Cincinnati Reds Predicted To Sign Pete Alonso, Josh Naylor, Eugenio Suarez or Emilio Pagan by MLBTR

Cincinnati Reds Predicted To Sign Pete Alonso, Josh Naylor, Eugenio Suarez or Emilio Pagan by MLBTR

Hi, Nick Kirby here joined by Mike Hart. Pleased to be with you today as the offseason uh TX along for Major League Baseball and uh more importantly the Cincinnati Reds. Uh Mike, we had a lot of news. Not really a whole lot of like big massive news, but there was a lot of interesting things last week. So far this week, it’s been slow, but yeah, we know that can change pretty quick. Yeah, especially with the GM meetings going on. You never know. They’re all talking to each other. We might wake up tomorrow and a trade was made. So, uh we’ll see. We’ll see for the rest of this week. I I would uh put the over on uh uh half of a video uh that you’re going to have to make later on in this in this week. Half of a video. All right. Well, we’ll see about that. Um we do some cool stuff. Actually, Mark Sheldon, I’ll go and mention it now, is going to be on uh the Stone Shield Show 11:15 a.m. on Wednesday uh morning. Um so, be sure to check that out live on Chatterbox Sports on YouTube. Uh we’re going to put that uh interview into the Chatterbox Red’s podcast feed by Thursday morning as well. Um so, that will be coming and we’ll have hopefully some more content as well this week. Um, coming up on today’s show, uh, we’ll talk a little bit about some of the the Red’s news, some interesting interesting tidbits. We’ll run through all of that, including the Arizona Fall League. Uh, and then, uh, uh, we will talk about four players that MLB trade rumors, uh, their staff predicted, um, well, their staff each predicted one of them would go to the Cincinnati Reds. So, we’re going to run through those four and see if they make sense for your Cincinnati Reds. But before we get to that, uh I know this time of year, um everyone’s always struggling to find gifts and it’s really hard if you’re a dude trying to gift another dude a gift. I know, like I’m trying to find my dad a gift. It’s always really difficult. Um but I tell you what, holiday magic is made easy with Omaha Stakes. Uh and uh if you’re a procrastinator like me, you can place orders by 6:00 p. p.m. Eastern and they ship the same day. Um, and right now during their sizzle all the way sale, you get 50% off sitewide at omahast.com. Plus, our listeners, Chatterbox Red’s listeners get an extra $35 off with the promo code Chatterbox at checkout. That’s not either or. 50% off sitewide plus the $35 off. Um, the steaks are absolutely incredible. Um, I absolutely love the gourmet hot dogs and the apple tartlets. Uh that’s a perfect holiday uh treat. I recently ordered their festive gift and free burger package. Mike, you had a fun uh experience with the gourmet dogs, huh? Yeah, I I ordered my Omaha steaks and it came in and I was making the big gourmet dogs and my son saw how large and great they looked and took it upon himself to cut it into uh manageable sizes. and I came back to the counter uh with my son having taken a pair of scissors to try and attempt to cut all of the gourmet dogs in half for me. Uh so uh we had um you know in pieces gourmet dogs still tasted great, but uh I was ready for my my uh nice nice big hot dog there and uh my son decided to you know hey you need to cut back a little bit and you’re going to only eat half of it. That’s heartbreaking. That was the best hot dog I’ve ever had in my entire life. Well, of course, save big with gourmet gifts and holiday favorites with Omaha Stakes. Visit omahastak.com for 50% off sitewide during their sizzle all the way sale and an extra $35 off. Use promo code chatterbox at checkout. Terms apply. Seaside for details. That’s omahastak.com code chatterbox. All right. All right. Well, Mike, let’s get into some Red’s off season news. Uh, the first one, we’ve kind of heard a little bit about the budget. Uh, Charlie Goldmith, the guy who typically puts out the best content in terms of um what you can find, he is estimating the Reds have 15 to$20 million to spend. Feels a little bit less. I think we were hoping for more of that 30 range. Um, it’s hard to predict all that goes into every piece of that, but 15 to 20, it’s not a lot. The Reds would have to be pretty creative to get some of the players we want. Yeah. is so the announcement initially was about the same as last year and that was right at 119 million is I’m looking at the the payroll for it and projected according to what they’re expected to play pay in like arbitration and things like that to um some of these players like Brady Singer Tyler Stevens and things like that it has it projected about 96 million so you know my initial thought was like 20 to 25 million and so being at 20 to 15 obviously is um disappointing especially when you know the person that I think most Reds fans want them to go get would take up that 20 million and some to get them to come and play because uh you know that’s how good Kyle Schwarber is. Um, so that it it feels like yeah, you know, as much as it pains you, Nick, Craig might be right that the Reds are not going to sign um Kyle Schwarber unless there’s, you know, a creativity basically sending out somebody or um, you know, making a trade to clear up cap space that you know, the thing is a lot of the things that we would be it’s like some of these hunter green trades or things like at we would be expecting major league talent back and it’s like so it’s you know what we would clear off with Hunter Green we’re probably not clearing off capwise because we’re still bringing on salary for major league talent. So I think it’s yeah it’s going to be tough. Um, you know, I it it’s interesting maybe we can uh discuss too about, you know, what the mindset is for a team going into this potential lockout year. And I would imagine the Reds aren’t going to be the only team that are going to be penny pinching for multiple reasons, right? Some of the smaller market teams are like, “Well, we’re trying to save money because we’re not gonna have baseball.” And I would imagine some of the larger teams are probably trying to save money because what happens if all of the they spend this money and then out comes a salary cap and they all of a sudden have to pair things down. Like we have no idea what that’s going to look like. So, you know, I I my my projection or my thought is that we’re going to see a pretty depressed free agent market and depressed moneywise. The the free agents might be depressed, too, but that like the the money I think is going to be down and and more importantly, I think the years are going to be down. we’re going to see a ton of one-year deals because it’s just like, “All right, we’ll pay you now and we won’t be on the books for whatever happens after 2026.” Seems like if you’re a free agent, you want at least two years. So, at least, you know, when you come back from the lockout, you’re not looking for a deal at the last minute because that’s going to be chaos. You might remember before, you know, the players, there was this like rush to sign players before the lockout that we knew was coming. Um, there was like a crazy, it was a really fun like free agency week uh in I guess that was 2021, November, early December, somewhere around there, right? Right before it locked out, there was like this crazy week of of crazy spending and then everyone was locked out and you can’t talk to anyone the whole time. Um, it’s crazy like even the broad even if you’re a team broadcaster, you’re not allowed to go on a podcast during that time. Say you are locked out from speaking. Um, and so uh yeah, that’d be interesting. You just I I would think, man, I’d be pushing for that. But, you know, they might have take a a significant cut to uh do that. You kind of hope, Mike, when you see this 15 to 20 million, you kind of hope it’s like when you take your kids to the store and you say, “We have 10 bucks. You