The Reds were competitive in 2021 but ultimately came up short of a Wild Card berth. Cincinnati now faces the potential departure of one of their middle-of-the-order hitters, which would leave general manager Nick Krall needing to find some other way to bolster the offense while restructuring a bullpen that was among the league’s worst in 2021. There’s a strong core already in place, but the pressure to supplement it effectively continues to build as the club’s window of contractual control over some key players gets smaller.
Guaranteed Contracts
- Joey Votto, 1B: $57MM through 2023 (includes buyout of 2024 club option)
- Mike Moustakas, 3B: $38MM through 2023 (includes buyout of 2024 club option)
- Eugenio Suárez, 3B: $35MM through 2024 (includes buyout of 2025 club option)
- Sonny Gray, RHP: $10.667MM through 2022 (no buyout on 2023 club option)
- Shogo Akiyama, CF: $8MM through 2022
Players With Contractual Options
- Nick Castellanos, RF: Can opt out of contract’s remaining two years and $34MM
- Wade Miley: LHP: $10MM club option ($1MM buyout)
- Tucker Barnhart, C: $7.5MM club option ($500K buyout)
- Justin Wilson, LHP: $2.3MM player option; if Wilson declines, Cincinnati holds a $7.15MM club option ($1.15MM buyout)
Total 2022 commitments (assuming Castellanos opts out and Wilson exercises player option): $90.467MM
Projected Salaries for Arbitration-Eligible Players (projections via MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz)
- Luis Castillo — $7.6MM
- Jesse Winker — $6.8MM
- Tyler Mahle — $5.6MM
- Tyler Naquin — $3.6MM
- Amir Garrett — $2.2MM
- Kyle Farmer — $2.2MM
- Luis Cessa — $1.6MM
- Lucas Sims — $1.2MM
- Jeff Hoffman — $1.1MM
- Nick Senzel — $1.1MM
Non-tender candidates: Garrett
Free Agents
The Reds hung around the postseason picture all season, even looking like Wild Card favorites into September. The Cardinals streaked to the National League’s final postseason spot near the end of the year, though, leaving the Reds on the outside looking in for the seventh time in the past eight years.
Cincinnati already made one key decision, signing manager David Bell to a two-year contract extension last month. Bell has been at the helm for three seasons of generally average play, but the front office was evidently pleased enough with his locker room presence and decision-making to give him some security moving forward.
With Bell’s status now certain, Krall and his staff can turn their full focus towards the roster. Nick Castellanos is all but certain to exercise his opt-out clause and test free agency, where he’d be a strong candidate to land a $100+MM deal. Going to nine figures wouldn’t be totally unprecedented for the Reds, but it would require a sharp turnaround from their most recent spending habits.
The Reds were among the most active teams in cutting costs last winter on the heels of a season with no gate revenue. Cincinnati traded away one of the game’s best relievers, Raisel Iglesias, in a move that amounted to little more than a salary dump. They sat out the offseason shortstop market and entered the year running an ill-advised experiment with Eugenio Suárez at short. And there were rumblings last winter about the Reds considering moving some of their arbitration-eligible starting pitchers, although there’s no indication such talks ever got particularly far.
It seems reasonable to expect owner Bob Castellini to greenlight more spending this offseason after a comparatively normal campaign. There’s a line between not further slashing payroll and winning the bidding on a top free agent, though. Even if Castellini signs off on a payroll near 2019’s franchise-record $149MM level — a significant uptick over this past season’s $132MM mark — retaining Castellanos while adequately addressing the roster’s other deficiencies could be a challenge.
Assuming Justin Wilson exercises his player option and Castellanos opts out, the Reds will enter the winter with a little more than $90MM on the books, in the estimation of Jason Martinez of Roster Resource. Exercising Wade Miley’s $10MM club option would push that total near nine figures. Cincinnati could buy Miley out and reallocate that money, but that’d require parting ways with a pitcher who quietly tossed 163 innings of 3.37 ERA ball this past season despite playing his home games in one of baseball’s more hitter-friendly environments.
