Here are the day’s outright assignments:
- The Reds have announced that seven players were outrighted off the club’s 40-man roster (h/t to C. Trent Rosecrans of the Cincinnati Enquirer, on Twitter). On the chopping block were pitchers Nate Adcock, Collin Balester, David Holmberg, and Josh Smith, outfielders Brennan Boesch and Jason Bourgeois, and infielder/outfielder Kris Negron. Adcock, Balester, Boesch, and Bourgeois have all seen reasonably frequent MLB action but have bounced around quite a bit in recent years. Negron has appeared in each of the last three seasons in Cincinnati, compiling a .220/.296/.353 batting line over 270 plate appearances. Holmberg was acquired as part of the pre-2014, three-team deal that sent Heath Bell (from the Diamondbacks) and Ryan Hanigan to the Rays. He’s functioned as a depth starter, walking nearly as many batters as he’s retired via strikeout over his 58 1/3 MLB innings with Cincinnati. Smith made his MLB debut last year, allowing 25 earned runs in 32 2/3 innings of work, but found himself squeezed out by Cincinnati’s recent influx of young, upper-level pitches.
Need to cut more dead weight!!!
Holmberg is a southpaw!
Yeah that’s my bad, I originally had the pitchers listed separately and then bunched them together and messed it up. Fixed!
No surprise there. As a Reds fan I wouldn’t be surprised to see Josh Smith (who pitched really well in the minors, but horrendously in the majors), Kris Negron (versatility), and Bourgeois retained on minor league contracts, for minor league depth. Although if they leave nobody will really care.
Bourgeois, as a replacement level player, might get a chance to make the team out of spring training, but it always seemed unlikely that he’d get salary arbitration.
Adcock just had Tommy John surgery, Balestar was eh, while Holmberg and Boesch are terribly unpopular with Reds fans, to the extent that they’re basically synonymous with everything unpopular about the team. I doubt any of those four will remain in the organization.
Holmberg is a leftie!
First housekeeping move, more shall come…