have 10 10 bucks is your budget and, you know, and they go and they they see that Transformer and and you know, look, it’s it’s 13.99. It’s a little more, but look, it’s better than getting a couple crappy toys that you know is going to last a week. Go out and spend the $13.99, bring Kyle Schwarber home, and don’t get a bunch of toys that are going to be thrown in the trash in two weeks. Uh, that that’s my pitch. Uh, Red’s ownership. I was also thinking about um the last Cincinnati kid who was a superstar that the Reds brought in to you know come in and be a part of the franchise, Ken Griffy Jr. right and part of you know what came there was that he had I think looking at the his contract it was like 9 years 160 million but they deferred a ton of that money. Uh, I know that’s kind of the hot button topic with, you know, how much it’s being done by the Dodgers and things like that, but it doesn’t seem to be something that the Reds are often willing to do, but they were willing to do it in order to make a, you know, make sure that they could land their hometown guy to come and be a part of their team. So, um, he in fact uh was paid all the way till 2024. He received a $3.5 million uh from the Reds in 2024. That’s how long Kangri Jr’s salary was deferred. So maybe that’s a way that they’re able to work within the budgets of this year while still be able to in all provide Kyle Schwarber with the amount of money that he deserves based on his free agency or would command from other teams. Um you bring him in, he retires as a Red, he is a first ballot Reds Hall of Famer. uh and uh then you know he’s around and can you know you pay him into the future and that’s how you’re able to offset cost. So I don’t know maybe that’s an idea that I you know that the Reds don’t often do but the one exception is something that um we see a lot of parallels with. Yeah that’s a that’s a fantastic idea. There’s that account on Twitter. I don’t love to give these accounts like a ton of notoriety because I I don’t want to speculate like there’s supposed to be an executive burner account. uh from MLB Exec. I I’m not speculating if it’s accurate or not, but they did say Red’s owner Bob Castellini is entering his age 84 season. Son Phil now CEO when the elder Castellini passes, I don’t love saying this. The organization will be sold for at least 1.5 billion. That’s I guess the way speculating. So why not offer Hometown Kid deal he can’t turn down. Structure it with heavy deferred money. The next ownership group will pay. Yeah. I mean, I think you don’t want to have a ton of like um contracts hanging if you did sell the team, but I don’t think like one Kyle Schwarber is going to be like, “Yeah, you know what? We’re going to pass on buying this Major League Baseball team because you have a, you know, 10 or 15 million deferred.” Um, but yeah, I think that’s a fantastic idea. And it seems like if there was ever a I understand like you can’t do that all the time, but man, it just feels like if there was ever a time for the Reds, it would be like right now when you have this really, really incredible pitching staff that just desperately needs that one big massive bat. If now is not the time, then then I guess when is would be my question. Yeah, great point. I’d love it. Uh, you know, maybe if we talk about it on every Red Show for the whole postseason, the word will get out that, you know, they should do it. Maybe that should I think the word is out that I want Kyle Schwarber um at this point. Um, but yeah, I’m going to keep saying it and uh look, if it doesn’t happen, it doesn’t happen. I’m not going to sit and cry about it all off seasonason, but I do think it would be a massive missed opportunity and hopefully not one we’d look back in five years and go, man, Red’s had a chance to go at a big bat and they didn’t do it and this team just never got to anywhere. Um, moving along, uh, Reds have talked to Spencer Steer about moving all around back to the outfield mostly possible second base. Nothing set in stone. Obviously, the Reds like what he did at first base. I I I love this idea. I It’s serious. is just an interesting player because yes, he was really good defensively at first base, but he didn’t hit well enough to be a first baseman. So, you’re like kind of stuck in this this weird conundrum. So, for for the Reds, this is how I would view it, Mike. And I’m curious your thoughts. I view it as we need to get a higher upside bat at first base, but that bat has to produce. If South Stewart doesn’t produce, then Spencer Seir just plays first base every day because you’re you’re going to have the better defense. Um, CES is another candidate that could play first base, but if he doesn’t produce, there just can’t be a long lease there at first base. That’s how I kind of view it. Um, and obviously I think I think like steer out in the outfield is as especially maybe a platoon roll with Benson I think would be really great in left field. And when you say platoon roll with Benson, I still think he probably ends up starting 70 80% of the time in some capacity as a guy that can move around the field because injuries will happen. But I I love this idea. I love that the Reds just aren’t going into 2026, at least from the front office standpoint with Spencer Steer Pencil in as the everyday first baseman because he frankly just didn’t hit well enough over the course of not just the last year, the last two years. Yeah. And one thing that I think was kind of overlooked a little bit, I think you might have mentioned it at some point. Spencer Steer, I think by the end of the year, really started hitting left-handed pitching a lot better, which was, you know, really where I, you know, I think he made his bread and he like he he made his way on this team because of his ability to do that in 2020 and his way to the big leagues, his ability to hit left-handed pitching, right? So, you know, if that is able to come back around to where we think is level, which is, you know, somebody that can hit lefties well, I think there absolutely is a spot. I don’t love his defense in the outfield. I, you know, I also think whenever you’re moving guys around like that, it’s it’s tough. But we also saw just like a drastic improvement from him at first base. Now, obviously, first base and outfield, two different things, right? Um, but who’s to say if we say, “Hey, we want you to continue to get better at outfield. We don’t see an improvement out there um in left field.” So, you know, I I love having somebody that you can have the flexibility to do this. You know, I think of Ben Zist on those 2020 or 2016 Cubs teams, right? He you could put him wherever on the infield and maybe even, you know, in the outfield and you can you can feel comfortable about him being there. I I don’t, you know, feeling comfortable in left field uh is is maybe not something that I I would feel at the moment, but you know, I could get there with Spencer Steer. So, um I like having that that chest piece to move around. I think it it makes things easier for giving people days off, which Francona has been pretty vocal about, hey, maybe I needed to do a little bit more of that this year. So, having that flexibility, I think, is is something that is a very valuable asset to this team. Am I reading too much into this, Mike? When I see the words, Steer possibly playing second base, my head goes, uh, that means Gavin Lux probably isn’t on the Cincinnati Reds in 2026. Am I reading too much or is that a pretty big hint right there? Yeah, maybe. That’s uh I hadn’t even thought about that. Um but yeah, maybe he’s, you know, all of a sudden becomes the backup second baseman if uh a certain light-hitting DH is moved. Yeah. Uh moving along, Reds lost assistant pitching coach Simon Matthews to the Nats, who will be the Nationals new pitching coach. My only take away from this is good. I mean, this is good that your coaches are sought to be promoted um on other