The unfortunate truth of being a good young player in Major League Baseball, particularly on a medium or small-market team, is that trade rumors are bound to fly around at some point.

Cincinnati Reds right-handed pitcher Hunter Greene signed a six-year extension before the 2023 campaign that keeps him under team control through 2029, including a club option for the latter year. But at the beginning of this offseason, MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon suggested that Greene could be traded, and the rumor mill quickly kicked into overdrive.

There’s certainly been no confirmation that the Reds have been close to dealing Greene, but with starting pitching at such a premium, teams were bound to have an interest this winter in a 26-year-old with a 100-mph fastball. However, if there was any sort of narrative forming that Greene might want to play elsewhere, that narrative should die as of Tuesday.

In a reported 90-minute conversation with Bob Nightengale of USA Today, Greene made it abundantly clear that he has no desire to be traded, emphasizing the commitment he made to the organization with his extension.

“Trade rumors are part of the game,” Greene told Nightengale. “I can’t control any of that, especially with how social media is now with so many people having voices. People can say whatever they want now.

“My thing is that I’m a Cincinnati Red. I love the city. I love the team, I love the potential. I’ve bought a home there. I’ve done so much philanthropy and community service in Cincinnati. I’m deeply embedded in that city.”

Greene, who put up a 2.76 ERA and 4.4 bWAR but missed 2 1/2 months due to a groin injury this year, also took a strong objection to any suggestions he could have returned sooner from his injury.

“There were some people and chatter about questioning my timing of coming back,” Hunter told Nightengale. “You know, like it took longer than it should have been. The idea that I was milking it, or taking a longer time, or the idea of not wanting to be with the team.

“That was so disrespectful, so disingenuous to me.”

The Reds hope to build on their 83-win season that resulted in a wild-card berth, and clearly, Greene’s focus is on contributing to that effort. That doesn’t guarantee he won’t be traded someday, but it certainly suggests that such a day is not near.

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