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Reds Select Randy Wynne

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The Reds announced this morning that they’ve selected the contract of right-hander Randy Wynne. Wynne is being brought in to replace righty Carson Spiers, who is headed to the 15-day injured list with a right shoulder impingement. No 40-man roster move was necessary to accommodate the addition of Wynne, though the Reds’ 40-man roster is now full.

Wynne, 32, was signed by the Reds out of the independent Frontier League back in 2019. He’s been working his way through the Reds organization ever since, climbing the minor league ladder and even getting a brief call-up to the majors back in 2023. He surrendered one run in 2 1/3 frames during his lone big league outing and was outrighted off the club’s 40-man roster not long after. Despite that relatively brief stint in the majors, Wynne has remained in the Reds organization as a swingman at Triple-A. He’s done fairly well for himself there in recent years, with a 4.16 ERA in 93 innings last season and a 3.06 ERA across his first four starts of the 2025 campaign.

He’ll take the vacated roster spot of Spiers, who threw 94 pitches yesterday over four innings of relief. The righty has a 6.08 ERA across 13 1/3 innings this year, his third season as a swing man for the Reds. Spiers’s work on the mound for Cincinnati has generally been serviceable but below-average overall, with most of those innings coming last season when he threw 90 2/3 frames of 5.46 ERA ball split between ten starts and 12 relief appearances. The severity of Spiers’s injury is not yet known, but he’ll miss at least the next two weeks as he nurses the injury.

The Reds are unlikely to need Wynne as a rotation piece as presently constructed given that Nick Lodolo should be back from the paternity list soon, meaning he’s likely to fill a similar long relief role to the one Spiers was slated for. It wouldn’t be a shock if the righty’s first appearance came today, given that reliever Brent Suter has been announced as today’s starter. Suter has looked solid this year with a 2.70 ERA despite a 4.52 FIP, but he last logged significant time as a starter back in 2018 and has maxed out at two innings to this point in the 2025 campaign. Given that Wynne is stretched out as a starter, it would make sense if the team’s plan against the Orioles today is for Suter to throw an inning or two before Wynne takes over as a bulk reliever.

Reds Not Immediately Reinstalling Alexis Diaz As Closer

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Alexis Díaz is back in the Cincinnati bullpen, as the Reds reinstated him from the 15-day injured list this afternoon. (They also welcomed back Matt McLain and Austin Hays from the IL.) However, Díaz will not immediately return to his traditional closer role.

Manager Terry Francona told reporters (including Mark Sheldon of MLB.com) that Díaz won’t step right back into the ninth inning. The Reds relied upon Emilio Pagán in save situations while Díaz was shelved by a hamstring strain. Pagán has four of the team’s five saves, while Tony Santillan picked up the other. Santillan has been Francona’s top setup man. Scott Barlow and Ian Gibaut have gotten a handful of leverage appearances as well.

Pagán has had a solid first three weeks. He has worked 7 1/3 innings of two-run ball, striking out five against one walk. He’s 4-4 in save chances and picked up a hold on Opening Day. Pagán is in the second season of a two-year, $16MM free agent deal. The first season didn’t work out as the Reds had hoped. The righty allowed a 4.50 earned run average over 38 innings. His strikeout and walk numbers were very good, but Pagán’s longstanding issue keeping the ball in the park continued. He also lost a few weeks to triceps tightness and spent two months on the IL with a lat strain.

Díaz has been Cincinnati’s closer for most of his three-year MLB career. He earned his first save chances late in his rookie year, a deserved nod after his 1.84 ERA with 83 punchouts across 63 2/3 innings. Díaz earned an All-Star appearance and saved 37 games during his second season. He walked a tightrope for most of last year, however.

While Díaz successfully locked down 28 of 32 save chances, he did so with a career-worst 3.99 ERA. His strikeout rate — which had sat north of 30% in each of his first two seasons — plummeted to a pedestrian 22.7% mark. Díaz has never had good command, making the drop in whiffs all the more concerning.

