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<\/a><\/p>\nSteer and Friedl received minimum support in this, likely due to a) them actually being pretty productive, b) each having multiple years of team control remaining, and c) earning lower salaries (directly because they\u2019ve not accrued more service time). In Singer, you\u2019ve got the pitching version of Lux in that he\u2019s in his final year before free agency and will be the team\u2019s highest earner at over $12 million, but for him, he\u2019s actually coming off a really good debut year with the Reds.<\/p>\n
Lux is an odd bird roster-wise. He\u2019s pretty much a DH at this point despite being just 27 (and a former shortstop), as his defense in LF (and even on the infield) was suspect at best last year. He\u2019s a DH, though, that doesn\u2019t slug, with just 5 dingers last year and a .374 slugging percentage in 2025. His .105 ISO was the 10th lowest among the 146 MLB players who logged at least 500 PA, and that all came with an unsustainably high .351 BABIP, to boot.<\/p>\n
He\u2019s a platoon-bat only. He hit .282\/.361\/.400 in 440 PA against RHP last year (with a .361 BABIP) while only managing one (1) extra-base hit in 63 PA against southpaws. So, you don\u2019t want him on the field against pitchers who use one arm, and you don\u2019t want him playing defense pretty much ever.<\/p>\n
That\u2019s got a role on many rosters, especially those representative of teams that actually pony up cash all over the place. But on a Reds roster that\u2019s still lacking a big thumper (and is once again balling on a light budget), he seems a luxury good holding a roster spot that would be better used on either a) a positionless big thumper or b) a guy who can actually play good defense all over, especially on the infield.<\/p>\n
You wouldn\u2019t get a ton for him at this point, but you\u2019d probably at least be able to move that money off the books. That\u2019s as valuable as anything right now for Cincinnati, who is scraping and clawing to afford reclamation projects for key roles with guys like JJ Bleday with that money tied up.<\/p>\n
Still, it seems unlikely to happen. The Reds know they\u2019re searching for a needle in a haystack in terms of a lineup-altering bat that won\u2019t break the bank or the farm, and they\u2019ve probably resigned themselves to not finding it at this juncture. So, they\u2019ve got their fallback plan in Lux, an imperfect fit who\u2019s a bit overpaid but a guy who hopefully won\u2019t be as valueless in 2026 if they can just keep him out of LF. It\u2019s a decision that puts the onus on the rest of the roster to outperform, as their DH on most days won\u2019t be the best bat in the order the way it has been traditionally (and is for most of their competition).<\/p>\n
Such is life with the Reds. They aren\u2019t going to be bad because they\u2019ve got Gavin Lux on their team (or in their lineup), but you can only populate your finite roster with so many of those guys before you look up and wonder why you didn\u2019t simply pool that money together to pay a really good player instead.<\/p>\n