayes may not be the player the Reds should have traded for, but he is a significantly better player than Santiago Espinal.
That’s quite an understatement: Marte’s OPS is about 250 points higher than Hayes’.
Krall somehow sold this to ownership, either this is the beginning of a massive sell off or part of an elaborate plan to get Suarez back to Cincinnati. I’m guessing the former. But why give up this close to a possible wildcard bid? Krall has never made a great trade so there’s that.
We made a trade…and our lineup somehow got worse…
I hate it here
Wow this is quite a head scratcher. I can’t imagine any reality in which this trade makes sense, unless they’re flipping him to an even more stupid front office. I would almost rather “have Jack for that” than Hayes
There may well be a time soon where Espinal pinch hits for Hays and/or Hays is a defensive replacement for Espinal.
😀
It seems that Lux, Fraley, maybe Marte is going to be traded at some point potentially? Probably not Marte unless they went big. I think a move for a Right Fielder will occur, whether a platoon or starter.
There’s got to be something else brewing I think behind the scenes. If they just trade for Hayes and a decent Reliever it would be strange. It is a little funny to think from a fan’s standpoint that fans would get excited over a defensive first third baseman who most likely is batting 9th in the order!
But I’ll give Krall through the deadline to see if there’s more substance to his moves as a whole. These are probably the most important couple days of his career as a GM.
Currently, I’m more concerned they are going to get swept by the Dodgers tonight and have a pretty tough schedule looming ahead.
My hope is Nick Martinez pitches his heart out again tonight and somehow the Reds beat the crap out of the Dodgers but that is probably just a dream since superman is pitching tonight for the Dodgers.
Ohtani is expected to only pitch four innings tonight.
Gotta figure out that Dodger bullpen!
The only way for this deal to look good is if there is some crazy out-of-box follow up trade that follows it. The Reds cannot cry poor all the time and then take on this many years of a contract of a guy with chronic back issues and a weak bat. It makes no logical sense, no matter how good his D is. And if there was a larger plan with more trades happening based off this trade, I would think they would have been initiated immediately. You can’t make this trade without a guarantee that as soon you make it, the next trades happen immediately. Everyone thinks something else will follow this trade because it’s such a bad deal for the Reds. Only the most optimistic are giving the Reds the benefit of the doubt here. It’s so confusing!
Ok read several of the posts about this and here are my thoughts on why this happened and other just general comments by me.
#1 3B Hayes is the best defensive player in MLB since 2020. Tito said in spring that he wanted better defense.
#2 Espinal is good at defense but not anywhere as good as Hayes. The guy could turn things around in Great America Ballpark. I also think Hayes needed a change of scenery because honestly playing for the Pirates has to be a tough thing to give your full effort every day.
#3 Marte should not take long to adjust to playing the OF plus maybe they plan on platooning these guys.
#4 Do I like the trade. I do feel like the Reds gave a little too much for this. Especially sending money to the Pirates and losing our #10 prospect. I think that happened due to Hayes having essentially 5 years of team control and Tito wanting better defense at the hot corner.
#5 I pray that they are still considering getting power hitter someplace else and they need at least 2 relievers now. If they get 2 decent middle relievers that will probably balance out losing Rogers, I was not a big fan of him though so I don’t mind they traded him.
#6 The direction is really odd. the team needs better hitters. Defense has not been very good either though. I hope Hayes being in a potential playoff spot and hitting in a more friendly ballpark does help him some.
Last only time will tell if this was a terrible deal or not. The team has plenty of time to see what they just traded for.
Hayes/Steer will most likely be the worst hitting corner infield in mlb. Both have chronic health issues and Hayes is under contract til 2030. Its insane? Why bring in Tito to begin with if you have no intention of improving the talent?
I mentioned again yesterday that recent games against Rodon, Fried, Wheeler, Pepiot, and Yamamoto produced 2 earned runs TOTAL in 35 innings. We have zero chance against elite pitching and they go add an expensive corner infielder that can’t hit.
Funny thing too is that MLB has this as the 4th most important trade during the deadline. That will probably change but shrug I sure don’t understand.