teams. I don’t really know a whole lot about Simon Matthews, but obviously the Red’s pitching um with with Derek Johnson has been elite and uh shout out to Simon Matthews. Uh best of luck in Washington. Yeah, and I I believe um the Phillies pitching coach also used to be a Reds uh pitching coach, Caleb Cawtham. So, I think there’s there’s a pipeline that people are realizing, hey, the Reds and and you know, if you really look at it, the Reds have turned into a very good organization for developing pitching. You know, we’ve had we’ve basically been able to with the exception of some heavy injury laden seasons just put together under Derek Johnson incredible pitching staffs that has carried terrible offensive teams. So, um you know, kudos to them. I’m glad that I hope that our the institutional knowledge is going to be able to next man up whoever the next assistant pitching coach is, but um yeah, it’s good to see somebody like that go and get a um go and get an opportunity to um help. And I’m glad it’s not somebody in the NL Central. and they got their work cut off for them this year because I think they’re going to need a lot of on the-fly bullpen pitching development in uh 2026 for this team to have success because they’re not going to be able to spend enough uh if they have 15 to 20 million to replace what they’ve lost uh in the bullpen. Terry Francona finishes second in the NL manager of the year voting. Uh for got two per first place votes coming from Pittsburgh and Miami. the two Cincinnati writers, Jason Williams, who I think was a politics writer that shifted over to baseball recently. I know he wrote in for sports in the past, and Gary uh Shatz, is that how you say his name? Uh both voted Tito number two behind Murphy. Uh Gary S, that’s what we’re going to call him. He’s an AP writer who wrote six articles in 2025, but got a uh manager of the year vote. He has been an a freelance AP writer since 1992 and also a Xavier stack guy since 1991. So shout out to you Gary, but kind of just fascinating that guy that I had never heard of. I don’t know if you had Mike. No. And we followed the Cincinnati Reds on a non-healthy basis. Um gets a vote for a major award. Yeah. Wrote just enough to stay in the BBWA or whatever. and cuz and then they just like pass it around per um you know sports market. That’s crazy. But hey, you know, I don’t know. Manager of the year to me is uh it’s like it it’s I don’t know. It’s a popularity contest. It’s I I don’t think they basically say, okay, who is a likable guy that their team overperformed? And I guess Terry Francona falls right in that. You know, their team overperformed. Obviously Pat Murphy’s team overperformed much better than Terry Frankona, but you know, while it I always like it when Reds get some sort of national recognition because I feel like it doesn’t happen very often. Um, you know, good for Tito. I’m glad. But as we can see from the Red’s voting base, you know, I’m not sure how locked into all 162 every every writer is. May I shouldn’t say that. Yeah, I I don’t know anything about Gary S. Maybe he follows the Maybe he tunes in to the postgame shows every just to to maybe he’s listening right now. Yeah, sorry. Yeah, sorry Gary. We don’t Maybe you are tuned in. I just uh you know, you’d think that the people voting on this are the people that are in the clubhouse every you know, every road trip. Yeah, I I’m stunned that Murphy wasn’t unanimous. Like, if there was ever a manager of the year that should have been unanimous, like how was Pat Murphy not? Pat Murphy first, Francona second, Rob Thompson third, um Craig Council fourth, Clayton Mcculla fifth, Terry Lavalo Lavell and Mike Schil each got votes. Um Mike, I’m going to put you on the spot here. Who would you have had in your top three? Uh, you know, somebody who’s not even on this list that I was thinking of is like, oh, yeah. You know, you know who I would love to see on this list would be Carlos Mendoza because I guarantee the Reds don’t make the playoffs if Carlos Mendoza doesn’t just absolutely steer that uh New York Mets ship right into uh a coral reef. Man, it was great. I think he should have gotten votes just for what he was able to do for the Reds. You’re gonna give me a serious answer? Um, one, two, three. Yeah. Um, uh, let’s see. I think Pat Murphy very clearly should have won. He’s number one. The thing is, you know, I I, you know, when it comes to all these other guy, you know, it’s just like who second the Phillies, I think you can ask any Phillies fans, they underperformed this year. Uh, the Cubs, they underperformed this year. Um, obviously they still they made it back to the playoffs. The Marlins overperformed, but that was a team that was uh you know, pretty bad just like it didn’t it didn’t have much life in it for you. Terry Lavo, they didn’t make the playoffs. Uh and Mike Schult is no longer the manager of the Padres’s. So, it’s like, you know, kind of a you know, where where are the votes going if it’s not going to Terry? So, I you know, I think I’d probably still have him in my top three. I I like Clayton McCulla because I think the the hand that he was dealt in Miami was quite bad and the fact that they were in it in the last week of the year and thank you very much for beating the Mets in the final game of the year to secure the Red’s playoff birth. So yes, I think I would have uh Terry in there. Maybe let’s go Clayton McCulla for the Marlins two and Terry Francona three. That’s my that’s my one, two, three. Yeah, I’m so Pat Murphy just like is so far ahead of everyone. It’s not even close. Um I would I would with you. I would have Clayton McCulla second. I think what he did was far more impressive than anyone else. And remember, this is a regular season award. The Dodgers only won uh 93 games. And only 93 games, that’s not a lot of wins for the amount of money that was spent on that team. Um I I for third I I would not give it to Frank Kona. Um, maybe I’m just a hater. I would not. Um, I I went between Rob Thompson and Craig Council. Yes, I think the the Phillies were an interesting case. I said still win 96 games. I actually think I’d have Craig Council third. I mean, the Cubs won 92 games. I think that kind of gets overshadowed just because of how incredible the Brewer season is. Remember, they lost Justin Steel like the first week of the season. They dealt with a lot of injuries. Um, I actually think I’d have Craig Council um um third. I think that it’s either him or Thompson. Um, that would be what I vote. But it’s it’s an incredibly subjective award. And this was not a good year. Like like Mike Shook gets fired as you mentioned. Tory Lavella, they they didn’t play really well in the second half. Remember, they sold off their entire team and they were in the playoff race into the final week and a half of the season. Um, so it was interesting year. I think that’s how I would go. Yeah. I mean, one thing to remember is the reason why we are down on Frank Cona is because we watched every single game of his and, you know, really didn’t agree with how he, you know, how he managed the X and O’s in certain in certain situations, his lack of wanting to play certain players over others, maybe even how he handled certain parts of the media and things like that. There’s a lot there’s a whole video about how you feel about that. Um, we didn’t watch any of these other teams enough to know, you know, to be able to have that that type of feel on whether Rob Thompson, you know, had his super, you know, uh, talented team but was, you know, not making very good platoon split decisions as well. So, I think that’s part of what makes this tough is just like the reason why we are skeptical about Terry Frankona is the reason why, you know, we also probably don’t know fully for some of these other guys because we’re just so locked in on ours. And I would imagine the the Marlins and the uh Pirates writer that gave him first place were like we just