Exercising Miley’s option and then putting him on the trade market could be something of a middle ground — allowing the front office to recoup some talent without taking on additional salary. Even in that instance, the Reds would be moving on from a highly affordable deal for a key member of the rotation, though. The most likely outcome still seems to be Cincinnati exercising the option and bringing Miley back, but that’d seem to further decrease the chances of a Castellanos return.
The Reds also have to make a $7MM decision on longtime catcher Tucker Barnhart. The 30-year-old is a career-long member of the organization who’s a generally capable backstop, but rookie Tyler Stephenson already looks like one of the better offensive catchers in baseball. It seems likely they’ll pay Barnhart a $500K buyout instead of exercising his $7.5MM club option. That’d give Stephenson the primary job, although doing so probably requires bringing in a cheaper veteran backup this offseason.
Elsewhere on the diamond, Jesse Winker has one corner outfield spot locked down after a second consecutive huge season. There’s no longer much doubt that Winker is one of the game’s best hitters, and it wouldn’t be a surprise if the front office kicks around the possibility of an extension. Winker is under control via arbitration for two more seasons. Projected for a solid $6.8MM salary already, he might not feel pressured into considering a below-market extension at this point. Still, there’s little harm for Cincinnati in at least gauging his asking price on a potential deal.
The rest of the outfield would be an open question if Castellanos opts out, as would the potential designated hitter if the position comes to the National League in collective bargaining this winter. None of Aristides Aquino, Shogo Akiyama nor Nick Senzel look like slam-dunk regulars going into 2022. Tyler Naquin probably did enough this season to lock down a spot somewhere alongside Winker, but either of center or right field (with Naquin manning the other position) would be an area of need.
The free agent center field market is barren behind Starling Marte and utilityman Chris Taylor, both of whom might price themselves out of the bidding for Cincinnati. Mark Canha could be a lower-cost alternative to man right, while Jorge Soler offers a broadly similar skillset to Castellanos (strong exit velocities with below-average defense) for cheaper, albeit with much less consistency at the plate. Avisaíl García, Joc Pederson and Kole Calhoun are among the other alternatives who could be available on the open market.
The outfield could be in line for some turnover, but Cincinnati could be content to fill next year’s infield internally. Franchise icon Joey Votto is locked into the middle of the order following an otherworldly second half. Jonathan India should probably win the National League’s Rookie of the Year award after hitting .269/.376/.459 to seize the second base job.
The Suárez shortstop experiment fell flat, but Kyle Farmer quietly stabilized the position with a nice season after taking over in May. A former catcher, Farmer adapted surprisingly well to shortstop and hit a fine .263/.316/.416 over the course of 529 plate appearances. He’s a 31-year-old utilityman who entered the 2021 campaign with a career .242/.297/.370 slash line, so the front office probably wouldn’t be entirely enthused to hand him the job again heading into 2022. They needn’t do that, though, since top prospect José Barrero looks poised to run with the position at some point.
Barrero hasn’t yet done much at the big league level, but he’s coming off a .306/.392/.592 showing in Triple-A. Baseball America slotted him as the top prospect in the Cincinnati farm system midseason, and the 23-year-old is widely expected to be a fixture in the dirt at Great American Ball Park in the not too distant future. Farmer’s quiet stability gives the Reds some leeway to be patient, but he could easily slide back into a utility role if Barrero begins to translate his immense talent into big league productivity.
For the first time in five years, third base looks like a question mark for Cincinnati. Not only did Suárez struggle defensively in his early-season move to shortstop, his offensive production cratered. Suárez hit 31 home runs, but it came with his worst walk rate since 2016 (9.8%) and a meager .198 batting average. While he still has the potential to do damage in any given at-bat, Suárez’s offensive consistency has dropped off significantly over the past two seasons, and the Reds began to curtail his playing time later in the year.