I like this trade. You can cover up some problems in the batting order if you can play great defense. Hayes comes with at least three years of team-friendly contract control, and he’s a Gold Glover. I don’t expect him to hit great. If he can hit .250 and play Gold Glove-calber defense, that’s an upgrade. I don’t mind trading a #10 prospect who is the #9 shortstop prospect among those 10 (ha … just kidding, but really, where are all of these shortstops going to play?).
If he hits .250 they’re looking past the 1st round of playoffs. If he is #8 or 9 in the lineup with that average they’re looking at the pennant.
With all due respect, I can’t think of any winners in recent history who have covered up serious hitting deficiencies with defense. Last night’s game was a great example of how that can backfire — inserting Espinal in the 5th inning and Joe in the 7th inning proved costly when their (multiple) turns in the lineup became crucial and all they could muster were 90-foot popups and shallow fly balls with runners in scoring position and then vs. one of the worst relief pitchers in the NL. Don’t get me wrong, as a coach I realize how important it is to field your position. But in the big leagues, in 2025, you gotta score to compete.
Do then you have no problem with Steer playing first with his gold glove defense?
If we are going to pitching and defense, then how about we move the fences back, or make the walls higher? Since we aren’t apparently targeting more power bats(even adding one power bat doesn’t move the needle) we could make the ballpark more pitcher friendly.
OK – trying to remain optimistic here, and not having much trouble, but a few qualifiers.
1 – Impressive list of comments, so good for the website, but remember to support Doug and RLN and RML for all the info – https://www.patreon.com/redsminorleagues
2 – I’m with both LDS and MBS on this deal. It doesn’t make much sense, but it may be fine. Losing Rogers is irrelevant, he’s a FA after this season, and he’s been nominal in the pen in any event – no big loss. As for Stafura, they’ve obviously decided in favor of Lewis – let alone those ahead of him in the system. He may have been useful in some other deal, but not for much – he’s the #10 prospect, not the #1 prospect. Sure the money is an issue, as it always is for the Reds, but in a backhanded sense it’s impressive they’re spending it here. Now, if this is simply the next $20-30M deal they make in a sequence of Moose & Candy that’s not good.
3 – There may be upside, even with the cost risk – and here the “ifs” start into play. If they’re satisfied with the medical reports on the back, if they think they see a flaw in the batter’s box, if GABP will have an effect, and so forth. Too many ifs, but there they are. Finally, his dad is one of the great “good guys” in the game, and I recall hearing similar reports about KBH when he came up. Sure, that and $5 gets a Sbux Latte, but it’s not negative.
$ – Finally, the biggest downside, which is huge, is if this is the biggest deal they make. This is barely a minor deal, and it gets nowhere near fixing the issues we’ve all been discussing for years – proven MLB hitters, always fix the bullpen, develop starters. They have the youngsters, they’re close to having the starters, the bullpen is better than years past (but always fix it), but add PROVEN MLB HITTERS!
I am in the wait and see stage for this trade. Like I mentioned above it might be an ok deal we have to wait and see. On paper it looks like the Pirates won this one but on paper does not really matter in the end.
To all the naysayers out there just remember how much you hated this deal when he snags balls that no one else on the Reds could even get to. Between Hayes and Elly there is some crazy range on that left side of the infield.
I had no clue Charlie Hayes was his Dad, that is pretty cool. I remember watching him a little back in the 90s.
Losing Rogers may not matter in the long run but relief pitching is pretty much what every contender is looking to add right now. He was a potentially valuable trade piece in his own right.
What a strange team.
Our 1B, Steer, CES, Candelario are being paid not to hit.
Our 2B, McLain and Lux, can both hit but are redundant, forcing one way, way out of position.
Our SS, is the lone ranger on a so-so team.
Our 3B, Marte, CES, Candelario are being paid not to field.
Our other 3B, Espinal, Hayes, are being paid not to hit.
Our RF’s, Fraley, Benson, are both LH and cannot play at the same time; the others, Joe, Dunn, Hurtubise, Espinal, haven’t hit.
Our CF is our lone ranger’s sidekick and is basically indespensable.
Our LF’s Hays, Lux, can hit but only one can field.
Our catchers seem to complement each other pretty well.
Who’s idea was this?
Correction: McLain ain’t hitting either.
CES and Marte are being paid practically nothing in MLB terms so there is that.
