The Cincinnati Reds have had a mixed stretch coming out of the All-Star break, and the trade deadline chatter is only getting louder.
They opened the week by taking their third straight series since play resumed with a win over the St. Louis Cardinals on Sunday.
Weather delayed the start of the series with the Cleveland Guardians until Tuesday, and that set ended with the bad guys reclaiming The Ohio Cup. Then on Thursday, the Reds got back on track with a 3-2 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates.
At 51-57, the record leaves little room for optimism, and the deadline conversation has quickly become the main storyline. The sense around the club is that the front office should probably be selling. But for Reds fans, the past is hard to ignore.
Sports Illustrated’s Tom Dieberger and Ryan Phillips recently put together a list of the 10 worst trade mistakes at the deadline over the last decade, and Cincinnati showed up on it for the deal that sent Luis Castillo to the Seattle Mariners.
The return for Castillo was Noelvi Marte, Edwin Arroyo, Levi Stoudt, and Andrew Moore. There’s a world where none of those players are in a Reds uniform by 2027.
The timing makes the reminder sting even more. Arroyo was sent back down to Triple-A before Thursday’s game against the Pirates, and his last action with the Reds included a rough defensive outing. In the series finale against the Guardians, it was obvious that the young infielder is not comfortable at second base.
Marte was supposed to be the bat in the outfield the Reds had been waiting for, but that hasn’t taken shape either. Right now, he looks like another name in the long line of talent that hasn’t found its footing in Cincinnati.
If the Reds stand pat at the deadline, plenty of fans may see that as another breaking point. And if they make another deal that looks anything like the Castillo trade, the franchise risks staying stuck in the same place.
That criticism isn’t aimed at the players themselves. It’s aimed at the front office, which put them in a position to fail. And with no changes yet in that front office, that’s the reality the Reds are carrying into the deadline.
In Other News...
Reds Roster Shakeup Feels Inevitable As Some Young Players Run Out Of Rope
With the Reds sliding and looking increasingly like deadline sellers, the roster churn feels less like a possibility than a matter of timing. Cincinnati has already pushed Edwin Arroyo and Chase Petty back to the minors, and the next wave of decisions may be even more telling as the club tries to sort out which young players are ready to help and which ones need more time in Louisville.
Hctor Rodrguez and Michael Toglia are among the names knocking on the door from Triple-A, while the big-league side of the ledger is getting harder to ignore. TJ Friedl and Noelvi Marte have both been part of the conversation about who might be better served by a reset at Louisville, and those kinds of calls tend to come faster when a team is trying to balance development with the reality of a disappointing season. [Read more 🡒]
Elly De La Cruz Just Reached Another Reds First As Infield Changes
Elly De La Cruz keeps adding to a Reds rsum that already looks unlike anyone elses in club history, and his latest milestone came in the middle of a roster day that also reshaped the infield around him. Cincinnati activated Matt McLain from the injured list and sent Edwin Arroyo to Triple-A Louisville, a reminder that the team is still sorting out how its young middle-infield pieces fit as the season moves along.
For Arroyo, the move reflects the usual growing pains that come with jumping into the majors before everything is fully settled. Terry Francona said young players can look sped up at this level, and the expectation is that Arroyo will be back once he has had time to adjust and get stronger and better prepared for the next chance. [Read more 🡒]
Surprising Reds Deadline Proposal Would Test Fans' Patience Fast
A proposed deadline idea from Bleacher Report would ask the Reds to make a move that is easy to understand on the spreadsheet and a lot harder to sell in the clubhouse and to the fan base. The pitch centers on Cincinnati adding two Chicago White Sox players in exchange for three useful big leaguers, with the appeal being a modest salary dip and the chance to land a prospect who has climbed quickly enough to get attention.
The catch is that the return does not read like a classic win-now haul, even with one of the pieces already having reached the majors and another carrying some prospect intrigue. For a Reds team trying to balance present value with future flexibility, that is the kind of proposal that can test patience fast, because it asks for real roster certainty now in exchange for a package that still leaves plenty of questions about what the payoff would actually be. [Read more 🡒]