It has been a busy day in Cincinnati Reds land here on Wednesday. It was announced earlier today that they were remaining with FanDuel Sports Ohio for the 2026 season. And now the team has announced that they have declined their options on three players for the 2026 season. Cincinnati had team options on relievers Brent Suter and Scott Barlow that they declined. They also had a mutual option with outfielder Austin Hays that they declined. All three players are now officially free agents.
The biggest option was for Austin Hays. He made $4,000,000 in the 2025 season but had the option for 2026 for $12,000,000 if both he and the Reds wanted to exercise that option. That also included a buyout of $1,000,000. The 30-year-old Hays got out to a torrid start in the first few weeks of the season, putting up an OPS of 1.200 in his first 12 games. But from that point forward he was inconsistent at best and had a .248/.296/.408 line in the remaining 91 games he played in the season.
Scott Barlow made $2,500,000 in 2025. He had an option for 2026 at $6,500,000 that the team declined to pick up. They instead chose to pay him $1,000,000 to become a free agent after the 32-year-old reliever threw 68.1 innings for the Reds with a 4.21 ERA this past season.
Brent Suter also made $2,500,000 for the Reds in 2025. He had a team option for 2026 at $3,000,000. Cincinnati instead opted to decline the option and pay him a buyout of $250,000 so he could become a free agent after posting a 4.52 ERA in his 67.2 innings for the Reds last year.
None of these moves are too surprising. And depending on how you want to look at it, declining all three options frees up $17,250,000 that otherwise would have gone to these guys if the team had kept them around. Cincinnati is going to have to replace them on the roster, but it’s possible that they could do so at a lesser overall price.
Isn’t that $19.25M?
So they’re like the Bengals and not improve the club. ?
Both of those pictures making that kind of money and there are ERA we’re well above 4! In the old days pitchers with ERAs like that would be sent back to the minors or released. In 1940 the Reds team ERA was 3.07. This was first in the National League. The highest ERA of the nine pitchers on the roster for the 1940 World series was 3.75. they didn’t make big money back then or in the 50s or in the 60s and even in the seventies when we had the Big Red machine. I’m not going to pay and a lot more high quality results.
Please get rid of Nick Martinez let him be the next one they do not resign
he’s a free agent
$12.0 + $6.5 + $3.0M = $21.5M. Payouts are $1.0, 1.0 and .25M = $2.25. Subtract that and it’s $19.25M.
My math says that is correct. They saved $19.25M…
I guess it depends on how you view it…Do you really free up money that you had no intention on spending?
I see the it as The Reds “saved” the cost of the three players 2025 contract minus any buy outs for 2026.
Hays $4 Million minus $1 Million buy out = $3 Million
Barlow $2.5 Million minus $1 Million buy out
= $1.5 Million
Sitter $2.5 Million minus $250,000 buy out = $2.25 Million
.
The way I see it the Reds freed up $6,750,000
But, I’m not an accountant, so what do I know?
They already paid them for 2025. They are saving the 2026 contact amounts.
Right. You’re freeing up money you paid in 2025 for the players that you will not have to pay in 2026. That’s it.
They should keep Suter, for so many reasons. 3 mil is chump change it today’s game
Bad move
Psst – he either retires or returns – very doubtful he goes elsewhere unless it’s a stupid money offer, which, yes, is certainly possible. This just creates a roster spot, which they need into February for other transactions.
FWIW, he could return in say, Mid-May, with no dropoff in effectiveness. Of all their players who don’t need spring training, or any sort of MiLB deal, or injury rehab, he tops the list.
not for cheap Bob and phrugal phil
Suter was absolutely not very good last year.
Especially from about mid-June forward.
After seeing him when they clinched the playoffs, it looks like he’s more interested in being a class clown type than anything else.
So apparently you feel comfortable professing this incredibly superficial opinion of Suter based on his celebration of the Reds clinching a playoff spot?
Suter’s a good guy and they could bring him back at something closer to a minimum contract if both sides are interested. His market is going to be limited. He’s the slowest thrower in baseball apart from submariner Tyler Rogers.
Agreed!
They may in part be motivated to free up some space on the 40 player roster. We have some youngsters we don’t want to risk losing.
That doesn’t guarantee that we won’t resign any of them, but they are free to negotiate with others, we might decide to match the highest offer at the right price if they prefer being a Red
Those team options all felt a little high to me, so I could see them all coming back at more market reasonable deals if we’re not big FA hunting. I could also see none of them coming back depending on what else the team has in mind for the offseason.