There’s a case for the Reds to look for an upgrade at third base, but that’d require pouring even more resources into a position where the club already has Suárez and Mike Moustakas on significant contracts. Moustakas will be looking for a bounceback season of his own after struggling to a career-worst .208/.282/.372 showing while being obviously hampered by a foot injury. It’s not an enviable position to be in, but the Reds seem likely to run things back with Suárez and Moustakas in hopes that at least one can regain some of his prior form. The front office certainly didn’t envision a Suárez/Moustakas platoon when signing those players to long-term deals, but that might be the best option for Bell to get production from that position moving forward.
The front office might also feel their work in the rotation is already done, particularly if they exercise Miley’s option. Luis Castillo rebounded from an awful first two months to post a characteristically strong second half. Sonny Gray had his third consecutive solid season after coming over from the Yankees during the 2018-19 offseason. Tyler Mahle is one of the better young pitchers around the league, and Miley’s coming off a very good season as mentioned.
The Reds could probably do better than Vladimir Gutierrez in the final spot, but top pitching prospects Hunter Greene and Nick Lodolo are on the doorstep of the big leagues and could be factors themselves next year. Cincinnati might look to add a low-cost innings eating type at the back end — especially if Miley ends up elsewhere — but the core of a potential playoff rotation is already in place.
A trade involving Gray or Castillo can’t be completely ruled out, since the club reportedly fielded offers on both players last offseason. Gray will make just under $11MM next season, while Castillo is projected for a $7.6MM arbitration salary. Both pitchers are under team control through 2023.
Cincinnati is looking to compete immediately, making a Gray or Castillo deal still seem unlikely. Krall downplayed the importance of trade talks involving their top pitchers last winter, characterizing those discussions as a matter of due diligence. More conversations of that nature will surely take place in the coming months, but there’s no pressing need for the Reds to force a trade involving either player.
The biggest priority for the Reds this offseason — aside from retaining or replacing Castellanos — has to be revamping the bullpen. Reds’ relievers were among the worst in the league at preventing runs last season, largely due to walk and home run issues. There’s a strong case, in fact, that the bullpen was the biggest reason they missed the playoffs.
Even after adjusting for park effects, the Reds outhit the Cardinals in 2021. The two teams’ respective rotation ERA’s (4.01 for St. Louis, 4.03 for Cincinnati) were almost identical. The biggest separator between the Reds and the NL’s final playoff team was a gap of more than a full run in ERA (3.97 versus 4.99) from the relief corps.
Making matters worse, Cincinnati’s best reliever, Tejay Antone, will probably miss the entire season after undergoing Tommy John surgery in September. Michael Lorenzen is set to hit free agency, as is deadline pickup Mychal Givens. The Reds can take a broad approach to talent acquisition, scouring the waiver wire and non-tender markets for relievers they like. But it’d be a surprise if they didn’t also add at least one obvious upgrade to the late innings mix.
To their credit, Cincinnati already did some of the bullpen heavy lifting at the trade deadline, picking up Luis Cessa and Wilson from the Yankees. They’re both likely to return, joining Art Warren and Lucas Sims as the top internal options. That still leaves some high-leverage innings to be shouldered though.
Ironically enough, Iglesias is easily the top free agent reliever available. Signing him is likely to cost a hefty three-plus year salary and potentially a draft choice, should the Angels make him a qualifying offer. It’d be a shock to see the Reds meet that asking price just twelve months after trading him away. Instead, they’ll look at least a tier down.
Kendall Graveman and Kenley Jansen might still prove too pricey for the Reds’ liking. The third tier of relievers — which includes players like Corey Knebel, Héctor Neris and Jeurys Familia — could still offer some much-needed help. If Cincinnati looks for a southpaw to pair with Wilson, Aaron Loup, Andrew Chafin and old friend Brooks Raley should be available without coming at prohibitive costs. The Reds could look for creative ways to bring in a controllable reliever via trade as well, just as they did this summer with the Cessa pickup.