His stuff has also backed up. The righty averaged 93.9 MPH on his fastball last season. That’s down nearly two ticks from his 95.7 MPH mark as a rookie and a 94.5 MPH average in 2023. Between those somewhat alarming numbers and the season-opening IL stint, it’s sensible for the Reds to stick with Pagán and Santillan as their top late-game arms while having Díaz work in somewhat lower-leverage spots in the early going.

NL Central Notes: Horwitz, Triolo, Moll, Díaz

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Infielder Spencer Horwitz was one of the key offseason pickups of the Pirates but they haven’t gotten anything out of him yet. He underwent wrist surgery in February, a procedure which came with a return timeline of six to eight weeks.

Tomorrow, it will be nine weeks since that timeline was provided and Horwitz is still on the injured list. He also hasn’t started a rehab assignment. There is at least some positive momentum, however, as Horwitz took batting practice at PNC Park today with his teammates. Kevin Gorman of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review relayed some video of Horwitz taking his hacks.

That’s somewhat encouraging but Horwitz is probably still not close to joining the big league club. He missed all of spring training and will surely need a few weeks of game action once he does start a rehab assignment. He has a .264/.355/.428 career batting line, which would be a tremendous boost to the Pittsburgh lineup. The team is hitting .184/.273/.290 as a whole so far this year, leading to a league-worst 61 wRC+.

Horwitz was supposed to be the club’s regular first baseman but most of the playing time at that spot has gone to catcher Endy Rodríguez, who is hitting .178/.260/.244. Whenever Horwitz can come off the IL, that should allow Rodriguez to move his focus back to catching, where his defense is considered strong.

Some more notes from around the division…

  • Sticking with the Pirates, infielder Jared Triolo is going to start a rehab assignment, per Gorman. He was serving a utility role until he landed on the IL with a lower back injury last week. Once he’s healthy, he can resume bouncing around to multiple positions, though he may not help much on offense. He has hit just .236/.319/.333 in his big league career, which includes a rough .059/.111/.059 showing in six games to start the 2025 season. Tsung-Che Cheng was brought up when Triolo hit the IL but he still hasn’t reached based in his first seven plate appearances. Enmanuel Valdéz is also doing some utility work but is hitting .148/.207/.296 on the season.
  • Turning to the Reds, they put left-hander Sam Moll on the 15-day injured list with a left shoulder impingement today, even though they’re not playing. The move was backdated by three days, the maximum allowed, to April 11. That perhaps suggests they don’t expect a lengthy absence, as they are making the move today so that he can return one day earlier than if they had waited until tomorrow. No corresponding move was announced but Mark Sheldon of MLB.com suggests it will likely be right-hander Alexis Díaz being reinstated from the IL. Díaz started the season on the IL with a left hamstring strain. He recently started a rehab assignment and already has five minor league appearances in the books. Díaz has served as the Reds’ closer for much of the past three years but his strikeout rate has been declining, from 32.5% in 2022 to 30.1% in 2023 and just 22.7% last year. Emilio Pagán has four saves so far this year and could be bumped into a setup role if Díaz is given the closing duties again.

Photo courtesy of Kim Klement Neitzel, Imagn Images

Tommy Helms Passes Away

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Former NL Rookie of the Year and longtime big leaguer Tommy Helms passed away today at age 83.  Helms played in 14 seasons with the Reds, Astros, Pirates, and Red Sox from 1964-77, and he managed the Reds on an interim basis over 64 games during the 1988-89 seasons.

Helms broke into the Show with two games with Cincinnati during the 1964 season, and 21 more games in 1965.  Mostly a shortstop in the minors, Helms was blocked at the position by Reds shortstop Leo Cardenas, and it took Helms a couple of years to settle into the second base position since the Reds were trying to find an ideal spot to place Pete Rose around the diamond.  Helms ended up as the starting third baseman in 1966, and was an immediate success, hitting .284/.315/.380 over 578 plate appearances and winning the NL ROY honors.  He then slid over to second base the next year when Rose was moved to left field, and Helms proceeded to hold down the keystone in Cincinnati from 1967-71.