It will be interesting to see where Austin winds up. I can definitely see that the Reds could not hand out 12M for someone who only started 95 games and 38 of those at DH. If he could have produced at the same rate over 150 games, it’s a different story. Unless they sign a veteran guy I’d go with Hinds
Love Hinds talent but hasn’t learned strike zone yet!
Hinds has real Benson 2024 potential. I would not intentionally plug him at anything higher than the 4th or 5th OF on the roster.
For Hays I’m not sure if his injury issues in ’24 and ’25 really say anything about what happens in ’26. His ’24 health issues (kidney infection) were truly just bad luck. And he had 500+ PA in each of ’21-’23. I bet a team will pay him 9 mil x 2 years. And I would not be sad if that team is the Reds. But what do I know. 🙂
Good moves. Suter is the only one I’d be interested in seeing come back at a low price. He may be done but he may have 1-2 years left. LHP always is a need.
Suter was so bad in the 2nd half, that he only made 3 appearances in September, and gave up 6 runs in one of those.
He doesn’t need to be back at any price.
Thank you. The guy is taking up a spot in the bullpen and sometimes wouldn’t pitch for a week. Tony,Pagan and Barlow pitched everyday because the bullpen was full of guys like Suter. Love the guy , hate the pitcher. Passed his prime and has no place on the team.
Yea, Suter got hit pretty hard, but RP always have their ups & downs. Even more importantly, if you aspire to be an actual contender, you’re gonna need at least 2, probably 3 LH relievers come October. Or you could take the approach that a couple of your RH relievers with reverse splits will suffice. For me, that’s a pipe dream. There’s simply no substitute for that left on left sweeper IMO.
I think we all assumed this was just a foregone conclusion. I will hope they can sign one solid player for those 3 cuts.
I think we were all hoping Hays was worth 2 or 3 more wins, but it’s clear he wasn’t and likely won’t be. It’s sort of a shame because a veteran who can play decent is hard to find.
Fangraphs now has the current Estimated payroll (after arbitrations) at $96,713.
I think Kyle Schwarber can be had for $28 mill/yr for 4 years.
That would put the reds at about $122 million, which is where they are expected to land.
A man can dream. Schwarber’s future money would be easier because Candelario comes off the books.
$124.7 million, that is.
Sign Schwarber for 4 years 120 million and defer like we did with Junior. This way we have a bat that this lineup needs so bad. If not trade Springer for Ward. Either way we have a true #4 hitter.
With Candelario coming off the books in 2027 (well after a $3 million buyout), I don’t even think they need to defer. Greene’s salary will go up from $8 to $15 million in 2027, but that will be covered by Candelario.
They will also have the ability to drop Lux and others. Of course all this is based on the idea that there will be baseball in 2027.
Springer is on Toronto, so how would that work for Reds?
Schwarber 4 for 120 million you would have to give him an opt out after each of the 4 years.
Singer???
Or JoJo Adell..
Like it. Reds need a big LH bat and they either have on the big league roster or in AAA enough to cover Hayes loss. 4 year deal would also line up with the current window to win. A top 5 of Friedl, Stewart, Schwarber, Elly, Marte is pretty enticing. A combo of HRod, Hinds, Arroyo, Dunn to pull from farm. Callihan should be back and healthy as well.
I love your thinking.
Why not try one star than the 16 million guys we end up paying to not show up there so bad.
Yep. They’ve been willing to do this before, kind of. Pay one free agent way more than everybody else (except Votto). The problem is they picked Mike Moustakas and Jeimer Candelario.
Schwarber is a bigger bite, no doubt. But he’s also almost guaranteed to hit 40 HRs at GABP. And a hometown guy. Talk about butts in the seats.
With Schwarber at cleanup surrounded by EDLC and Stewart with the elite pitching, the Reds could see, for the first time, attendance of 3 million plus.
The reason not to do it is because they’d have to fill in roster spots 15-26 with AAA guys. You’d see days of the Reds running an OF of Dunn, Hinds, and Benson, and each of them rocking a 75 WRC+. I’d rather use 25 mil to raise the floor and bet on some combo of Elly, Noelvi, Sal, and McLain to take a step forward and make the offense work. Rather roll the dice on those guys than the Dunn/Hinds/Benson types who’d be in the lineup if all the $ went to Schwarber or Alonso.