Bullpens are often highly volatile, and it’s not hard to envision the Reds constructing a passable relief corps by hitting on just one or two offseason additions. But that’ll require identifying a few key targets from a group of pitchers that (Iglesias and Graveman aside) all come with their own question marks. Krall and his staff have surely already begun to pore over the possibilities, but any bullpen restructuring requires both an adept talent acquisition process and some element of luck.
If Castellanos leaves, the front office will need to figure out how to replace most of his middle-of-the-order production at a lower cost. They might very well have to bank on a repeat of last season’s marvelous production from Votto and a bounceback from either of Suárez or Moustakas. And they’ll no doubt have to hit on an addition or two to the late innings to fix a bullpen that proved untenable in 2021.
None of that is impossible, and the Reds’ rotation and handful of high-end position players gives them a contending core around which to build. There’s not much margin for error for Krall and his group this winter, though, and a bad start to next season would intensify rumors about potential trades involving Gray, Castillo and Winker, each of whom has a dwindling window of remaining team control.
The Reds have a real chance to be competitive in 2022, but they’re also in some danger of never realizing the full potential of this central group of players. How well they handle the potential loss of Castellanos and their hit rate on bullpen upgrades this offseason might ultimately determine whether this group can ever make a deep postseason run.
Bring David wells
Jesus. Votto, Moustakas and Suarez alone are going to eat up about $60 million in payroll every year for multiple years? That’s way too much for a team like the Reds. I live Votto but he is not a $28.5 million a year player. Moustakas and Suarez are just flat out way overpaid. They aren’t even very good. $30 million a year for those two is just insane. No wonder the Reds are disappointing.
With Bottom they are paying for the production in the front end of the contract, which is not a surprise. Everyone knew the backend of the contract could look bad. Suarez’s contract looked great early on. I don’t think anyone could have predicted his struggles. The Moustakas contract never seemed like a good idea – overpaying for a 3B when you already had Suarez and had moved Senzel from 3B to CF
I agree. They literally paid Moose like he was going to be Castellanos. That was insane. Those 2 guys never deserved the same amount of money. They should have never given Casty those opt-outs either. If I remember correctly the Reds were already offering Castellanos top dollar at the time. I’m pretty sure he would have signed with them without the opt outs. The Reds would have still been his best financial choice. It seems like the Reds just let the player agents talk them in to way too much. Now they are stuck paying Moose like he’s Castellanos. They are also stuck with Castellanos turning that $32 million they paid him into a pillow contract. He’s just going to leave and make more money elsewhere. At this point I’m convinced the Reds, Phillies, Angels, Mets and Yankees have no clue how to build a long term successful franchise for the money they spend. None of those teams seems to get the best bang for their buck unless it’s the Reds and they let the player opt out as soon as that happens. Where’s the upside?
Accurate assessment.. I agree.. Some bad decisions by Reds management.
All these comments are incredibly depressing to me as a Reds fan of 55 years. They were counting on several things happening last year that simply did not: Moustakas being good; Senzel being healthy (and good); Castillo being good right away; Garrett being even sort of good; Lorenzen being ready to go; Shogo being as advertised (a line-drive hitter, .280-.300, great defense), Suarez having his usual offense and playing adequate SS; Aquino developing. None of those things happened; instead, they had a horrible bullpen with no set closer until the trade deadline; they had deadly injuries such that Votto, Winker, Senzel, Moustakas, Antone, et al missed significant time. Some unexpected positives: India turned out to be great; Farmer was very solid; Stephenson was better than expected; and some good innings from rookie starters. But it seems all but certain that Castellanos is gone (not sure why; he had his best season, the fans love him and he could play under this year’s option and leave next year), Antone is gone for the year, they have no set closer or set third baseman, they have possibly two open OF positions and Votto can’t be expected to duplicate his amazing second half. They also simply haven’t bought into Farmer as a regular SS. Unless they actively try to reshape the roster and are willing to absorb some big losses on contracts, they’ll almost certainly be no better than .500.