see a team that was, you know, under 500 make it to the playoffs for the first time and they got this new manager who’s a great quote. You know what I’m saying? So it’s just like from the outside it seems like yeah, he did a good job even though we who watched every game uh disagreed with some of his decisions that he made. Reds went three and 12 in extra inning games. The Marlins went 10 and4 over the course of the season. I think undefeated for a long time, too. Like I think they were like I think it was like nine and0 until they lost one or something like that. Let’s move on to something less fun. Uh Hunter Green Trade Rumors. Uh boy is this becoming a saga. Mike, uh the latest uh Bob Nightingale. Oh, I don’t have the quote in front of me. I’m going to skip Bob while I pull that up. Uh Charlie Goldmith said, “The rumors are overblown. trade not likely. Terry Francona downplayed the likelihood on the baseball isn’t boring podcast. Shout out to them. I went on their show once. Um downplayed the likelihood of it. Um basically, you know, saying he doesn’t think it’s going to happen. Bob Nightingale said, quote, “Despite their recent public denials, they still plan to listen to offers for Green. yet unless they’re completely overwhelmed and receive a return that will help them not only now but in the future they’ll keep him. So that’s I think Bob’s reporting in my opinion feels like the most spot-on that I think they are publicly denying it but I think there’s too much smoke for their not for them not to be at least fielding calls on this. Um, but I think if they’re not overwhelmed, they’re going to keep them. I think that’s exactly probably how how it is. That that’s how I read this. Yeah. Th this actually I’m going to do a crossboard comparison for you there, Nick. This to me feels like the Bengals saying yes, Trey Hendrickson is available to trade and then being like, we will only trade him for a first round pick. So, while it can be true that yes, they are listening to offers for Trey Hendrickson, uh, it was overblown whether they were going to trade him because it was not likely going to happen because nobody was going to meet their asking price. So I think in the same way it can be yeah the reds are listening but uh Charlie may be reading between the lines here and said I know what their asking price is and I know or I know is what their asking price is and it’s highly unlikely because there isn’t a team out there that’s going to provide something like that. So I think there’s a way in which both of those jive you know I don’t think it’s completely conflicting. Um it’s just um but I think you’re right. I think it makes sense. It makes sense for a team like the Reds to always be open to offers because maybe somebody does blow you away, but um I think it’s also right that you would keep your ace who is, you know, dramatically underpaid and under contract for a couple more years that you would keep that price high because that’s somebody that for a small market team can really help you um propel you into not only making it into the playoffs but doing something in the playoffs. So, um I think that’s kind of how I where I fall on this on this issue. All right. Uh Arizona fall league action. Um the Reds had uh four players selected to the fall stars game that was on Sunday. Uh Cam Kier, he had a 113 mile per hour single in his first at bat. Um overall Kier hitting 221 does have a 368 on base percentage in the AFL. Um Leo Balazar he walked and reached on an air. Balazar has really cooled off 0 for15 over his last seven days but has been very impressive still despite that hitting 277 340 on base percentage. Alfredo Duno played the game. He drew a walk which is what he does. Um but Duno’s last regular Arizona folly game though went three for four with a double and a triple. So nice to see him finish strong. Rhett Lauder selected but not pitching. He has been shut down there. Red said they’ve seen enough. They’ve they mission accomplished was the uh I believe the quote from Brad Meter about Red Lauder. Um Trevor Cel was not an all-star but he’s had a very impressive Arizona fall league especially for a guy who only has one pro season under his belt. uh 15 strikeouts in seven and twothirds innings, has walked six, gave up three runs. But Trevor Cunel, I think a guy to keep on on on keep an eye on. I don’t think it’s crazy to think that Council, if things go right for him, could sneak his way onto the big league roster in 2026. Now, the Red’s team, trying to say this right, I I looked up the pronunciation guide, Mike, let’s see if Google didn’t lie to me. The Peoria Havalanes. Oh, I had it and I had Havalas. Havalas. Havalas. It’s ha. It’s ha, but it’s like a depot. Havalas. Havalas. La Poria. Havalas. No, I’m not anymore. Anyways, the Reds affiliate, they play an elimination playoff game at 8:30 p.m. on Wednesday. It’s probably when you’re listening to this. Uh, that’s November 12th. If they win that single elimination game, then they move to a semi-final game on Thursday. And then if they win that, they move to the Arizona Fall League Championship Sunday 8:00 PM. That is on MLB Network. The other games are just streaming on MLB.com and a stream that’s not very lovely. But Arizona Fall League wrap it up. We’ll maybe do something uh to commemorate the Arizona Fall League season uh next week. Any thoughts on the Arizona Fall League, guys, Mike? No, glad to see Rhett Lauder. Mission accomplished. Uh he got out of there with no injury and um you know it it seemed like there was some rust but the velocity was back and um you know feels good. I feel good about him coming into next year being able to be a contributor on this team. All right. Well, before we get to the four players that MLB Trade Rumors says the Reds might just pick up, quick word from our sponsors. Deep South Commodities is a proud supporter of Chatterbox Reds and our deep drive of the day and DSC is a leader in renewable commodities for bofuel production specializing in used cooking oil collection aggregation and sales. Visit www.deepsouthcommodities.com for more information. Thanks as always to our friends at DSC. And we also want to remind you that you can call or text 988 anytime day or night. The 90-day suicide and crisis lifeline is a place to get support for anything related to mental health. Whether it’s an immediate crisis, simply wanting to find out how to connect with care, or anything in between. It’s a 100% confidential, secure, and anonymous way to reach out for help when you don’t know where else to turn. To connect, call or text 988 or visit mantherapy.org to get help. It’s okay not to be okay. All right, Mike. On Thursday of last week, MLB Trade Rumors published its annual top 50 free agents with predictions article and four players were selected each by one person. Now, they’re not saying the Reds are going to sign all four of these players. Uh they had four guys. They each picked one red to be signed. Uh those are Peter Lonzo, Josh Naylor, Au Haneio Suarez, and Amelio Pagan. So, we’re going to run through each of those players. We’ll start off with Pete Alonzo. Their one writer predicted four years, $110 million. That’s a 27.5 million AAV. That feels pretty low for Peter Lonzo. Yeah. I mean, he because he took the kind of the the short deal to opt out of and I think he got a higher AAV than even that. Um, and then I think he had a great season and uh Vladimir Guerrero Jr. got paid as well as a first baseman. Um, you know, kind of setting the bar nice and high. Now, will I think he gets that much? No, because he’s older and not as good. But, you know, whenever you set the bar that high, I I would imagine he’s getting more than that. And to be honest, maybe they did it because they think the Reds, you know, I don’t know, 27.5 million is, you know, more and then some from what we just reported the, uh, you know, the budget is for adding. So, um, it does seem low. Um, but I guess I’m