I would also note that 2027 is most likely a lockout to start the season. A historically large contract from the club is going to be tempered by the thought that as much as 25% of it may be disputed while no one is playing or making money.
But that’s a peril for every team. $25-$30m is a lot more for the Reds than the Red Sox or Phils.
And what about the closer and 2 or 3 good relievers they still need? You can’t count on anybody else in the organization besides Tony. They need good arms for the bullpen. That costs money.
Yep. Since they are NOT going to spend a great deal on a bat, play Hinds (hope they don’t re-sign Hays), and spend the money on the bullpen.
They were never going to excised the $12 Million on Hays, so I’m not sure that money was really freed up.
Part of the money should go to a LHP reliever to replace Suter. Thompson basically replaces Barlow. I still think Andujar and O’Hearn are the best targets to try to go after given our budget situation.
Think Barlow and Suter are good cuts. Better a year early than a year late. Seems there are a lot of lefties in the central wouldn’t mind Hayes back to hit lefties at somewhere around one year five million. Playing less might make it easier to survive a season for him
This one is Hays, the other is Hayes.
I’m curious but not enough to look it up. It feels like the Reds almost automatically decline their team options 90% of the team. Any easy way to confirm that and will this have, or has it had, any negative problems with getting other free agents to come here?
Barlow was durable at least, but he was also very mediocre.
Sign a LHP reliever, Andujar and O’Hearn. That should be in line with what the organization wants to spend.
Good. That’s 3 solid decisions. I’m with most of y’all on those options.
If the Red Legs would have kept Hays, not serious about winning.
Didn’t realize Hays’ numbers were so bad after his hot start. I guess we were all hoping for more, then his inevitable injuries kicked in and he missed about a third of the season.
Suter devolved into a garbage guy. No wonder he danced like a maniac after they made the playoffs despite his horrible second half; probably got a bonus check.
I like Barlow at a reasonable price for his rubber arm and breaking ball. But all three of these guys are easily replaceable.
Those numbers really aren’t that bad. I bet if you took out the best 15% of games for every Reds player, Hays is probably still toward the top of that list. I like Hays but 12m is a little steep.
No surprise really. I wouldn’t be surprised to see Barlow back on a lower annual contract. Tito wouldn’t pitch Suter unless it was garbage time so he can’t tie up a roster spot.
My suspicion is the payroll will be higher than Krall is indicating. It feels like revenue is trending in the right direction and they will get a bump from a tv deal once they finalize one.
I’m pulling for signing Ryan ohearn and Andujar as hitting improvements and signing Lane Thomas to either platoon centerfield with TJ or replace him after TJ is traded.
Those 3 guys add some veteran leadership at Reds budget level and enable another 10-15M$ to be spent on pitching side.
This gets us to about 105M$. It Kyle Schwarber wants to play in Cincinnati for 20$M per year, might get him. But if he wants more than that, he can probably find it and we have to be ok with that. Dodgers can have any player they want.
Freddie Freeman got $27 million a year at Schwarber’s age. So I expect it to be somewhere around there. I like O’Hearn but I would prefer to take a big swing (literally).
CF: Friedl
LF: Steer
SS: De La Cruz
DH: Shwarber
1B: Stewart
RF: Marte
C: Stephenson
2B: McLain
3B: Hayes
I would love to see that. If Stewart keeps progressing, and I think he will, that lineup can win.
Same lineup as last year with one addition (Schwarber who is 33 on opening day). I don’t share your enthusiasm.
Schwarber is 32 just put up 4.7 WAR.
Freddie Freeman is 36 and just put up 3.5 WAR.
They are both lefty power hitters. And Schwarber will not be playing the filed much and putting wear and tear on his body.
You can sign Schwarber to a 4 year deal. It worked for Freeman.
Adding one guy of Schwarber’s caliber to the lineup is 1/9 players or 11% of the lineup. That’s a bigger difference tan you think. And Sal Stewart only played in September. He is essentially a new addition to next year’s starting lineup.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/mlb/3-potential-fits-for-all-star-free-agent-slugger-kyle-schwarber/ar-AA1PRGVY?ocid=entnewsntp&pc=U531&cvid=690c535f43ab4c2890d734588855c872&ei=14 Reds one of three good options for Kyle Schwarber per this article.
You can forget about Schwarber or Alonso (or any quality free agent for that matter). If Krall’s statement about the ’26 payroll is to be believed the team has approximately $20-25 million to play with, which would not get either of the aforementioned.