Candy clearly is lost $$ but it doesn’t seem like he is going to be a major league hitter anymore.
I am with you on how so many players are not playing a regular position on this team but that seems to be what the Reds like to switch guys in and out all over the field.
Some people here have been complaining about our infield defense for years now and now we have a pretty good group in that manner.
Again the Reds could have solved this by moving Elly to 3rd, where he played elite defense when he came up, and put McLain and Lux back into their natural positions of SS and 2B. The defense immediately improves at no cost.
Hayes in 2025
90 PAs vs LHP
.205 BA, 3 2B, 0 HR
3 walks, 19 strikeouts
But! There is this…
90 high-leverage PAs in 2025:
.320 BA, 4 2B, 0 HR
..So, he’s got a Gold Glove at 3B and he can still slap a single late in a close game.
Also…
Hayes has stolen 50+ bases on 65 attempts over the past 3.5 seasons.
Of course… he’s gotta get ON first base to try to steal second.
Has third base become a non-hitting position like pitcher? That’s the only way this trade makes any sense.
Reds roster is awful and if this is a sign that defense and pitching are the priority why not give Espy the job at third and move Marte to right and save the 36 mil on Hayes.Reds play in the easiest park in the majors to hit home runs and there is no defense against wall scraper home runs.No way at all is this a good move by itself now or in the future.No way at 28 years old he suddenly becomes anything close to an average offensive player
I think if Espinal would have hit better this move of course would have never happened. Unfortunate, as I like Espinal, but he just has been pretty bad at the plate overall when he was given pretty much an everyday role earlier in the season.
Agreed – that Tito was hoping to get more from Espinal since the roster took shape with Hays and Marte in and Candelario out.
Espinal’s 2025 numbers show that the less he plays, the better he hits.
36 PAs in July: .315 BA, .735 OPS
185 PAs in May+June: .215ish BA, .530ish OPS
And he’s also better as a sub (small sample size) than he is as a starter:
starter in 2025:
.245 BA. .590 OPS
sub in 2025:
.280 BA, .670 OPS
Who does Espinal come in for now as a late inning defensive replacement? When does Espinal play now for that matter? Not that I want him to necessarily.
The money and length of contract is the most concerning part to me. The Reds will not pay Hayes to ride the bench. He will be in the line up every single day when healthy. I think we will tire of him quickly.
It just seems there would be cheaper alternatives for a defensive only infielder. Maybe this would be a good deal if the Reds offense was busting at the seams, but there are far too many easy outs in our line up already.
Exactly. Then the Reds should have just put Espinal at 3rd and Marte in right field and saved cash. Don’t like this trade at all.
Piss poor ownership and front office.
ESPN Headline:
Reds acquire Gold Glove 3B Hayes from Pirates
Sounds great until you check his stats.
My guess at what happened:
– Reds wanted Eugenio Suarez.
– His prospect price was too high.
– Reds make press statements along the lines of “We want to get better but NOT trade away the future” – which is the exact line we’ve been hearing since Castellini took over this once-storied franchise, and the kind of thinking that keeps the Reds chasing a magical future where an entire team of prospects has the light come on all at once in the same season (like it was for part of 2023, a mirage).
– Tito prioritizes defense and “clean” play, as he said today. Which is great and I have no qualms with being a defense and pitching-focused team. But you have to to have SOME hitters.
– Krall and Tito and the career ~.200 hitter Chris Valaika say, “Hey, Suarez costs too much but we can get Hayes for a couple guys we don’t want anymore, AND he plays slightly better defense MAYBE than Espinal.
– They talk themselves into it, for the defense.
– Reds World Series Champs 2025!
So now we just wait! (sarcasm)
Ugh.
–
Stafura (#9) and Serwinowski (#11) should have been enough to land Suarez, who is not going back to Seattle. Not sure what the Mariners gave up for him, though.
Hayes plays Way Way Way better defense than anyone in the league not slightly better than espinal
Fangraphs calls the trade a no-brainer for the Reds. I’m sold.
Our pitching is expected to be so dominant, we will shortly be able to play 7 infielders.
Krall is playing chess, folks.
The narrative that his inaction is due to him overvaluing prospects takes a hit with this , very strange move. Pretty high risk if you ask me, and not because of the prospect moved.