That five-year stretch saw Helms make two All-Star teams, and win two Gold Gloves for his work at second base.  However, the Reds dealt Helms to the Astros in November 1971 as part of an eight-player blockbuster that stands out as one of the most important trades in Cincinnati baseball history.  The Reds’ end of the trade included future starting center fielder Cesar Geronimo, rotation stalwart Jack Billingham, and (most prominently) future Hall-of-Famer Joe Morgan, arguably the best second baseman in baseball history.

Helms continued to post solid offensive and defensive numbers over his next three seasons in Houston, before his production fell off in 1975.  He played in a part-time capacity with the Pirates and Red Sox in 1976-77 to wrap up his playing career.  Over 1435 games and 5337 plate appearances, Helms hit .269/.300/.342 with 34 home runs and 414 runs scored.

After retiring from the field, Helms returned to Cincinnati as a coach in 1983 as an infield instructor and first base coach.  He remained on the staff under three different Reds managers from 1983-89, and he twice became the interim manager due to the controversies involving his old teammate Rose, then the Reds skipper.  Helms took over the dugout when Rose was suspended 30 games for shoving an umpire in 1988, and again became the interim manager when Rose accepted his lifetime ban from baseball in 1989.  Helms moved on from the Reds following that season to manage in the Cubs’ farm system for a year, and he emerged to manage one final time in the independent Atlantic League in 2000-01.

We at MLB Trade Rumors send our condolences to Helms’ family (including his nephew Wes), friends, and many fans.

Reds Activate Andrew Abbott From Injured List

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The Reds activated southpaw Andrew Abbott from the injured list earlier today, as noted by Gordon Wittenmyer of the Cincinnati Enquirer. Abbott will be starting tonight’s game against the Pirates. Outfielder Will Benson was optioned to Triple-A in the corresponding move.

Abbott, 26 in June, emerged as a regular rotation option for the Reds when he was a rookie back in 2023. He posted a strong 3.87 ERA (120 ERA+) in 21 starts that year while striking 26.1% of his opponents, but his sophomore campaign saw him take something of a step backwards. While the southpaw’s 3.72 ERA and 118 ERA+ were largely unchanged from his rookie campaign, his peripheral numbers suffered as he posted a well below-average 5.02 FIP across 25 starts. Much of that can be attributed to his lackluster 19.5% strikeout rate in his follow-up season, though a sizable increase in his home run rate also played a role.

The lefty mostly looked good during Spring Training, with a 2.57 ERA and five strikeouts against just one walk in seven innings of work across two outings. Those sorts of numbers would normally put Abbott in a good place to improve upon his work in 2025 this year, but a slow build up to the season after last year was cut short by a shoulder strain meant that he actually started out on the injured list rather than breaking camp with the club. Fortunately, it proved to be a relatively brief IL stint as he finished building up with the Reds’ Triple-A affiliate in Louisville with a 3.60 ERA in two starts.

With Abbott now back in the majors, he’ll be tasked with sliding into the back of the Cincinnati rotation alongside Hunter Greene, Nick Lodolo, Nick Martinez, and Brady Singer. It’s a strong group that the Reds figure to lean on heavily this year as they look to fight their way back into the postseason for the first time since 2020, though the eventual return of youngster Rhett Lowder from the injured list could push someone out of the mix. Abbott could be a candidate to move out of the rotation depending on his performance, though perhaps the most sensible choice would be Martinez given his past experience (and success) in a bullpen role.

Moving off the roster to make room for Abbott is Benson, who appeared in just one game after being called up from the minors earlier this week. That lone appearance left much to be desired, as Benson struck out four times in four trips to the plate, but that he’s been in the minors at all this year while the Reds rely on players like Blake Dunn and Jacob Hurtubise to fill in while Austin Hays is on the injured list is telling of how far his stock has fallen in the organization’s eyes. It wasn’t long ago, after all, that Benson was one of the team’s best hitters with a .275/.365/.498 slash line back in 2023.

