The Chicago White Sox are in the middle of a push toward the American League Championship Series, and Randal Grichuk has been a real part of that run in 2026.
That matters for the Cincinnati Reds, because Grichuk looks like exactly the kind of bat they keep needing and keep talking themselves into finding: a right-handed outfielder who can mash lefties and fill a very specific job. He’ll be a free agent after the season, and the fit is obvious enough that it practically writes itself.
Chicago picked him up on a minor-league deal in the middle of the season after the New York Yankees designated him for assignment on April 29. His time in the Bronx was short and rough - he hit .194 with a .535 OPS in 16 games - and after clearing waivers on May 1, he elected free agency. Since then, he’s turned things around in a big way with the White Sox.
In 101 games for Chicago, Grichuk has hit .299/.328/.598 with 15 home runs and 44 RBI. Against left-handed pitching, he’s been especially punishing, putting up a .327/.371/.655 line this season. That kind of production is exactly why he keeps surfacing as the sort of player Cincinnati should be chasing.
And this is not some new front office dilemma for the Reds. They’ve been circling this same issue for the past few offseasons.
Grichuk signed a one-year, $2 million deal with the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2024 and posted an .875 OPS. Cincinnati responded that offseason by adding right-handed bats such as Bubba Thompson, Stuart Fairchild, and Santiago Espinal.
Grichuk then followed that Arizona deal with a one-year, $5 million contract to stay put the next winter, while the Reds went with Austin Hays, Connor Joe, and Espinal again. Grichuk struggled in his second season with the Diamondbacks and was later traded to the Kansas City Royals at the deadline.
Then came the stop with the Yankees, and now the White Sox.
The larger issue for Cincinnati is that the roster keeps tilting left-handed in the outfield. Of the six outfielders on the Reds’ 40-man roster, three are left-handed bats: JJ Bleday, Carlos Jorge, and Héctor Rodríguez, and those three are the presumed starters heading into next season.
The right-handed side of that picture is shakier. Blake Dunn could miss the entire 2027 season after elbow surgery this past year.
Noelvi Marte might be non-tendered next month and, at best, would begin the season in the minors. That leaves Dane Myers as the only right-handed outfield option.
Reds president of baseball operations Nick Krall recently talked about the need to find “complimentary players,” and Grichuk fits that description cleanly. He’s 35, he’s productive, and he shouldn’t cost a fortune on the open market.
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Noelvi Marte Gets A Crucial Reds Chance To Reset This Winter
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For Marte, the assignment carries extra weight after a challenging 2026 MLB season. This will be his fourth season with Gigantes del Cibao, and the Reds will be hoping the winter stage gives him a clean runway to reset, work through what went wrong and arrive back in camp with a better footing for the next step in his development. [Read more 🡒]