Fraley out of the lineup tonight…probably getting moved would be my guess? Absolutely no reason outside of injury he shouldn’t be playing vs a righty with Friedl out unless he’s injured? A 1.134 ops in July and 20 for his last 57 (.351). Why would we want that? A 35K to 23 bb ratio which is what Krall should be looking for. Currently we get the Ks, but not the walks or power. Can’t wait to see Hayes, Steer, Espy, and Lux all in the lineup together. Pure intimidation!
Krall will just offer bromides about exciting young gold glove who improves the team defense. Which is sorta true except for Chronic Back condition and will be the highest paid position player on the team next year.
I hope Krall doesn’t do anything else before the deadline because he stinks.
And no local media will dare grill him on the acquisition cost and the opportunity cost of who else or what else they could have done, either now or in the offseason.
I’m sure I am not alone among all the other Reds’ fans who dreamed of nabbing Hayes from the Pirates…
Good Grief!
Boo, horrible. Better off making no move and playing Espinal at 3B. Ugh!
Hoffman 25th save today vs 4 blown. Weaver has been generally pretty good out of the pen. Just more proof the Reds have no vision & no foresight.
Even if he becomes a bench piece, which I do not believe he will as he will be a starter from Day 1, he has a very friendly contract through ‘28 and an OK number for ‘29 which will probably be great by ‘29.
Bench guys don’t get paid like this anymore. Which would make the contract not at all friendly wouldn’t it?
The contract is not great but it’s “reasonable,” isn’t it?
I mean, even for low-payroll team like the Reds, if he plays good/great D and puts up +2.0 WAR per season for three more years?
Maybe. But I just don’t accept the idea that he should play enough to accumulate those numbers. There’s a bottom for which you have to be able to hit in order to play enough to make those kinds of defensive contributions and Hayes is not there for me. He’s about 100 OPS points lower than what I would consider “acceptably bad at hitting” to play nearly every day.
So if you put him on the bench, which is where he should be, that defensive WAR dries up quickly because he simply isn’t playing enough.
So he’s a rich man’s Todd Benzinger?
-1.6 WAR for the 1990 World Series champs!
😉
His defense more than makes up for any shortcomings from his bat otherwise his WAR would be zero or negative. You might think that his OPS should be .100 points higher in order to be an everyday player but both FG and Bref have him around 1 WAR even with his current OPS.
Reds have guys in the minors that could give that production for almost nothing
The Reds got Hayes for his glove.
Not if they are not penciled in to play.
More on Hayes in 2025
155 PAs vs fly ball pitchers
.205 BA, .490 OPS
4 walks, 33 strikeouts
95 PAs vs ground ball pitchers
.265 BA, .645 OPS
7 walks, 16 strikeouts
So it looks like his bad back is keeping him from solid contact (or contact at all) on anything up in the zone.
The more stats that are revealed, the worse it looks. I hope so badly he surprises everyone, especially me.
Trying to lure Juan Castro out of retirement with a lucrative contract to get his elite defense and sub .575 ops might have made more sense.
There has to be something more! Right? Please tell me there is something else coming?
can Hayes run like Willie Mays Hayes?!
An interesting comparison is the deals for Taylor and Tyler Rogers – consider what the Mets gave up – sure, it’s the Mets, but those enamored of Stafura should look at what the Mets are sending to the Giants.
Relief pitching is a highly valued commodity among contenders. Will be interesting to see if the Pirates flip Rogers for value
Good relief pitching is highly valued among contenders. OK relief pitching is valued by all. Both Rogers are rentals, but one of them is a better rental than the other. (still think the Mets overpaid, but again, it’s the Mets)
In response to the trade, Tito reportedly said, “we got good”. The question is did you get better. I am not even sure what get good means. If he doesn’t think the Reds got better with this deal, then why would you even consider this trade?
Charlie Goldsmith reaction article.
https://www.fox19.com/2025/07/30/reds-sticking-plan-make-bold-deal-acquire-kebryan-hayes/?fbclid=IwY2xjawL3fY5leHRuA2FlbQIxMQABHkp77N5bk_FWv7PX_StIvmPSotKYEHEQTwIudM4KKu65EbDnMYYgDfodc9Wa_aem_t9qv1wRU9fHCCscc2Br8zw
“Look at last night’s game,” Krall said, referring to a loss vs. the Dodgers that was decided by missed plays in the field from the Reds. “Defensive plays are the difference in the game. Everyone loves the idea of getting a bat. If you can prevent the runs, you’re going to win games, too.”