Hey again. IMO am not sure if Castellanos would have signed with the Reds without the opt out clause. It seems like the Reds will always have to overpay to get top talent as players do not see small market teams with a realistic chance for glory. I think same with Moustakas. He was a hot ticket at the time and Reds to their credit were trying hard to win, had to overpay. No small market team should give a player their own opt out clause. I can not speak to the other teams you mentioned but the Reds can not afford to play like the deep pocket teams and need to build from within, suffer for 2-4 years and then have a reasonable chance at sustained success.
Moustakas was signed as a 2Bman, not for 3B. Jonathan India changed those plans for good with his hot start and ROY worthy campaign. Moustakas was never healthy this year; he very well could have a bounce back year. Suarez, on the other hand, hasn’t been right since injurying his shoulder. It would be a minor miracle for him to come back at this point.
earmbrister
It would be a minor miracle for him to come back at this point.
================================================
He had a great September. I seriously doubt he is finished.
Votto has earned every cent of his contract. Moose however was a poor signing from the get go.
Hey there. I agree with your comment about those three players right now. However When signed Moustakas and Suarez were much better then and no one really saw this kind of regression. Votto of course was signed as a cornerstone for the Reds for years to come. He was in my opinion worth it. At the time he was an MVP kind of player. At the end of a long contract no one really expects any player to keep up that level of play. Votto had an very nice second half of this season. I would be interested to see what his hitting would be like if he were are everyday DH.
If I were the Blue Jays, I’d check in on the chances of a Randal Grichuk for Mike Moustakas trade. The Jays need to get more left-handed, and the Reds will have an opening in the OF if Castellanos leaves. Then the Blue Jays could look to improve in the OF/DH area, and the Reds could look to improve at 3B.
SMOKE much. no one taking moose. unless you pay entire contract. only other way to trade him is like they did with homer bailey, take back a bad contract for our bad contract and hope. what does toronto need with an old light hitting veteran infielder, does the name travis shaw ring a bell… it didn’t work, they are not biting again.
@MikePaul So, you say the Reds would have to take a bad contract in return for someone taking Moustakas? Well, what do you think Grichuk’s contract is? That was the whole point of my trade idea. A bad contract for bad contract swap that would allow each team to fill a position of need. Both contacts have two years remaining, and the money isn’t vastly different. Some money and/or other players might would need to be involved also, but I think there’s a trade to be made there.
Not sure the Jays view Grichuk’s contract as poorly as you do, and definitely not as badly as the Reds view Moose’s. The Jays gave Grichuk that huge deal after hitting .245-.301-.502 in 2018 and in the 3 years since he’s hit .242-.286-.448. I’m sure they were hoping for more but I doubt they were realistically expecting much more than that. I know I’d much rather have the 30 year old outfielder owed 20M$ than the oftinjured 33 year old corner infielder owed 38M$.
Makes sense if prospects go to the reds not GREAT ones but some higher lottos
Huh? Grichuk has much higher trade value than Moose.
It’s not a bad idea, because makes use out of a bad contract, but Jays need to aim higher in in filling their hole at 3b
Akiyama has probably been the worst offensive player in the past 2 seasons thats seen extensive playing time. What a waste of money
This article and the general attitudes towards the Reds are much less optimistic than they were a year ago. But they’re basically returning the same team with possibly better options SS and in the bullpen. Castellanos made their lineup really deep, but I doubt anyone expected him to hit the way he did coming into this season. I think right now they’re still a 3rd place team, but if they hit on a couple of players they could make the Central very competitive again.
They aren’t basically returning the same team. They are losing their best offensive player, the rest get yet another year older and another closer to retirement. And with arb raises their payroll goes up. If they don’t add anyone to replace the offense then they are a Winker or SP’er injury away from competing with the Pirates for bottom of the division.