not sure where we’re going to stand with, uh, with a lockout. I told you I think there it might depress some salary here a little bit, but um yeah, I I would be I would be surprised if he only gets that much in AAV um and what he got in what he returned, you know, what his ultimate signing is. Now, if in whatever world we’re in here that he does sign with the Reds, I I do like, you know, having a right-handed bat that has power to all fields, especially um and even though he plays first base where, you know, we’re already kind of seeing a log jam, he’s like he feels like the type of person that you can, you know, log, you know, figure stuff out. And another underrated part about Pete Alonzo, obviously we know about how good a hitter is. Uh very very good at scooping the ball. Um I think has led the league in scoops for the past two or three years. And part of that is Francisco Lindor loves throwing the little bounce pass to him. Um but that’s that’s not a bad thing when you have a or Ellie de la Cruz throwing to you. And um so it’s uh I think there’s a lot of different ways in which I think he could fit into the um the Red’s uh first base this this season. Now do I think I of of the three or four that you labeled this to me was the least likely. Um, I know like people like to predict it to the, you know, like putting the Reds in there, but I I just really don’t see a world in which Pete Alonzo is able to be, you know, we’re able to have the money or that he picks the Reds. I see a world where if the Reds could actually get him for four years, 110 billion that that’s the kind of move that ownership that we’re talking about maybe lets them push it. I think maybe they would for that. Maybe I’m maybe I’m drinking the Kool-Aid too much there. That just seems crazy low for me. If uh Spencer Steer and Pete Allonzo could combine forces, they’d be an elite first baseman because Peter Lonzo, while he’s good at scooping, is atrocious at everything else. He was minus nine outs above average. Literally terrible. I remember seeing a a video talking about how um the reason the Mets may not resign him is because they were worried about his defense at first base. So, has a hard time throwing, too. Like there’s there’s a bunch of video compilations of him trying to throw to home plate and it’s not it’s not good. Yeah. So I mean obviously like it’s it’s obviously it’s nice to have a guy that can play first base and Shbert obviously can’t do anything other than DH, but I’m not sure how much value Pete Alonzo really has overall as a fielder. Um but I will say this, like Pete Alonzo is right there with Kyle Schwarber in terms of like the the fan. um excitement it would bring. I mean, you signed Pete Alonzo, I don’t think anyone’s going to really care what the No casual fan is going to care what the Reds do the rest of the offseason. They like, they sign Pete Alonzo, wins opening day, let’s buy some tickets. I mean, it’s going to it would be that kind of move. Um I just that’s crazy low to me. But I will say MLB trade rumors, they’re the gold standard for this kind of stuff. So if they’re saying for 110, not saying take it to the bank, but I’m saying they they have some actual real reasoning for that. They’ve been right more than wrong and certainly right more than a lot of other sites. So interesting nonetheless. Uh shall we move along? Yeah, I love this next one. Josh Naylor, five years, 90 million. I love that. This will be an $18 million AAV. Um, I didn’t think Neil I thought Naylor would probably get a higher AAV than that. Um, but man, he’s a really really good good uh uh hitter, Mike. Um, has a really good track record. I I know there’s some concerns about his um his uh fitness and all that sort of stuff. Um, but he’s only he was only 28 years old. He’s way younger than like all these other free agents. So it’s not like you’re signing a guy that’s on the other side of of of 40s or of 30, not 40. Um so you’re not signing a guy deep into his mid30s or anything like that. I mean five years he would be what 29 30 or what? 33 at the end of that. So not long at all. This to me man feels like this would be the best of these four. Yeah. you know, 18 mil to or you know, AAV also, you know, fits in that in the combo that we’re talking about. It’s very interesting, too, because, you know, I think a lot of these guys, you know, with with Naylor and potentially Alonzo, too, right? It may be a better fit for them to say, “Hey, will you just you just be our DH?” And it I think that I guess I don’t I don’t know this for a fact, but I would imagine that Naylor would be more willing to be something like, “Hey, I’m just gonna DH, you know, every day type thing.” Or you’re I’m I’m assum that face makes me think you’re looking at his defensive numbers and uh they’re they’re not bad. Way better than than people think. Um yeah, uh he was uh plus two outs above average in 2025. 2024 he was plus one. 2023 he was plus4 at first base. 2021 plus one. So as a first baseman he’s been a solid defender. Um he’s just he’s not like super athletic obviously but if you watch him he makes a lot of really good plays at first base. Um obviously he’s not going to have the the range or anything like that. Um but I think he gets miscast. I think I think that people think Pete Alonzo is a way better defensive first baseman than he is because of his reputation and oh Nailaylor must suck at first base. It’s actually the opposite um in terms of the numbers. So um I don’t know the 18 18 million AAV I mean yes. Does that does that a deal like that for five years does it have the risk of being bad the last couple? Yeah, sure. Um but it’s not a crazy risk. I mean, it’s not you, you’re on the the right side of of of 20 million. So, to me, this is the one that I look at and I go, that fits, like you said, exactly maybe where the Reds are at. And, um, I I know when I talked with Craig last week, um, I I personally say if this is all you have to spend, just go get a legit hitter. And if you have to have scrap heaps on the bullpen, that’s fine. You can’t be throwing $5 million towards a reliever and then getting bottom of the barrel hitters. Um I I would rather roll with it and hope that you can strike gold with relievers because they’re just way more volatile than any of these other hitters we’re talking about. Yeah. Last year 112 WRC plus versus left easy. Obviously he’s left-handed and a 135 WRC plus against righties. So being able to have somebody for less than 20 million that is going to be able to like be above average hitter for both righties and lefties is I think huge. And you know to me Josh Naylor falls in, you know, the the Moneyball Island of Misfit toys, right? You look at Josh Naylor and you’re like that’s not a good baseball player, you know? But if you look at what he’s been able to do, um I think yeah, he could be somebody that that genuinely really helps this team. Um yeah, and frankly, I was um I I was also pretty shocked that this was something, you know, this was this this amount of money that was projected seemed low to me as well. And and you got to remember too, there’s probably if it’s a fiveyear $90 million contract, there’s probably optouts in there. something that we saw with um Nick Castianos, we saw with Mike Mustakis, things like that where it’s like there’s going to be I would imagine I guess I I I don’t know for sure, but I would imagine there would be something in there where, you know, he outplays 18 million a year and he then says, “All right, I’m going to free agency after two years.” And then the Reds could throw him a qualifying offer. He could deny that qualifying offer and, you know, first round comp pick. So, um, it’s, uh, you know, I think that there’s a lot of ways in which, um, I think that this could work well for the Reds and would be I I don’t think I’d be like Kyle Schwarber excited about it, but I would be excited that they went out and tried to do something to um, address