Sounds like Marte’s two errors (one charged) last night may have been the straw that broke the camel’s back and brought us Hayes and his broken back.
Ha! He must have missed the parts where the guys who can swing (Fraley and Marte) had been replaced by guys who can’t (Espinal and Joe) and who produced drinking-fountain popups with RISP.
Guess he forgot about all those 1-0 losses we took early this season
It would seem Krall will always take the easiest way and call it the right way.
“This is a big time pickup, man,” closer Emilio Pagán said. “Five years of control with a guy who plays defense like that with the upside offensively.
I dunno, Emilio. This is not what I would call a “big time pickup”.
Upside? He’s not new to the league
Every year at this time, Krall makes a move or two and we’re all left wondering if it was more of a sell-off or a buy-in. It’s really a singular hamster-wheel, treading water, moving the deck chairs, not too this not too that, persona Krall has established for himself. If nothing else, it’s a unique way to GM a franchise. A losing way. But unique.
We should all copy this comment thread and send it to Krall! We are the diehards of the diehard Reds fans…and we are very displeased with this one. Quite baffling.
The Fangraphs article is oddly optimistic for the Reds.
Reds Acquire Ke’Bryan Hayes in Divisional Swap | FanGraphs Baseball https://share.google/zfn9IJFtIm4IvVP4R
Biomechanics is way above my pay grade, but here’s the case for Hayes having something left in the tank as a hitter, from earlier this month. Esteban Rivera with some cool motion tracking dots and stuff
https://blogs.fangraphs.com/kebryan-hayes-needs-a-bat-path-fix/
Tl;dr – Hayes’ bat speed and contact are fine, but his swing is pushy, which nerfs his power. “The best hitters in the league either match the plane [of the pitch] early (think a contact hitter with a flatter swing) or work from a positive angle very early on (think a guy with light tower power). A swing that takes as long as Hayes’ does to match planes is going to generate a ton of groundballs.” Alec Bohm has a similarly sub-optimal swing and mediocre bat speed, but makes it work because he gets to a neutral angle earlier. Hayes has a hitch as he loads up. Bohm doesn’t. It might be fixable.
I like this trade just fine, and I don’t have a strong opinion about Krall either way. Seems like a perfectly fine asset play unless Stafura is a hidden gem. Or Hayes is physically broken or something, which, who knows. It’s just strange to see it coming from a small-market team.
100% with your closing paragraph – unbelievable scouting by the Pirates if Stafura becomes a good MLB player, very poor scouting by the Reds if Hayes is “broken or something” – scouting needs to know those, unless the something is truly a horrible surprise.
Neither seems likely – the biggest issue may be the salary if Hayes numbers remain flat as he ages. A slight uptick makes this a win for the Reds. Certainly worth the risk.
If they acquire a big OF bat before the deadline then they may have improved the offense and the defense in aggregate. If they don’t…..
Guess he forgot about all those 1-0 losses we took early this season
Sorry for the duplicate, something glitched on my phone.
But while I’m here, I’ll just say that on the majority of the Reds’ trades over the past 15+ years I’ve been hanging around this site, I’ve either been positive or mixed in my reaction. There are a few that stand out in my mind that I have been very against.
The obvious one is the Chapman. I think the Reds panicked and succumbed to hypothetical PR pressure. They got pennies on the dollar, I think everyone agrees that trade was bad.
I didn’t like the Leake trade based on the fact that I thought Mella was a poor headline return. He was. Though Duvall ended up saving that trade, which was unexpected. So in the end, Duvall made the trade a good one, but I wasn’t wrong about not being high on Mella.
It was minor, but I really didn’t like the Byrd trade. I thought Lively would have helped out our rotation more than Byrd helped our offense. Byrd was mediocre as Red in a half season, Lively’s been largely decent-to-solid as a pitcher. In the end it probably wouldn’t have mattered much because those Reds teams were bad, but I didn’t like giving up a pitching prospect for a mediocre LF, it’s usually not good business.
