The Cincinnati Reds have a few obvious boxes to check, and third base sits near the top of that list. They also need more punch in the lineup, plus starting pitching, bullpen help, a catcher, and a platoon partner for Hector Rodriguez. With limited money to spread around, Nick Krall may have to find a way to solve more than one problem at once.
That’s where Baltimore Orioles infielder Jordan Westburg enters the picture.
Westburg fits the kind of buy-low gamble the Reds may have to make. He’s a player with real upside, but also one with enough baggage to make him available at a manageable price. Cincinnati, after all, is staring at a third-base situation that could use a long-term answer, and Westburg offers both right-handed pop and enough athleticism to handle the position well.
He also carries a career .264/.312/.456 line, and the talent has always been there. In 2023, he reached No. 5 in a crowded Orioles system and checked in as the No. 74 prospect on MLB Pipeline’s top 100 list. The appeal is pretty clear: power at the plate, enough mobility to be more than a bat-only option, and a profile that would immediately give the Reds something more balanced at third.
Of course, there’s a reason he wouldn’t cost nearly as much as a player with that kind of pedigree usually would.
Westburg’s career has been interrupted again and again by injuries. He missed time with a hand injury after debuting in 2023.
In 2024, hip discomfort and a fractured right hand slowed him down. The 2025 season brought a sore back in spring training, then a hamstring strain, a finger sprain, and a sprained ankle.
This year was even worse. He suffered an oblique strain in spring training, then tore his UCL while trying to come back from that injury. That led to Tommy John surgery, and he did not play at all in 2026.
So while Westburg’s career high in games played is only 107, and he has cleared 100 games just once in the majors, the injuries have mostly been the kind that look like bad breaks rather than a single chronic issue. Still, the wear and tear is impossible to ignore.
That’s the wager here for Cincinnati. The Reds don’t have the luxury of shopping at the top of the market, which pushes them toward players with obvious flaws.
Westburg is one of them. But if the injuries don’t keep piling up, he looks like the kind of player who could end up being a real steal.
In Other News...
Joey Votto Just Added Intrigue To A Reds Infield Debate
After a season that ended without a postseason berth, the Reds are heading into an offseason where the infield will be one of the biggest talking points. Questions remain at second and third base, and that has opened the door to all kinds of outside ideas about how Cincinnati could reshape the group and find more stability for next year.
Joey Votto added a little more buzz to the conversation when he signaled support for a fans suggestion that the Reds pursue Yankees infielder Anthony Volpe. Volpe has been uneven lately, but he fits the kind of reclamation-project logic that often gets attached to young infielders with upside, and his name suddenly has a little more traction in Cincinnatis orbit as the roster discussion starts to heat up. [Read more 🡒]
Reds May Need A Veteran Catcher Stopgap Sooner Than Expected
The Reds already have one eye on their catching picture beyond the immediate season, and the uncertainty around Tyler Stephenson only sharpens the issue. Nick Krall's recent comments suggested the club still has work to do in figuring out what it would take to keep Stephenson in Cincinnati, which matters because the organizational depth behind him is not especially deep at the big-league level.
If Stephenson is elsewhere by 2027, the Reds would be leaning on Jose Trevino and Will Banfield for much of the catching load, a setup that leaves little margin for injury or regression. That is why a veteran stopgap is starting to make sense, and one possible answer could come from the free-agent market, where a catcher with experience and a modest price tag might fit the Reds' need for stability without creating a long-term commitment. [Read more 🡒]
Noelvi Marte Is Still Fighting For A Bigger Reds Role
Noelvi Marte spent his winter keeping busy in the Dominican Winter League, where the former Reds top prospect has been getting reps in center field for Gigantes del Cibao alongside Aristides Aquino. For Cincinnati, the assignment says as much about opportunity as it does about curiosity, with the club still looking for ways to keep Marte on the path toward a larger big league role.
The 23-year-old remains an intriguing name in the Reds system, but last season also came with a blunt reminder of how far he still has to go. He hit .189/.229/.321 in 63 major league games, and Nick Krall publicly said the club should have moved him down sooner, a pointed assessment that underscored how much Martes bat still needs to stabilize before the Reds can count on him for more. [Read more 🡒]