Yes, they are not the same team as a year ago. India has locked down the leadoff spot and everyday 2nd base job. Probably wins ROY award. Farmer emerges as solid ss both defensively & offensively. Stephenson becomes a plus offensive catcher. Naquin has best year in last several seasons. Schrock & Lopez provide hitting depth. Gutierrez wins 9 games as #5 sp. Their 2 best pitching prospects are at AAA & will be ready for ML next season. Additionally Reds had a very good draft in 2021 & have a lot of tradeable prospects. Reds are a better team than a year ago. While they have a lot of problems, none are overwhelming.
Hey all. The writer has done a good job breaking things down. While I love some posters accentuating the positives I feel there are more problems than the good things will cover. One positive I might add the DH probably coming. Could stick Moose there. If he can get in shape, loose some weight and not having to play defense his hitting may come around. As for the problems (most of us probably already know) will Votto continue to hit like he did for one half of a season? Will Moustakas and Suarez stay healthy and hit anywhere close like they did a few years ago? Will they be able to replace Castellanos with anyone close to his hitting? Will they be able to find any ABOVE average relief pitchers and finally decide on a closer? Will Gray and Castillo bounce back from inexplicable poor year? Then there is the x factor. Cardinals had a 17 game hitting streak. 17! Right at the time it meant the most. The Reds had a great chance of making the playoffs over the last month or so with their soft schedule of opponents and failed miserably. I think on paper the Reds had just as good or better team than the Cardinals. Where do we get the kind of players that have that kind of focus and determination? As a die hard Red fan of 45 years I will really be taking a close look at what our team will do this off season. IMO they need to add considerable amount to the payroll or trade away and rebuild for a contender in 2-3 years. No more .500 or worse mediocrity and then trying to put a positive spin on it at years end.
Hopefully he’s signs with the Marlins.
Declining the option on Tucker Barnhart would be a mistake. Both Miley and Barnhart would have value in trade at their option salaries.
But I can also see the Reds renegotiating a 2-3 year extension with Barnhart. He’s a natural platoon partner with Stephenson. And Stephenson can also be used as a DH or to spell Votto at 1B when he’s not catching. So Barnhart would still be used frequently even with Stephenson in the mix.
I wonder if things would have gone any different for the Reds if they hadn’t traded Raisel Iglesias.
Assuming he pitched with the Reds the way he did with the Angels then of course things would have gone differently. Look at the circus of relievers the Reds used this year – many of them would not have seen the light of day with the big league squad had Iglesias taken the top slot and everyone else went down one. One of the worst trades in Reds history if you ask me, they got back a half eaten bag of big league chew just to dump some salary.
Maybe Washington could be a partner for either Moustakas or Suarez. Moose veteran lefty could platoon with Keiboom & help his development, or I thought there were rumblings Washington had interest in Suarez last off-season. Moving the salary of one of those guys is a must to try to keep Castellanos.
If I were a team that’s looking to transition from rebuilding to competing and had some money to spend, I would look hard at Suarez. Pitchers may have figured him out some, but he seems very likely to improve over last year. I think the Rangers, Marlins, Nationals, and maybe the Tigers should be kicking the tires. And the Reds should consider paying some of his salary to improve the potential return.
His decline started immediately after he had shoulder surgery. He finally started looking like 2019 Geno at the end of the year so hopefully 6 more months removed from his injury brings him somewhat close to his old self
The Mariners should also be interested if they don’t bring back Seager.
Tiger have Candelario at 3B, and Torkelson about to arrive. No room for Suarez.
Ditto fir the Rangers, Jung about to arrive. No place to put him.
Either Moustakas or Suarez could fit with the Nationals. Each can handle both 3B and 1B and could transition to 1B full time if Bell moves to DH or departs in free agency after 2022. Reds would need to add a prospect and/or could take Will Harris to help offset some of the salary.
Trading Suarez would likely be a big mistake, imo. $11M per, plus an option, for a player probably 2.5-3.0 WAR, is a good deal. My guess is that the issues related to his weak 2021 performance were related to the fact that the Reds’ GM didn’t realize that they didn’t have a shortstop on the roster.