And now this. It’s not that care about what we gave up. When the article came out on here about Buxton, and the alleged cost was Lowder, Petty, Stewart I said I’d make it in a heartbeat. When Jason L. made a post about going for it by trading prospects I agreed. The only two “untouchables” I had were Duno and Lewis.
Yet, the guy makes Billy Hamilton look like masher on offense. We need offense. We could already slide a good defender in Espinal as a defensive replacement. If Marte is going to move to RF, then give Lux or even McLain some reps there. Either way you cut it, a better hitter is moving out of the lineup for Hayes. Whether it’s Lux, Fraley, Benson, Marte, or even Espinal. Some say GABP may help him, but he’s an extreme ground ball hitter. The short fences aren’t going to help if the ball’s not getting off the ground. Then there’s the cost. For a team always on a shoe-string budget that money could go along ways to shoring up the bullpen or another area that may get overlooked when the Reds cry poor next offseason. And then the back issues…I mean it’s really hard for me to see this as a favorable move.
Our 3B defense got better. The cost, our offense got worse, we add $36m in future costs, our bullpen got worse, our prospect pipeline got worse. Even if all those are just “slightly” worse, it’s not the direction we need to be headed in if we want to compete for the playoffs.
I hope there’s other moves. If there’s other moves (a bat or two, some relievers) the upgrade in defense may end up mattering. At this moment, it doesn’t as much as a big bat or a shut down arm would, in my opinion.
After taking a step back, I think I get this now.
Consider Espinal is the Reds utility guy. However, in 1.5 years he’s gotten over 600 PAs because of injuries (Candelario, et al) and underperformance (Candelario, et al). That’s way, way too many PAs for a utility guy.
And during that time, he’s put up a cumulative negative 1.1 bWAR. He’s average to slightly above average defensively at most positions and significantly below average offensively. He’s about par for the course as far as utility guys go.
He’s making 2.5M this year.
Enter Hayes, the new Espinal. I’m guessing the Reds figure if they’re going to have to give their utility guy 600 PAs in 1.5 years, they might as well upgrade that position. Hayes is not just above average defensively at 3B, he’s elite — he’s best in the business. Over the last 2 years, even with his anemic bat, he’s put up 2.0 bWAR because of his defense, much better than Espinal’s -1.1 bWAR. And I suspect he could aptly handle SS and 2B too.
For that, Hayes makes a bit more, at about 7-8M per year.
So I think that’s all this is for the next few years, a new and improved Espinal that goes by the name Hayes.
I will also say, this better not be all. I hope there’s a bigger move forthcoming.
I’ve been saying we need a third baseman more than we need an outfielder. For the record………this is NOT what I had in mind.
Hayes has 16 DRS at 3B. Next closest is 8. He could win the Platinum Glove this year. He hits pretty well at GABP too.
Our strength is our pitching – and Hayes just helped it play up even more.
I imagine that our hitting coaches think they can get more out of him too.
I assume this means that Marte is moving to RF or getting dealt. Either way, we are going to see an improved OF offense by the end of tomorrow.
Yes, it’s a trade to improve defense. In the playoffs, you can’t afford to make errors or to not make plays. Marte’s future was in the OF from the start.
I do not like the trade. I am enjoying the starting pitching and De La Cruz. Go Reds!
So they traded for Jack Hanrihan again? Cool.
Sweep avoided due to timely hitting and tidy BP work to support Martinez quality start.
Who was that 3B the Reds got from Houston in the Morgan trade? A former SS who had a hot glove but a cold bat.
The Hayes trade with the Pirates is confusing. I guess Ke’ Bryan is the player Francona wants at the hot corner. it looks to me like the Reds have found their right fielder, Marte, starting next season. The acquisition of Kwan would be big for the outfield, but I’d hate to see Lodolo leave. Good lefties are tough to find
Waiting for a flurry of roster moves today ahead of the series against the Braves in order to activate Friedl, Hayes and Little. Hinds, Joe and Mey should give way, respectively. Still hoping for a trade for an OF, but who leaves the roster? I guess Benson’s 75 OPS+ and remaining options is no brainer.
From Major League, ” You run like Mays but you hit like ____.
Every time Hayes hit’s a ball in the air he should have to do 20 pushups.
At least that would be entertaining.