The idea of the Reds moving Elly De La Cruz may sound outrageous at first glance, but the speculation has been out in the open long enough now that it can’t be brushed aside. It was former Reds star Joey Votto who kicked the conversation into gear last month, and the buzz has lingered even though president of baseball operations Nick Krall has denied trade talks and there are no known discussions.
Votto was asked on the Foul Territory podcast in October what his top priority would be if he were Cincinnati’s general manager.
"I would trade Elly for as many prospects as possible, to start," Votto told the Foul Territory podcast in October. "Are you going to give up a half or a third of your payroll on one player? It doesn’t make sense."
That’s the tension hanging over the Reds right now. They have De La Cruz, National League Rookie of the Year Sal Stewart and electric starter Chase Burns, but they’re also coming off a last-place finish in 2026 with a 75-win team and a roster that still needs multiple upgrades before it can be taken seriously as a contender.
De La Cruz’s contract situation is a big part of the conversation. In early 2025, he turned down what Krall described as the largest contract offer in Reds history.
Votto’s 10-year, $225 million extension from 2012 still stands as the club record, while Burns signed a seven-year, $105 million extension in July. Stewart has not had serious extension talks with the team, though he has said he was "open to it."
De La Cruz, now 24, debuted on June 6, 2023, and is under club control through the 2029 season. His agent, Scott Boras, is known for rarely letting clients sign extensions before they reach the open market.
If the Reds ever decide to move him, the Juan Soto deal offers the clearest example of what that kind of blockbuster can look like. Soto, a friend of De La Cruz’s and another Boras client, was traded by the Nationals to the Padres on Aug. 2, 2022, when he was 23 and had more than four years of big league service time.
Washington got an eight-player return that included shortstop CJ Abrams and outfielder James Wood, both now two-time All-Stars, plus left-hander MacKenzie Gore, who was a 2025 All-Star before being dealt to the Rangers last winter. Robert Hassell III, then San Diego’s top prospect, has not yet matched that level.
Before that trade, Soto had more than two years left before free agency and had turned down a 15-year, $440 million extension. Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo explained the logic afterward.
“We did feel that we were not going to be able to extend him,” then-Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo said after the trade. “And we felt that at this time, with two-and-a-half years remaining, three playoff runs available to Juan Soto, he would never be at more value than he is today, and that’s what we predicated it on.”
De La Cruz is not Soto in terms of star power or production, but his value is obvious. He was an All-Star in 2024 and 2025, then delivered a 30-30 season in 2026. His five-tool skill set still makes him one of the most coveted players in the sport.
For the Reds, the dilemma cuts both ways. Holding De La Cruz longer could mean watching his trade value dip as free agency gets closer, and Cincinnati has a history of getting burned by waiting too long on players.
But moving him now would come with its own risk, especially with a fanbase that has already lived through multiple rebuilds and missed chances. The Reds have not won a World Series since 1990 and have not advanced in a postseason series since 1995.
Washington at least had a 2019 championship in its back pocket when it traded Soto. The Nationals have not finished better than fourth place since that deal.
There’s also the example of this year’s World Series teams, the Brewers and Rays, both small-market clubs that have often traded stars to stay competitive. But unlike the Reds, both have been regular playoff teams.
Krall addressed De La Cruz’s status Tuesday at the GM Meetings in Las Vegas.
“We’ve got three years of control left on him," Krall said of De La Cruz Tuesday at the GM Meetings in Las Vegas. "He’s a really good player on our club. As of right now, I think if there is something out there or somebody wants to come to us and talk about it … but he’s a great player and I love having him on our team.”
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