No way they non tender Garrett. AG had a bad season, no question, but you don’t non tender a player who still has the potential to be a very strong bullpen piece, AND…he’s a southpaw. The same people who would bail on him are the same people who wanted Votto gone for the last three years, and not because of his contract, but rather his performance.
With the three hitter minimum, Garrett can’t rely on being left handed. He is also a drama queen who becomes a liability when his fights started is the most impressive stat.
True.
In 2019 he was getting players out on both sides of the plate. You don’t throw away talent like that, and it’s passion, not drama. I also want that player that’s not afraid to charge an entire dugout that’s plunking our players and running their mouths!
It is definitely drama. Charging the Pirates was sticking up for his teammates. After that he decided to focus on running his mouth instead of pitching and is constantly in the middle of some sort of altercation.
The Reds are going to have to penny pinch due to all the arb raises, I see little chance of Garrett returning.
Garrett seems like a change of scenery candidate to swap with another team. Like the trade the Reds and Rockies did last offseason with Robert Stephenson and Jeff Hoffman.
Hey there. You are correct AG still has potential but the Reds have had him for years and have not been able to fix him. I wonder what his problems are? Could he spend time in AAA? If the Reds are going to be contenders for next year they can not play retreads, maybes and projects in the bullpen.
Yeah, but is he really worth more than $17M/yr? That’s a difficult question given his defensive acumen. On the other hand, would a team like the Brewers find that offense worth $17M/yr in game 4 again? Yep! Pay the man!
Among all issues, perhaps one of the most critical is the 3B. On one hand, both Suarez and Moose struggled mightly last season, and on the other they cannot yet be categorized as platoon players. One of the other shall be traded and allow the other to regain form, considering that Suarez showed what’s capable of during the last month and Moose was just barred by injuries.
God bless Reds fans, man. When a reliever becomes too “pricey”, you know ownership is awful. Screw you, Bob.
Votto and Moose are 95m over the next two years!? Holy moly. That’s mind numbing
With few exceptions, relievers are like Forest Gump’s box of chocolates, “You never know what you’re gonna get.”. Certainly the Reds need to improve upon last year’s almost 5.00 ERA out of the pen. Two of the better arms (Lorenzen and Givins) might walk. Reds should make a solid attempt to bring both back.
Elsewhere, Hector Neris proved he’s a solid late inning reliever, albeit not in the ninth inning. Phils have Seranthony Dominguez finally healthy and may opt to not to re-sign Neris. I’m not ready to boot Garrett to the curbs as some are. Big, tall lefties who can throw hard don’t grow on trees, and if they do, please keep those trees well watered.
Also, and this is an old song with him, Senzel needs to find a way to stay on the field. He’s an everyday CF with speed and pop. If he’s good-to- go in spring training, then all the Reds need is a platoon partner for Naquin and the outfield is pretty much set.
Lastly, Tucker Barnhart may be one of the most underrated catchers in all of baseball. Is he worth $7.5 million? On this team, I say, yes. Stephenson will get 400-450+ at bats at C, 1B, 3B and occasionally in the OF. He’s a Swiss Army knife in the vein of Farmer, only younger, less expensive and with more pop.
Note: The NL Central is not a powerhouse. Probably the weakest of the three NL divisions. If the Reds can improve by 10 games in 2022, that may be enough to win their division and/or grab a wild-card slot.
Oh, and don’t forget. We should be better on defense this year as a number of games were probably lost early on with Suarez at SS and Moose at 2B. Neither one should play those positions in 2022. I’d put Moose at 3B and hope he stays healthy and the bat can deliver a .250ish average with 30+ HR. They say, if you can play SS you can play anywhere on the dirt or the grass, maybe Suarez can find a home in the OF? JMHO, but no way the guy hits below the Mendoza line this year.
Heck, even Mario Mendoza’s lifetime BA is above the Mendoza line!
Not a chance with the brewers pitching. That team can coast to 95+ wins in this division.
Stephenson will not play a single inning at 3b or OF. Where did you get that information??