A lackluster 2024 season that saw him strikeout out in 39.7% of his plate appearances with a subpar 75 wRC+ was enough to push him out of the club’s roster plans for this year despite that impressive history, and while he’s raked in nine games at Triple-A this season it seems he’ll need to show more improvement to get a substantial opportunity in the majors this year. In the meantime, Gavin Lux has joined Dunn, Hurtubise, and Jake Fraley in the corner outfield mix while Hays is out of commission, while TJ Friedl remains the club’s everyday center fielder.

Reds Approached Matt McLain About Extension Before Opening Day

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The Reds floated a preliminary extension framework to Matt McLain before Opening Day, reports Gordon Wittenmyer of The Cincinnati Enquirer.  Talks didn’t get far, as the 25-year-old infielder told Wittenmyer that the numbers “just didn’t line up” with what his camp was seeking.

McLain missed all of last season recovering from shoulder surgery. The former first-round pick tore the labrum and damaged cartilage in his left (non-throwing) shoulder during Spring Training 2024. He was targeting an August return but suffered a stress reaction in his ribcage a week before he would have begun a minor league rehab stint. Cincinnati decided it wasn’t worth pushing him to get back in September, as it had become clear they weren’t going to make the playoffs.

It was an unfortunate follow-up after McLain’s strong rookie season. The righty-hitting infielder finished fifth in NL Rookie of the Year balloting back in 2023. He hit .290/.357/.507 with 16 homers and 14 steals across 403 plate appearances. He’s a potential All-Star second baseman if healthy. Last year’s injury could have made it difficult to align on an extension, though. It adds some risk to the long-term profile, but McLain presumably would not want to feel like he’s negotiating at a low point in his value. He told Wittenmyer there are no conversations ongoing while pointing out that he didn’t play last season.

There’s plenty of time for the teams to reengage down the line. McLain has yet to reach two years of service time. He should qualify for early arbitration as a Super Two player next offseason. He’ll go through the arbitration process four times and is not slated to hit free agency until the 2029-30 offseason. McLain is on track to get to free agency in advance of his age-30 season. He has connected on three homers in the early going this season, though he has also punched out in 11 of his 30 trips to the plate.

The Reds did get one extension done this spring, retaining backup catcher Jose Trevino on a two-year deal with $11MM in new money. General manager Brad Meador tells Wittenmyer the team has had “very preliminary and early” extension conversations with a number of players. It doesn’t seem anything has gotten close. Extensions are most common during Spring Training, but a lot of those discussions have carried beyond Opening Day around the league. Brandon Pfaadt, Garrett Crochet, Jackson Merrill, Kristian Campbell and Ketel Marte have all signed extensions within the past eight days.

Braves Acquire Stuart Fairchild

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The Reds have traded outfielder Stuart Fairchild to the Braves for cash considerations, according to announcements from both clubs. The Reds had designated Fairchild for assignment last week. Atlanta transferred right-hander Joe Jiménez, who is recovering from knee surgery and might miss the entire season, to the 60-day injured list as the corresponding move.

Fairchild, 29, is a speed-and-defense outfielder. He has appeared in 249 big league games over the past four big league seasons. In that time, he has a .224/.308/.389 batting line in 615 plate appearances. That production translates to a wRC+ of 88, indicating he’s been 12% below average at the plate overall.

He has also swiped 23 bags in 29 tries, getting double-digit steals in each of the past two seasons. He has 1,389 1/3 innings in the outfield, spending time at all three positions. In that time, he’s been credited with ten Defensive Runs Saved and nine Outs Above Average.

But he is out of options, meaning he needs to hold an active roster spot in order to stick on a 40-man roster. The Reds squeezed him off but Atlanta will find a spot for him. By moving Jiménez to the 60-day, they have made room for Fairchild on the 40-man but will have to make a corresponding active roster move whenever Fairchild reports to the team.

That could perhaps be Bryan De La Cruz getting optioned down to Triple-A. The club currently has Jurickson Profar, Michael Harris II and Jarred Kelenic getting the regular outfield playing time. De La Cruz and Eli White are on the bench but White is out of options, whereas De La Cruz is still optionable.

