The Cincinnati Reds can’t afford another bullpen gamble like the one that backfired on them in 2026.
With the regular season over, the Reds are again left outside the postseason for the 13th time in the last 20 years, and they still haven’t won a playoff series since 1995. That kind of record usually leads to sweeping change.
Not in Cincinnati. Since major changes aren’t coming in the front office or coaching staff for 2027, the Reds have to be smarter about the moves they make this winter.
That’s especially true after the way they handled their bullpen last offseason. Coming off an 83-win season and a Wild Card berth in the 2025 MLB Playoffs, the Reds knew they needed help in a few spots.
For a while, there was real buzz around free agent Kyle Schwarber, the Middletown native who would have given the lineup a serious jolt. But even then, that always felt like a long shot.
Nick Krall and the Reds had their eyes on other priorities.
Their biggest one was the bullpen. The Reds made that clear repeatedly, and they followed through by re-signing Emilio Pagan, trading for Brock Burke, signing Pierce Johnson, and dealing for Kyle Nicolas.
Pagan and Burke helped. Johnson was solid enough.
The Nicolas move, though, was a miss.
That trade is the one Cincinnati has to remember now. In March 2026, the Reds sent their #19 prospect Tyler Callihan to the Pirates for Nicolas, a reliever they hoped could add depth.
Instead, Nicolas couldn’t even report to spring training right away because he was pitching for Team Italy in the World Baseball Classic. By the time he arrived, he had missed a full spring with his new club, and the Reds opened the year with him in Triple-A Louisville.
When Nicolas finally got his shot, it went sideways fast. He was recalled on April 10th and lasted just 7.2 innings in the majors, putting up an 8.59 ERA while walking 13 and striking out seven. The Reds sent him back to Louisville on April 25th, then designated him for assignment on May 30th.
That’s the danger Cincinnati has to avoid this offseason: moving a top-30 prospect for a reliever with control issues and too much uncertainty. After what happened in 2026, and with poor grades around their farm system, the Reds can’t keep paying that price.
In Other News...
Reds Pitching Search Could Test Terry Franconas Pull Early
The Reds entered the winter with a pitching staff that needs help on more than one front, and the search for a new pitching coach figures to be one of the first places Terry Franconas influence gets tested. Cincinnatis group is still young, but injuries and uneven performance have left the staff in a tough spot, and the club will be looking for a voice that can steady development while helping clean up results.
One name that fits that profile is Ruben Niebla, the Padres pitching coach, who has a connection to Francona and would bring a strong track record to the job. The complication is that he is under contract through 2027, which makes any pursuit more complicated, and another San Diego option, bullpen coach Ben Fritz, has also surfaced as a logical target after helping guide a strong relief group. [Read more 🡒]
Reds May Be Adding Another Catcher To A Growing Roster Debate
The Reds are already weighing a familiar question behind the plate, and now there is another name to track in the pipeline. A Baseball America scouting report by Ben Badler links Venezuelan catcher Dylan Rodriguez to Cincinnati as a potential signing in the 2027 international signing period, adding a promising young backstop to a system that has made catching a clear area of focus.
Rodriguez is viewed as a prospect with strong offensive upside and defense that is still coming along, the kind of profile that can make a club pause and project. For Cincinnati, it only adds another layer to an existing roster debate, with Alfredo Duno sitting atop the catching prospect board while the big league picture continues to require decisions of its own. [Read more 🡒]
Reds Face A Real Emilio Pagan Decision After His Huge Finish
Emilio Pagns late-season run has given the Reds something they did not have to think much about earlier in the year: a real long-term decision on a bullpen arm who has suddenly made himself expensive. With a player option for 2027 worth $10 million, Pagn now has to weigh the comfort of a guaranteed payday against the possibility that his recent finish and the state of the market could open the door to something bigger.
For Cincinnati, the calculus goes beyond one season and one contract number. Pagns age, the demand for relief pitching and the uncertainty around the next collective bargaining agreement all make this a complicated call, and the Reds will have to be prepared for either path. If he takes the option, he stays. If he declines, the club could be staring at a free-agent market where a strong finish has changed his value in a hurry. [Read more 🡒]