By declining these three players the Reds now have 6-8 player positions to fill…and according to FanGraphs the current estimated payroll (after arbitration) sits at $95M. Who will they bring in? They could fill some of these holes internally…Hinds, Maxwell, Mey, etc. At this point, it is almost a given that Lowder, Williamson, Spiers and Aguilar will open next season in Louisville.
With all this in mind I think we can draw the following conclusions…
1. Brady Singer will be traded since (other than Jeimer Candelario) he is the most expensive player going forward with an estimated $11.6M arb salary. Possibly for a LF’er?
2. The Reds will fill the rest of the team by signing minor league free agents and/or players who have been non-tendered by other teams
All in all, I am not overly confidant that next year’s team will be any better that this past season…and quite possibly worse.
They’ll be better if Elly, McLain, Stewart, Marte play like all stars. They won’t get much better through free agency. (Few teams do).
There it is! The Reds hopes were built on “if”.
Agreed!
I think declining those options was a smart move for the Reds. It gives them some flexibility to make better decisions in the off-season. Looking forward to seeing what they do next!
Sweet. Let’s go SHOPPING!
Please, we’re going full turtle before the lockout after the next season. Late stage arb players like Espinal DFA’d, all options declined, our first signings are MLB minimum deals to guys in AAA last year. They aren’t going to spend any significant money or offer significant years. The Dodgers, Yankees, Mets, Red Sox, or Blue Jays will sign Schwarber.
I wonder how many teams will take the Red’s approach? I can see the big market teams spending like drunken sailors, fearing restrictions that a new CBA may bring, but who knows that may be wishful thinking.
Schwarber? It’s the same thing every offseason. Reds fans never learn.
https://www.bing.com/videos/riverview/relatedvideo?q=Charlie%20Brown%20lucy%20football&mid=4CBCF583DD903BB105684CBCF583DD903BB10568&ajaxhist=0
Except Lucy (The Reds in this scenario) are not pulling the football away. Fans are doing it to themselves at this point.
LDS- it’s amazing. Every year they think the front office is going to shell out big money to star free agents. Then Moose and Candy get signed and retreads are picked up for pitching.
I’d say the front office is holding the football. hahaha
The President of Baseball Operations stated two days ago that the Reds 2026 payroll will be about the same as it was in 2025.
Like it or not, they are not deceiving Reds fans. If you hear that announcement from Nick Krall and still think the Reds are going to spend $150 Million dollars on Kyle Schwarber, that’s on you not on the Reds.
You may not like the Red’s payroll decision (and I don’t like it), but they aren’t misleading anyone.
Yeah I know. Krall doesn’t come out and say they’re not going to sign Schwarber though. He doesn’t say they’re not going to sign EDLC etc. We all know the truth most likely.
The Reds dropped the 40 man roster down to 32 yesterday with declining the options on Hays, Barlow, and Suter. Mark Sheldon indicates that there is interest in all three returning at lower salaries however, “Meador said the door was open for all three to return.”.
The roster will go back up to 37 players today as the Reds add Lowder, Williamson, Aguiar, Spiers, and Callihan back onto the 40 man roster from the 60 day IL. Spiers may be the only question mark here of getting added back on since he will out for pretty much all of next season after elbow surgery. The Reds might consider not adding him back if they decide they don’t want to tie up that roster spot all winter.
That leaves the Reds with 3 open 40 man roster spots available to play with as they peruse the FA market and scan the waiver wire for additions.
I haven’t been looking too close at pitchers, but I did notice one semi interesting hitter that is available. Houston waived Pedro Leon who will be 28 next may and can play all three OF spots and 2B in a pinch. The RH batter missed most of last season with a knee injury, but in 2024 hit .299/.372/.514/.886 at AAA with 24 HR and 29 SB. That was his third season at AAA and he’s averaged about 20 HR and 30 SB over the three years there. He does have 28 % SO rate in AAA, but also a 11% BB rate. He’s got some warts but could be an interesting pickup if the knee is healthy. A link to his stats is below:
https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/player.fcgi?id=leon–000ped
Does he have options?
Yes, Leon is still a rookie and has 2 options remaining.
Leon didn’t last long…. The Orioles have claimed outfielder Pedro León off waivers from the Astros
I wouldn’t be opposed to having Leon in camp for a look, but he sounds like a three-year-older version of Rece Hinds at AAA in 2025, except for playing 2B “in a pinch”. But then Hinds could no doubt play 3B or 1B in a pinch, given his background.