However the alignment shakes out for now, it’s likely to be temporary. Alex Verdugo was signed just over a week ago. He has agreed to be optioned to start the year so that he can effectively do a delayed spring training. Ronald Acuña Jr. is on the injured list, still recovering from last year’s ACL tear, but could be back with the club at some point in May.

As Verdugo and Acuña eventually join the active roster, guys like Fairchild, De La Cruz, White and perhaps even Kelenic could be squeezed out of playing time or bumped down the depth chart. For now, Fairchild gives Atlanta a nice fourth outfielder with a good glove and some speed. As mentioned, he is out of options but has less than three years of service time. That means he theoretically can be retained beyond this season if he carves at a comfortable role for himself. He’s also a righty bat with a .248/.346/.409 line and 107 wRC+ against lefties in his career, so perhaps he can carve out a platoon role with the lefty-swinging Kelenic.

Photo courtesy of Mark J. Rebilas, Imagn Images

NL Injury Notes: Realmuto, Turner, Suarez, Abbott, Murphy, Freeman

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X-rays were negative on J.T. Realmuto’s left foot after he fouled a ball off himself in Saturday’s 11-6 win over the Nationals.  The Phillies took Realmuto out of the game, and the catcher also didn’t play today “more a precaution than anything,” manager Rob Thomson told reporters (including Scott Lauber of the Philadelphia Inquirer).  Realmuto will likely be back in action tomorrow when the Phillies have their home opener, though Trea Turner could miss a third straight game as he recovers from back spasms.  Thomson said Turner was available off the bench today and might play Monday, though the Phils’ off-day on Tuesday would allow Turner to get a full four days of recovery time if he is held out of Monday’s lineup.

In other Phillies injury news, Ranger Suarez threw a 26-pitch bullpen session on Saturday, and an up-and-down bullpen is now slated for Tuesday.  If all goes well, Lauber writes that Suarez will make at least one minor league rehab start before being activated from the 15-day injured list.  Suarez was bothered by a bad back during Spring Training, and the Phils decided to put him on the IL to give him more time to heal up and them finish his spring preparations in advance of his 2025 debut.

More injury updates from around the National League…

  • Speaking of pitchers on the 15-day IL, the Reds told reporters (including Gordon Wittenmyer of the Cincinnati Enquirer) that southpaw Andrew Abbott will throw his first rehab start with Triple-A Louisville on Tuesday.  Abbott is slated for another outing on April 6, and a decision will then be made about whether or not he might be activated onto the Reds’ roster.  A shoulder strain ended Abbott’s 2024 season in late August, and recovering from that strain set Abbott back in his usual offseason work, so the Reds opted to slowly ramp the left-hander up in Spring Training.  If all goes well, Abbott should line up to make his 2025 debut on April 11 or 12, depending on how Cincinnati sets up its pitching staff.
  • Braves catcher Sean Murphy will also probably be starting a minor league rehab assignment this week, as MLB.com’s Mark Bowman writes that Murphy will likely take the field for the Braves’ A-level affiliate on Friday.  Murphy cracked a rib after he was hit by a pitch during a Spring Training game in early March, and we’ve already hit the lower end of the initial 4-6 week recovery timeline.  Still, Murphy appears to be making good enough progress that a return to Atlanta’s lineup should be feasible by mid-April.
  • Tyler Freeman left today’s game with a bruised left wrist after he was hit by a Taj Bradley pitch, but x-rays were negative, MLB.com’s Thomas Harding writes.  Freeman might be well enough to return to the Rockies’ lineup tomorrow, though since Colorado doesn’t play on Tuesday, this is another situation where a player with a minor injury might simply get an extra day to fully heal.

Poll: Who Will Win The NL Central?

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With Opening Day just over the horizon, teams all around the league are gearing up for another pennant chase in hopes of being crowned this year’s World Series champion. Of course, there’s still another seven months to go before someone raises the Commissioner’s Trophy. Until the playoffs begin, teams will be focused on a smaller goal: winning their division. We’ll be conducting a series of polls to gauge who MLBTR readers believe is the favorite in each division. That series already covered the NL West, where the Dodgers were viewed as an overwhelming favorite, and will now move on to the NL Central. Teams are listed in order of their 2024 record.