the glaring need that the Reds have, and that’s a big power bat. Yeah. If if South Stewart doesn’t work at first base, I I think we have all the reason to hope and believe that it will, but if it doesn’t, just Josh Naylor makes a lot of sense. Now, if if you really believe in Sewart, he’s going to be the first baseman, then just going out and getting the Schwarber makes sense. Um, but there’s a world where Naylor is more impactful over four years than Schwarber if South Stewart can’t play first base in in my opinion. Um, so yeah, I I’m about I you know, Mike, to be honest with you, he can have opt outs after every single year. I don’t care. Like I would you sign Josh Miller to a one-year $18 million deal or would you sign him to Fort? No, I would take the one. That’s great. And if he outperforms that, well, guess what? That means he’s going to take accept. He’s going to decline the qualifying offer because he’s not going to decline it so he could take a $22 million one-year deal, right? So, you’re going to get a draft pick. I mean, that is the perfect world. What happened with Nick Castanos was a dream scenario for the Cincinnati Reds. And so, yeah, I I don’t opt outs. Yeah, you can have all the opt outs you want. Like, it doesn’t then the Reds don’t have to deal with a potential fall-off in years four and five there, right? Yeah, you know, we we got the best out of Nick Castianos and then he went to the Phillies and uh you know, the rest is trying to salary dump him. Yeah. Uh one last thing on Naylor just to uh maybe give a little bit more excitement about him. He gets a massive boost at Great American Ballpark. Uh I’ll read through this. So 2025, he hit 20 home runs. Stackcast says 27 at GBP. How about 2024? He hit 31. that bumps up to 37. 23. How about uh he hit uh 17 home runs, that bumps up to 24. And back in 2021 or 2022, sorry, he hit 22 20 home runs, they bump him up to 26. So, he get a pretty substantial boost. I mean, you’re looking at probably a guy, he’s been a little up and down, but you’re looking at at least 25 to 30, I think, is what you’d expect. then that would be obviously a huge boost for the Reds. But that’s 20 that’s a that’s 25 to 30 home runs with a guy with like 350 plus on base percentage too and that plays good defense. And one more thing to point out to right obviously familiarity with Tito and Chris Valleica. So um Chris Vala didn’t ruin him either. Yeah. Yeah. So career high 30 minutes. He hasn’t done it. Yeah. We have proof that Josh Naylor with Chris Valleica as a hitting coach can hit over 30 home runs. So, it’s um you know, you don’t you don’t know how much that plays into it, but Tito loves his guys. And so, um I don’t know if Josh Naylor was his guy or not, but um you know, had a lot of success under Frank Cona in Cleveland. Um that may have something to do with it as well. Have you Have you looked this up? How many stolen bases did Josh Naylor have? Oh, they were So, they were they were talking about it in the playoffs. The dude I think he went 25 for 25 after he got traded to the to the Mariners. Like, he’s like statistically like in the fifth or sixth percentile. Third percentile in sprint speed and stole 30 bases. How is this even possible? Yeah, he’s basically so slow that no one was paying attention to him that he was just taking bases. So, this is like the the dream. This is like the highest IQ base runner on the planet, right? Exactly. Him and Juan Stoodto, right? Crazy. I I just looked at I just I wasn’t even paying attention to the others. I just looked at it’s all about 30 hadn’t he stole more than 10 in a season. So I I’m assuming there’ll be a bunch more emphasis on on hey, make sure you watch this guy over there next year. But he kept getting away with it. So wow, that’s that’s wild. Picking the right spot to go, man. and uh not holding him on apparently. The next one or old friend, this one feels a little high to me. A new Suarez 3 years 63 million. Obviously Suarez uh coming off a pretty big uh power season when he hit 49 home runs. Um but three years 63 million 21 AAV. Now it’s only three years though. That’s the big thing is that three years and you’re done. So, you’re not as worried. But that’s still a lot given his age. I’m not against it, but I don’t know. Yeah. And I I wonder who the Reds are bidding against in this one, though. You know what I mean? It’s just really like so who I guess I don’t know specifically who the Yankees need. They need outfield. Yeah. And they they they they’re going to need to replace either Cody Bellinger or Trent Gisham or both. Right. So in my mind like infieldwise they’ve got uh yeah third base is there’s Jazz Chisum and there’s Ryan McMahon. So unless they’re just like come in play full DH, but then they have John Claro Stanton for that. So I guess my point is I like I feel like there’s less there would be less suitors for Auano Suarez which Angels Mariners are some of the top ones. Yeah. Um that I’m seeing. Yeah. And you know, Marin, obviously the Mariners love I I think every team that he’s played for, they’ve loved him. You know, the fan base loves him even though, you know, he somehow strikes out a ton, but he’s just such a likable guy. So, you know, I could see potentially going against the Mariners. And who knows with the Angels, right? They, you know, theoretically they still have uh Renone there, but like he doesn’t show any interest in wanting to actually play baseball. So, I you know who you never know who who they would be. I I guess my thought is you’re right, it does seem high because to me it feels like the the amount of teams that they would be bidding against would be a lot less um for that. But you know, the the main difference between uh Suarez and Naylor is power, right? 49 home runs versus 25 home runs is like you pay yet there’s a premium for power. And that’s part of the reason why I don’t think the Reds get very many power hitters and why, you know, Josh Naylor may be a better fit because it’s like power on the cheap power what more power than what we had on the on the cheaper. But yeah, if you want somebody that hits the ball over the fence, you know, 49 home runs with the Reds in 2019 and then, you know, besides 2020 has hit 33 and 21, 33 and 22, 22 and 23, but 30 and 24 and 49 in 25. I was like, that’s something you uh that’s something that you pay for uh or you need to pay for. I mean, so yeah, I think it is a little high, but I think that’s just the reality of where the market may be. Minus six outs above average at third base. Obviously, the Reds have Brian Haz, so I I you would have to be signing Suarez to be a DH maybe plays first base. He seems like a guy that would profile well as being able to transition to first base pretty well. Um, and then would play third base and and you know, if if Hayes got got hurt. Um, but yeah, I mean the the MLB trade rumors, they have the two actually two guys predicted the Reds. This one had the Red Sox and the Athletics. So Suarez is Marco be interesting. The one thing with Suarez, I think also is one thing I like about him and Schwarber is I think there’s an actual chance of not have to not having to overpay, not having to pay more than the Yankees or a team you’re bidding with. I think Suarez might take the Reds. If the Reds off for the same as someone else, I think he might take the Reds as he wants to come back and finish his career here. And for Alex Suarez, I mean, you know, a guy that that I think should already be a Red’s Hall of Famer, he would like kind of cement that legacy and um um certainly and kind of have a bookend career. So, I I don’t know Suarez, but I mean, it seemed like he still it didn’t seem like there was any hard feelings when he came back to play against. Seemed like he had that. So you have that going for him. Yeah. Can’t believe we got him for Alfredo Simon. That was just the steal of the century there. Yeah. Costa. They made some that and um Dan Straley or Luis Castillo