The Reds have released right-handed reliever Carlos Contreras, tweets Zach Buchanan of the Cincinnati Enquirer. Buchanan further notes that Contreras had been placed on waivers upon being optioned to the minors earlier in the week, and he subsequently cleared, paving the way for his release. The team’s 40-man roster now stands at 38 players.
Contreras, 25, has spent parts of the past two seasons in the Cincinnati ’pen, compiling a 5.51 ERA with 7.2 K/9 against a more troublesome 7.0 BB/9 across 47 1/3 innings. The 5’11”, 215-pound right-hander has averaged nearly 93 mph on his heater in that time, and he missed plenty of bats at the Triple-A level last season, albeit with the same lack of control he’s displayed in the Majors. In 39 2/3 innings with Triple-A Louisville in 2015, Contreras posted a 55-to-30 K/BB ratio to complement a strong 2.95 ERA.
Baseball America previously ranked Contreras as highly as seventh among Reds farmhands. Their scouting report that year, prior to the 2014 campaign, praised his plus fastball and changeup, also noting an improved slider that gave him a chance to remain in the rotation. However, BA also noted that Cabrera’s arm action led to control problems that could impact his future, and clearly those concerns have diminished his contributions to this point.
It’s unclear at this time what prompted the Reds to release Contreras rather than keep him in the minor leagues. It seems possible that an overseas club had some interest in Contreras, given his quality ERA and strikeout marks in the upper minors. If that’s not the case, Contreras will look to latch on with another organization. Having just turned 25 in January, Contreras would figure to pique the interest of other teams on a minors contract.
That’s surprising, I remember reading this guy has pretty good stuff. If the theory about a team overseas wanting Contreras turns out to be untrue I’d like my Sox to sign him if they can get him without adding him to the 40 man roster. Too much talent on our 40 man, even for a guy with pretty good stuff like Contreras.
Let’s dial back the “jump into every post and talk about the Red Sox” trend..
Sorry bro, I just thought there might be a fit with Contreras and my Sox, I guess you haven’t heard anything?
As a sox fan I apologize for him… We aren’t all like that lol
Lol exactly what I was thinking
Thank you.
Don’t you have anything better to do than wait for every new post so you can post something stupid about the Red Sox? You think they should pick up every player and that their team is the best in the MLB. People like you are why certain fan bases are hated.
Ease up!! He’s a baseball fan who loves his team and likes to talk ball. There’s nothing wrong with that. If you don’t like his posts..don’t read ’em!! Maybe it would be nice for you to spend more time enjoying the game rather than criticizing what people have to say!!
It’s the same stupid stuff on every single post. When I’m reading through its hard to not read it because the other responses to him make me laugh. Other people feel the same way as me.
Everyone feels the same way as you.
I cringed every time he entered a game.
2015 Reds in a nutshell: Jason Marquis starts the game, two of your relief options are Kevin Gregg and Carlos Contreras.
Except marquis and Gregg weren’t in Cincinnati that long, and Contreras didn’t pitch too often either
I thought they misused him when he was brought up. they never had a set role for him and it is hard to get a rhythm when you pitch 2 good innings then do not pitch again for 2 weeks. then he would go 1 batter then not be used again for another week then be used 2 days in a row and get bombed. maybe somebody that knows what they are doing will pick up and use him properly.
Wow, something must be pretty awful with his mechanics that they don’t even want him in the minors at age 25 to refine some things to make him serviceable at the big league level. If you think about it, this move is pretty darn telling considering the situation the Reds have been in with pitching. They used a HISTORIC number of starting pitchers last season…essentially throwing handfuls of poop at the wall, hoping something/anything would stick. So essentially, a team that is starved of proven MLB ready starting pitchers wants nothing to do with this kid at age 25, even though he obviously has a live arm. That is quite an indictment on the young man.
This question is for all of you die hard Reds fans:
Behind Homer Bailey, realistically, what is your guys rotation going to look like this season? Can you guys tell me your projected 5 man rotation coming out of ST? And also give me the next 3 guys on the depth chart that could be called up when and if the back end pieces falter early on?
Contreras was the first cut of the spring… I think both that and the fact he wasn’t optioned to the minors came as a surprise to most people, although he has between few and no supporters amongst Reds fans. My (totally unsubstantiated) guess is something about his behavior bothered the Reds. They’re keeping other guys with mechanical problems. Contreras wasn’t a rotation candidate though, he was moved to the bullpen in 2014.
Reds starters, including injured guys…
RHP Homer Bailey (recovering from TJ surgery)
RHP Anthony DeSclafani
RHP Raisel Iglesias
LHP John Lamb (huge strikeout rate, but will start the season late)
LHP Brandon Finnegan (now a lock due to injuries)
RHP Michael Lorenzen (resting a strained UCL)
RHP Jon Moscot
RHP Tim Melville (health is his main asset)
RHP Robert Stephenson (needs to start in AAA for service time)
LHP Cody Reed (see Stephenson)
What the rotation looks like when depends on who is healthy. Moscot and Melville, in particular, would only have very tentative holds on rotation spots that they’d only get due to the unavailability of other candidates. Stephenson and Reed have both had good springs, and when they get promoted is probably relevant to how the rotation does.
There is something pretty awful with his command – 5 BB/9 IP in the minors, and he’d be burning his final option year.
If they were healthy their rotation would be Bailey, Iglesias, DeSclafani, Finnegan, Lamb. They aren’t healthy…Lamb and Bailey will start on the DL, their 6th starter Lorenzen is also hurt. Their current #4 is probably Moscot, and who knows who their #5 will be.
They have a lot of guys who could potentially see action this year; Stephenson, Reed, Davis, Garrett, Romano, Mella, Romano, Travieso, and Mahle.
Rookie Davis, Garrett, Mella, Travieso and Romano make up the AA rotation, and are highly unlikely to debut in 2016, at least not before September. Mahle is probably headed to advanced A ball, and is even further away. Some want Romano fast-tracked as a reliever, but there’s been no indication that that might happen yet.
What would we do without you RFM? I don’t disagree that they are unlikely till year end – as I stated “potentially”! Thanks for adding nothing.
I wonder if Carlos would be willing to sign a minor league AA contract with the Pirates and work on becoming a starter once again.
I am a big pirates fan, but I respect Price as an evaluator of pitching talent and mechanics…if he was willing to sign off on his end to just let the kid walk for nothing in return something doesn’t sit right with me about him. If I’m the Bucs, I would steer clear.
And thanks for sharing your knowledge reds fans, I like learning more about other organizations in the central.