How do the Mets and Padres fire their manager after their collapse towards the wild card? Then after the season, St. Louis who won 17 straight games ,fires their manager who won the wildcard spot.But We decide to resign this dumbbell for two more years WHILE he takes this team down the drain during the wild card chase?????
Extremely poor direction
Reds can definitely make a 2nd Wild Card spot push next year. They need to push all the right buttons for that to happen though. Givens has to be resigned, as he was fantastic for them in the 2nd Half. If Castellanos opts out, either resign him for more money or get aniother offense-heavy free agent for the OF like Marte, Garcia, or Bryant. Also, signing a decent 4 to 5 starter would be smart(James Paxton, Garrett Richards, etc).
He’ll stay and get the start of a new Big Red Machine. They’ll get another 2 or 3 WS.
Could see the Red Sox replacing JD with Castellanos
Almost no chance.
1-I doubt JD leaves.
2-If JD leaves, they will move Devers to DH., and either Bogaerts or Dalbec go to 3rd.
JD already said he’s not leaving. Reds extend Castellanos..
This payroll is a complete disaster for a small market team. Reds are staring down mediocrity and an inevitable rebuild.
Not sure about that assumption. Could Wilson really not just more likely decline his player option and sign a contract for greater than 1.15 mil?
At the risk of upsetting many of you…this is my take at each position. Votto’s numbers were great. He can’t be expected to repeat them, but even if he comes close, if he stays healthy…who knows. India at 2B is a no brained…enough said. Farmer at SS. Let Jose earn his spurs. I’m not impressed with him. Farmer for me. Suarez at3B. The off-season should give him more time to rehab that shoulder. Until it’s been proven different, he keeps the job. Left field is Winker’s job to lose. Centerfield…Naquin should do fine…he’s got HR power and needs to be in the lineup. Rightfield…the jury’s still out on Castellanos. Has anyone noticed that he’s been silent for a long time about what he’s going to do. Could he wait until the offseason to see what moves are made? I wouldn’t count him out. Most people here are of the opinion that it’s a foregone conclusion that he’s gone. Only Castellanos knows.If he does leave…the spot is open for discussion. I liked the idea of using Moose as DH. Maybe that will give his foot plenty of time to heal. Pitching..I almost think Lorenzen should be brought back. Maybe Givens as well. I don’t know why people are so down on Gutierrez. He comes back. Your fifth starter should be Wade Miley. He’s a lefty and he had a no hitter to his credit. The bullpen is again something that needs to be discussed. What do you guys think?
Hey there 1975Reds. In response agree Votto and India are locks. Farmer would be fine at SS but Barrios needs at bats in the majors to earn his spurs. As for Suarez, as far as I know his shoulder has been fine for quite a while. I have not heard anything to the contrary from him or the team. As for Winker his position is a lock. Everyone’s position is theirs to lose if they do not perform. I disagree a little bit about Naquin. He had a career year but was pretty streaky with his performance. Having said that he probably will start given the Reds lack of money that they are willing to spend. I don’t think the jury is out on Castellanos at all. Unless he takes a team friendly raise because he loves Reds so much and does not mind losing then he is gone. As for Moose I agree and have posted a few times what you suggest putting him at DH. He needs to stay off his feet and also get in shape in the off season. I strongly disagree about Lorenzen unless he can develop a reliable breaking ball. He reminds me a lot of Raisel Iglesias. Always had to keep fingers crossed and take antacids when ever the two of the pitched. Way too many blown saves and homers given up. Givens would be okay to bring back if the price is right. Gutierrez should be given a starting position. He earned it even if he did fade down the stretch as did most of the rest of the team. Miley should come back as Reds would be hard pressed to find same quality starter for the money. The Reds have way too many question marks this upcoming season to be any better than they were this year. Very sorry to say if they do not upgrade the payroll substantially or start a rebuild we are in for .500 or worse team. Mediocrity and at end of the year never ending platitudes trying to put positive spins on another waisted season.