Reds Offseason Targets for this Offseason

              With the MLB Winter Meetings coming to an end yesterday, the Reds have landed the 9th overall pick.  This would be the second consecutive year the Reds have a top 10 pick, which is critical to the farm system development for the future, however the Reds need to win now.  After receiving scrutiny for the past couple years, despite the Reds having slightly above average seasons, they are yet to make the postseason since their 2020 covid campaign.  With the amount of raw talent that is returning to this year’s squad, I was interested to see what ChatGPT had to say about their upcoming season, and with that the ai generated response had the Reds record sitting at 86-76.  This is very doable, with the plethora of high-end starting pitchers such as Hunter Greene, Nick Lodolo, Andrew Abbot, Nick Martinez, and now Brady Singer.  In addition, the Reds core players such as Elly de La Cruz, Matt McClain, and Spencer Steer, can keep fans coming to games for years to come.  Despite these players, the Reds are missing some huge pieces in their offense.

              This upcoming offseason is weird compared to last year’s, that is because the budget has been cut in half due to the Reds being invested in the now bankrupt Bally Sports telemarketing agency.  This will limit the amount of money eligible for qualifying free agents in the market right now.  After the last free agency, I was quite disappointed for a couple reasons.  First off, the Reds had so much money to spend, with a ton of rookies on rookie contracts, and Ken Griffey Jr. was their highest paid player for the 2023 season since he chose to defer a majority of his contact with the Reds, meaning they had money to sign some big names.  Although, I think they made some strange decisions.  For example, signing a 30-year-old for 4 years and over 60 million, Jiemer Candelario seemed to not fix any of the Reds critical options they needed.  With the infield already being clogged, they chose yet to sign another infielder, rather than chasing a big bat such as a Cody Bellinger.  These philosophies can help the Reds to specialize in free agent targets for the upcoming offseason.   

              For this year, the Reds have primarily been interested in signing outfielders and pitchers.  With the Reds sitting in the bottom third of the league in outfield offensive production, the Reds need a solidifying bat out there in right field or center field.  Rumors from MLB network, is that the Reds are pursuing Teoscar Hernandez, a power hitting outfielder who is coming off a thirty-homerun season in which he won a World Series with the Dodgers.  In addition, trade rumors have surfaced between the Reds and the White Sox.  This, I think, could be a make-or-break trade for next year that I personally would love to see.  The White Sox would offer up a Cy young caliber left-handed starter Garret Crochet and Silver Slugging, All Star outfielder, Luis Robert.  The bat especially would fit perfectly into the Reds lineup as a leadoff hitter and center fielder.  The bottom line for the outfielders they are chasing is they need production, and that is exactly what Luis Robert would bring.  The centerfielder is coming off a down year, only slugging 14 homeruns, however, in previous seasons he has been around the 30-40 range, and as a young talent the Reds could have him for a couple more years if they choose to re-sign him.  Although, as a trade works, the Reds would have to give up fan favorites, such as Andrew Abbot, and Nick Lodolo, who are both left handed starting pitchers.  In addition they would give up their 5th overall prospect Cam Collier in the deal as well.  Me personally, seeing both those starting pitchers move would not be a bad thing, due to the fact that the Reds have already picked up a 6th starting pitcher in Brady Singer for Jonathan India.  Lastly, the Reds are in negotiation talks with outfielders Jesse Winker and Anthony Santander.  For Jesse Winker, he had a career resurgence last year, proving his power and bat to ball skills are still there, and this would be a coming home experience for him as the former outfielder had been an All-Star for the Reds back in 2021.  This could be a smart move, as he hits very well in the hitter friendly park, Great American Ballpark, and we could see a similar season from his 2021 campaign if he chose to return home.  For Anthony Santander, he is a previous all star and silver slugger, who is a little older as he is closer to the low thirty mark. But, his switch hitting power bat would again be of high importance as the Reds floor is already low enough, it would not be hard to exceed expectations from a guy like Santander.  Ultimately, be on the lookout for the Reds to primarily sign or trade for outfielders, because if they were to have a good outfield, the Reds would have the potential to win the division or secure themselves a wild card by the end of the year.