Milwaukee Brewers (93-69)

The perennially underrated Brewers won the NL Central for a second consecutive year last season, finishing ten games up on the second-place Cubs and Cardinals. Impressively, they did so after losing both star manager Craig Counsell and ace right-hander Corbin Burnes the previous offseason. They’ll need to work that same magic to stay on top of their division this year after a winter that once again saw them part ways with major pieces. This time, longtime shortstop Willy Adames departed for San Francisco in free agency while the club traded star closer Devin Williams to the Yankees in exchange for prospect Caleb Durbin and southpaw Nestor Cortes.

Even without those stars, the Brewers could make some noise in a relatively weak division. A strong outfield anchored by Christian Yelich and Jackson Chourio figures to impress once again in 2025, and William Contreras has blossomed into a true star behind the plate. Meanwhile, veteran ace Brandon Woodruff is expected back sometime early this year after missing 2024 due to shoulder surgery, joining existing rotation pieces like Freddy Peralta and Aaron Civale to form a strong group. The club’s first challenge of the year will be getting through the early weeks of the season with a patchwork rotation, as each of Woodruff, Tobias Myers, DL Hall, Aaron Ashby, and Robert Gasser figure to open the year on the injured list.

Chicago Cubs (83-79)

After a second consecutive 83-79 finish in 2024, the Cubs made some major changes over the offseason. The club said goodbye to its longest-tenured player as Kyle Hendricks departed for Anaheim, replacing him in the rotation with southpaw Matthew Boyd, and swapped out Cody Bellinger for Kyle Tucker, a clear offensive upgrade that cost them third baseman Isaac Paredes to pull off. A reconstructed bullpen featuring Ryan Pressly, Ryan Brasier, Caleb Thielbar, and Eli Morgan looks strong on paper than the relief corps that was expected to be anchored by Adbert Alzolay and Hector Neris last year, as well. Despite those on-paper improvements, the Cubs face plenty of questions entering 2025. Matt Shaw, Pete Crow-Armstrong, and even Miguel Amaya offer plenty of upside at third base, in center field, and behind the plate respectively but none are surefire offensive contributors.

There’s still plenty to like, however. Tucker, Seiya Suzuki, and Ian Happ provide an incredibly strong floor in the outfield, and the addition of Justin Turner offers protection against a sophomore slump for 2024 standout rookie Michael Busch at first base while Nico Hoerner and Dansby Swanson figure to offer their perennially excellent defense alongside league average offense up the middle. Justin Steele and Shota Imanaga offer a quality one-two punch at the front of the club’s rotation, as well. It’s not too difficult to see a path back to the playoffs for the Cubs this year despite the questions, and adding a true star like Tucker ahead of his walk year could be the boost they need to recapture the division in 2025.

St. Louis Cardinals (83-79)

2024 was a mixed bag for the Cardinals, as they managed to get back over .500 following a disastrous 2023 campaign but saw both Nolan Arenado and Paul Goldschmidt fail to live up to expectations as they fell short of the playoffs once again. The struggles of the last two years prompted the Cardinals front office to put a focus on developing young players and parting ways with veterans this winter, though no-trade clauses wielded by Sonny Gray, Willson Contreras, and Arenado prevented that goal from coming to fruition outside of the departures of veterans like Goldschmidt and Kyle Gibson via free agency.

That’s left the Cardinals with a roster that looks simultaneously similar and slightly downgraded from last year. Phil Maton was the club’s only big league free agent addition this winter, offering a veteran set-up option for closer Ryan Helsley after Andrew Kittredge departed in free agency. Outside of that, the club’s moves were largely internal. Contreras replaced Goldschmidt at first base to make room for a catching tandem of Ivan Herrera and Pedro Pages, Matthew Liberatore is sliding into the club’s rotation from the bullpen, and the club appears committed to giving more regular opportunities to younger players like Jordan Walker, Nolan Gorman, and Alec Burleson. St. Louis’s hopes of finding success in 2025 likely hinge on those young players making the most of their opportunities this year and taking big steps forward.