For the record, Hinds’ 2025 AAA triple slash was .302/.359/.563 (.922 OPS) with a K Rate of 25.9%, BB rate of 7.9%, 24HR, and 21SB. Also, in 95 MLB PAs across 2 seasons, Hinds has an HR rate of 7.4%, an extra-base hit rate of 13.7%, and an OPS+ of 96.
But again, the more the merrier in attempting to bring some clout to the MLB level and perhaps displace some incumbents or at least increase the depth.
Yes, Leon would be there compete and it would be preferable for the younger Hinds to continue his development by carrying it over to the big league club.
But to hedge the bets, I’d bring in Leon and couple more hoping to find one hidden gem. Worse case, you may find a good bench piece for free.
Interesting point, Tom. Just the kind of low cost, high (upside) potential the Reds seem to look for.
The problem is, if he is signed and plays with the Reds, he might end up being a “bargain” but might not really move the needle as the High OPS player the Reds need to add to the regular line-up.
Ditto with Rece Hinds. He could be ready to break through into the Majors, but then again, 2026 could be an ML development year for Hinds, which is pretty typical of a lot of players moving from AAA to the Majors.
Stuart Fairchild is available too, now. 🙂
@Tom Re: your note above that Leon was claimed by the O’s. Let’s hope the Reds don’t try to slip Hinds, CES, or even Dunn through unless/ until they have a player in hand to fill the role these guys might.
It is a whole different game right now with the CBA shutdown looming following the 2026 season. Teams are looking to build for 2026 yet shedding money and avoiding commitments beyond 2026. Players who looked like sure bets to opt out are staying put for the money already committed to them in 2026.
Who can say what is going to transpire in the free agency market? Some guys may make huge one year paydays instead of multi year deals. On the flip side, younger guys with “warts” who are perceived to still have higher ceilings and be under team control when the CBA dust clears may be snapped up when exposed to waivers, when in the past they would have cleared.
@Jim, Yes, I agree, it will be very interesting to see how the free agent market plays out this winter with the CBA shutdown looming.
No more guys coming off injuries guys with no pop guys other teams don’t want. Suck it up spend the money and Get the big proven bat. This is the time!!!
Spend money wisely or don’t spend it at all. Save it up for when a worthwhile player becomes available.
For those interested, the Marcel and Steamer 2026 projections are out.
Links below, enjoy!
Marcel:
https://www.baseball-reference.com/teams/CIN/2025-projections.shtml
Steamer:
Batting:
https://www.fangraphs.com/projections?type=steamer&stats=bat&pos=all&team=18&players=0&lg=all&z=1762400610&sortcol=16&sortdir=desc&pageitems=30&statgroup=dashboard&fantasypreset=dashboard
Pitching:
https://www.fangraphs.com/projections?type=steamer&stats=pit&pos=&team=18&players=0&lg=all&z=1762400610&sortcol=16&sortdir=desc&pageitems=30&statgroup=dashboard&fantasypreset=dashboard
Thanks Tom!
Rays just declined option on Fairbanks. I would like to see the Reds go after him. Dodgers letting Gosolin go as well. Wouldn’t mind the Reds trying to work something out for him. Try him out in the bullpen when he gets healthy.
Reds activate all 5 players from the 60 day IL.
Reds waived Benschoter and Sanmartin. Sanmartin claimed by the Giants.
Reds add Jose Franco to the the 40 man roster.
Reds claim RH RP Roddery Muñoz from the Cardinals.
Reds transactions today:
11/06/25 Cincinnati Reds activated RHP Julian Aguiar from the 60-day injured list.
11/06/25 Cincinnati Reds activated RHP Rhett Lowder.
11/06/25 Cincinnati Reds activated LHP Brandon Williamson from the 60-day injured list.
11/06/25 Cincinnati Reds activated LF Tyler Callihan from the 60-day injured list.
11/06/25 Cincinnati Reds activated RHP Carson Spiers from the 60-day injured list.
11/06/25 Cincinnati Reds selected the contract of RHP Jose Franco from Louisville Bats.
11/06/25 Cincinnati Reds sent RHP Sam Benschoter outright to Louisville Bats.
11/06/25 Cincinnati Reds claimed RHP Roddery Muñoz off waivers from St. Louis Cardinals.
11/06/25 San Francisco Giants claimed LHP Reiver Sanmartin off waivers from Cincinnati Reds.
I wonder why Reiver Sanmartin wasn’t protected?