The Cincinnati Reds on Oct. 31 outrighted veteran infielder Santiago Espinal to Triple-A Louisville, the organization announced.
Espinal can accept the assignment or opt into free agency.
Reds player moves Reds outright relief pitcher Ian Gibaut to Triple-A Louisville
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Espinal was a utility player for Cincinnati in 2025 and played two seasons with the club. He appeared in 114 games on the Reds’ 2025 National League Wild Card-qualifying team, hitting .243 with 16 RBI.
Santiago Espinal appeared in 114 games on the Reds’ in 2025, batting .243 with 16 RBI. A good player defensively, his playing time diminished after the acquisition of third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes.
Included on the Reds’ postseason roster, Espinal didn’t appear during the Wild Card series loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Espinal sometimes served as a defensive replacement late in games, but the trade deadline addition of third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes, a previous Gold Glover and finalist for the award again in 2025, plus the September call-up of highly-rated infielder prospect Sal Stewart, diminished Espinal’s role. Espinal played in just five games in September and once went a week between appearances during the final month.
On Oct. 29, relief pitcher Ian Gibaut was outrighted to Louisville.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Reds outright utility infielder Santiago Espinal to Louisville