Cincinnati Reds (77-85)

2024 was a deeply disappointed season in Cincinnati, as a club that many expected to blossom instead fell apart in the face of injuries all over the roster. Strong performances from stars Elly De La Cruz and Hunter Greene aside, there were few positive takeaways from last season. Fortunately, the club made substantial changes ahead of the 2025 season. They got things started in October by hiring future Hall of Famer Terry Francona to manage the club, and since then they’ve added Gavin Lux, Taylor Rogers, Jose Trevino, and Brady Singer in free agency while bringing back Nick Martinez and signing Austin Hays.

It was a busy offseason that added a number of solid complimentary pieces, all of whom should help the Reds avoid a total collapse like they suffered last year. Even so, the club will need better health from its core players to contend. The return of Matt McLain should offer a big boost, while healthy seasons from TJ Friedl in center field, Jeimer Candelario at third base, and Nick Lodolo in the rotation could be game changing as well. The pieces appear to be in place for brighter days in 2025, but whether that will be enough to get the Reds back to the postseason for the first time in a 162-game season since 2013 remains to be seen.

Pittsburgh Pirates (76-86)

Pittsburgh hasn’t finished above fourth place in the NL Central since 2016, and even a full season from reigning NL Rookie of the Year Paul Skenes won’t be enough to pull the club back into postseason contention on its own. The Pirates had a relatively quiet offseason this winter as they brought Andrew Heaney into the rotation alongside the additions of Spencer Horwitz and Tommy Pham to the lineup but made few additions beyond that trio. Those additions join a solid enough nucleus that includes Skenes, Jared Jones, Mitch Keller, Oneil Cruz, and Bryan Reynolds, but a lineup light on impact and a bullpen still anchored by David Bednar even after a 5.77 ERA season last year raise questions about the club’s ability to compete before even considering the fact that Jones and Horwitz are both presently nursing injuries.

That’s not to say there’s no hope for the Pirates this year, however. Skenes is perhaps the best young pitcher in the entire sport, and even if Jones misses time Keller, Heaney, and Bailey Falter make for a solid rotation that should keep the club in most games. A big season from Horwitz once he returns from the IL along with steps forward for young players like Cruz, Endy Rodriguez, and Nick Gonzales could lift the lineup well above its projections even if the club continues to get little value from former 1-1 pick Henry Davis, and Bednar returning to the form he showed in his previous back-to-back All-Star campaigns would go along way as well.

__________________________________________

It was a fairly busy offseason in the NL Central, and while the division still appears weaker at the top than its rivals on the coasts it nonetheless stands out as the only one in the National League where all five clubs are making some attempt to contend in 2025. Will the Brewers be able to hold onto the division crown for a third consecutive season? Will an up-and-coming club like the Cubs or Reds take a big enough step forward to wrest control? Or, perhaps, the Cardinals or Pirates will get the steps forward from young pieces necessary to surprise? Have your say in the poll below:

Reds Select Austin Wynns

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The Reds announced that they have selected catcher Austin Wynns to their roster. To open a spot on the 40-man, they transferred left-hander Brandon Williamson to the 60-day injured list. Williamson underwent Tommy John surgery in September and will likely miss the entire 2025 season.

Adding Wynns has seemed likely for a while now. The Reds previously only had two catchers on their 40-man roster in Tyler Stephenson and Jose Trevino. Stephenson got an MRI on his back a couple of weeks ago which revealed a low-grade oblique strain. That made it inevitable that the Reds would have to add another backstop to pair with Trevino to start the season.

Wynns, 34, was in this role with Cincinnati in 2024 as well. The club selected his contract three times last year, whenever they needed a fresh body. In the first two cases, he was designated for assignment and outrighted back to Louisville a few days later. In the third case, he himself landed on the IL due to a right teres major tear and finished the season there. At season’s end, he was outrighted off the roster again and elected free agency but returned on a fresh minor league pact.

His .230/.277/.332 career batting line isn’t strong but he’s a veteran backstop who has appeared in parts of six big league seasons now. He’s considered a competent defender and the Reds are clearly comfortable with him.

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