for Dan Danley. Yeah, man. They made some wild moves. Um um Dick Williams, shout out. The last one, old friend Alio Pagan. Two years,$16 million, $8 million AAV. I don’t know. I I the the the the every budget thing that I see is just more I’m out on this. It just feels like $8 million on a reliever. And yes, I I know Pagan’s valuable, and that’s I think a pretty fair price for him. It’s just hard to to justify spending that much money on a reliever that that could revert back to the same reliever we didn’t most people didn’t really love in 2024. Yeah, I think if the Reds end up signing Pagan, this offseason has gone wildly off the rails. We did we struck out on so many things that it’s just like, well, you know, all right, let’s we weren’t able to get a hitter, so we’re going to try to double down on pitching. I think that’s the that’s the that’s the pathway that I see for the Reds resigning Pagan. But I’m with you if they’re going to get a hitter, which all indications are saying that that’s what they want to do and they want to go do more than Austin Hayes for $5 million like they did last year. Um yeah, I don’t see how that fits in, especially with only 15 to 20 million to spend. Um I I like the guy. I think he was, you know, he had some pretty high-profile screw-ups, but overall through the throughout the year, you know, for the most part was was great for the Reds. People forget that he pitched like four days in a row uh down the stretch. He was just like on fumes and just like I’m I’m going out here in this playoff um playoff push to try to get us over the finish line when nobody when Leo gets hurt and we don’t have we have to do a bullpen game. And you know, I thought that that was awesome and that was real admirable. And um you know, we’ll look fondly back on Emilio Pagan’s time on the Reds, even though or in 2025 at least. Yeah, he had an incredible year for the Reds and a huge part of the Red’s success in in 2025. You can’t take that away from him, especially I mean, he wasn’t pencileled in as even a setup guy, I think, going into the season and ended up being a a really almost a borderline all-star closer. Um, I just don’t think that that makes sense. I think you make a great point that it feels like it would be an 11th hour. It feels like it’ be really shocked if the Reds signed Bean before like the end of January. Like it would have to be all right, we struck out on everything. We’ve tried every trade and there’s just nothing there that makes sense for us. We have some money to spend. And like I guess some people would poo poo on that, but if you get to that point, like at least get a valuable player and and Pagan would be a valuable player. I don’t love that. But as a plan D, I don’t think it’s a terrible thing. Um I just that that would yeah not not my top my priorities. Two years 16 million is not an untradeable uh contract either. you know, I I don’t you know, yeah, I don’t want to think about it as threads or sellers at the at the deadline in 26, but like you know, I would imagine that’s part of the contingency that they think they’re thinking about when handing out these contracts as well. So, you know, if the Reds are at the point where, hey, maybe we need to sell, that’s a reasonable contract that somebody needing bullpen help, and everyone always needs bullpen help at the deadline, would be willing to, you know, cough up some some capital for. All right. Um, so I I my like final takeaway here is I think Naylor makes the most sense out of those four. I think Peter Lonzo would obviously be the the most attractive. I just don’t like see that happening. Um I think Naylor for me would probably be the like the the combination of the most realistic and the most attractive for me. Where you at? No, I I agree. I think um I it you know the the the three hitters I would obviously if they were to sign it I would be happy that we are going for it and doing something and if we signed it for anything around what these AAVs are uh predicting then you know I think that would be great if we sign him I think there is a real there is a realistic pathway in which we do if we do if we did I think we’re going to be pretty disappointed with what the Reds post offseason uh was this uh this winter. Well, plenty of off season still to come. Mike, the general meet man manager meeting, they have gotten underway. They are November 10th through 13th. Some of the quotes you heard was from Nick Crawl down there. So, we will certainly keep our eyes peeled and see if anything else comes up from that. The rule of fire protection that’s coming up quick November 18th. Um, players like Hector Rodriguez, Edwin Aoyo, Leo Balazar kind of headlined the list. Jose Franco’s already been added to the 40man roster. He was another one as well. The non-tender deadline, November 21st. Will the Reds non-tender Sam Mole, will they be really bold? And non-tender Gavin Lux, that’s something to watch. Uh, the winner meetings December 7th through 10th and then Red’s vest coming up in January. Uh so we’ll continue to keep our eyes peeled and uh we’ll uh come on when there’s anything else. As mentioned at the beginning, uh Marksheldon will be live on the Stone Shield Show 11:15 a.m. on Wednesday on Chatterbox Sports on YouTube. Uh we will put that in your podcast feed if you miss it um live. I will put that in on Thursday morning. All kinds of other great content. FC Cincinnati, they’re in the middle of a playoff races. Mike has his jersey on. the Flying Lion podcast. They are covering all things as Cincinnati. They already did a show recapping uh the big win on Sunday over the Columbus Crew and Hell is Real. Um they’re going to do another episode uh some point over Thursday, Friday, I believe. Um previewing uh their match up against uh Miami and Messi, right? That’s right. Now you get Messi. So that’s a home game, right? I believe so. Yeah, I think they’re the higher seed. So, and now it’s a best of one, right? Mhm. Where they’ll play extra time and go to So, they play a best of three and then it’s all best of ones. I believe so. Soccer’s crazy, man. I You know, people hate on that. I kind of love that. It’s just weird. I I like that. Yeah. I mean, I think that the year they won the supporter shield, so they had the best record in the pre in the in the regular season, they lost in the first round. So, it’s uh you never know. you get to the playoffs and it’s uh it’s just, you know, who can who can play the best four or five games to to finish her off. So, it would be it would be great um to see, you know, a Reds or a Cincinnati team not let us down in the fall. How’s that? Speaking of Cincinnati teams let us down in the fall, Chatterbox Bengals. That was a good segway. I think I think uh Chatterbox Bengals uh must-win game, right Mike? On Sunday against the Steelers. Uh the fellas will be live for that whole game. They’ve been pumping up a lot of Chatterbox Bengals content nearly just about every day. Chatterbox Bengals available everywhere you get podcast. If you can go leave them a fivestar review, we’d really appreciate that. They’re trying to grow that uh that show. There was like I think three podcasts posted over the last couple days. So be sure to check out Chatterbox Bengals. Chatterbox Bearcats UC had a big win over Dayton. Uh those guys did a live show on Tuesday night. That’s also brand new in your podcast feed uh on Wednesday morning. So check out all the Chatterbox content. Um if you’re on YouTube, well, you’re there. Just keep clicking around. If you’re listening in podcast, links to all those shows are in the episode notes below and like the video as Mike Hart uh encouraged me to promote. Hype the video. You can hype the video on YouTube. Uh we’d appreciate that. Um, and uh, we will be back again soon. Mike, appreciate you coming on, my friend. Thank you very much. Go Reds. Go Reds. Go get your Omaha Stakes. See you later. [Applause] [Music] Hey, [Applause] hey, hey.

Nick Kirby and Mike Hart break down all the latest Cincinnati Reds offseason news and rumors. They react to reports that the Reds may have just $15–$20 million to spend this winter and discuss what that could mean for roster moves and free-agent signings.
00:00 Reds Budget Projections
12:08 Spencer Steer to the OF
17:25 Tito gets 2nd place
25:04 Hunter Greene Trade Rumors
27:53 AFL Update
31:39 4 Free Agent Predictions
55:32 Offseason Schedule

The guys talk about Spencer Steer’s potential move back to the outfield or second base, the Reds’ loss of a pitching coach, and Terry Francona finishing runner-up to Pat Murphy for NL Manager of the Year.

They also dive into the latest Hunter Greene trade rumors, Arizona Fall League updates, and analyze the four players MLB Trade Rumors predicts the Reds will sign this offseason. Tune in for sharp analysis, insight, and everything Cincinnati Reds baseball.

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Cincinnati Reds 2025-26 Offseason Outlook

The Cincinnati Reds enter the 2025-26 offseason at a pivotal point. After finishing 83-79 and earning their first full-season playoff berth since 2013, the Reds have reestablished themselves as a legitimate contender in the National League. Now comes the challenge of sustaining that progress while addressing several roster needs.

Key Free Agents and Roster Moves

The Reds have multiple decisions to make with their pending free agents, including Miguel Andujar, Zack Littell, Nick Martinez, and Emilio Pagán. None are expected to receive qualifying offers, but their departures would leave gaps in both the lineup and bullpen. The front office also faces option calls on Austin Hays, Brent Suter, and Scott Barlow, all of whom could impact the team’s payroll flexibility.

Beyond free agency, Cincinnati must also determine which young players to protect from the Rule 5 Draft. Prospects like Edwin Arroyo, Héctor Rodríguez, and Leo Balcázar have progressed enough to warrant 40-man roster consideration. The team has already made a few minor roster adjustments, hinting that bullpen changes and depth moves will continue through the winter.

Offensive Improvements Needed

Despite their playoff berth, the Reds’ offense struggled at times in 2025. The club ranked in the bottom third of MLB in home runs, OPS, and overall run production. Too often, the lineup relied on streaky power rather than consistent contact and situational hitting.

President of Baseball Operations Nick Krall has stated that improving the offense will be a top offseason priority. While big-name free agents may be out of reach financially, Cincinnati could explore trades or mid-tier signings to add another impact bat. Internal development will also be key — players like Elly De La Cruz, Spencer Steer, and Christian Encarnacion-Strand are expected to take another step forward in 2026.

Bullpen and Pitching Depth

The bullpen was a strength for much of 2025, but several key relievers are entering free agency. Re-signing or replacing those arms will be a major focus. The Reds may look to supplement their relief corps with experienced middle relievers or cost-effective veterans.

The rotation remains solid at the top, led by Hunter Greene, Nick Lodolo, and Graham Ashcraft, but depth beyond the front three is still a concern. Finding reliable fourth and fifth starters — or swingmen capable of handling spot starts — could help stabilize the pitching staff over a 162-game season.

Youth Movement and Long-Term Strategy

Cincinnati continues to lean heavily on its young core and deep farm system. The organization’s success in developing homegrown players will determine how far it can go under current budget constraints. Several young position players and pitchers are expected to compete for roster spots during spring training.

Financially, the Reds are likely to stay disciplined. Krall’s front office has focused on sustainable roster building rather than short-term spending sprees. The goal is to keep the team competitive while maintaining payroll flexibility for future seasons.

Final Outlook

The Reds’ offseason hinges on balance — upgrading the roster without overextending resources. If they can add a productive bat, reinforce the bullpen, and continue developing their young core, Cincinnati has the potential to make another leap forward in 2026. However, standing pat could risk stagnation in an increasingly competitive National League.