Reds outfielder Nick Senzel is likely to open the 2023 campaign on the injured list, reports Bobby Nightengale of the Cincinnati Enquirer. The former second overall pick has been delayed this spring after an offseason spent recovering from toe surgery.
Nightengale notes that while there hasn’t been any setback, the Reds are taking things cautiously in Senzel’s ramp-up. He has yet to get into a Spring Training game and isn’t expected to log any exhibition action this week either. Senzel has been taking at-bats in simulated games at Reds’ camp but he’s yet to progress to full speed running or defensive work.
Senzel spent most of the offseason in a walking boot. He’d initially fractured a toe on his left foot last September when he collided with a wall trying to track down a fly ball. The initial expectation was that the issue would resolve itself via rehab. That proved not to be the case, and Senzel underwent surgery in mid-November. The club indicated at the time he was likely to be ready for the start of Spring Training, though he’s apparently progressed a little slower from the surgery than initially anticipated.
Still, it doesn’t appear as though the Reds are anticipating the absence dragging too deep into meaningful games. Assuming Senzel starts the season on the IL, they’ll have a number of outfield options who could take on some extra at-bats in the early going. TJ Friedl, Will Benson and Stuart Fairchild are all capable of manning center field and could battle for reps. That’s also true of rookie Michael Siani, who got into his first nine MLB games late last season after Senzel first went down. Cincinnati optioned Siani to Triple-A Louisville yesterday, though, so it doesn’t seem he’s in consideration for an Opening Day roster spot.
Once he’s able to return to action, Senzel figures to assume the regular center field role. It’s something of a make-or-break season for the Tennessee product, who carries a career .240/.303/.360 line in parts of four big leagues campaigns. Senzel reached arbitration for the first time this offseason and is controllable via that process through 2025.
Senzel I’d a bust sadly
Senzel is sadly a bust I’d say.
davidk1979 Are you thinking that he’s made of glass or something similar? Is that why you’re saying that you’d bust him?
thanx, yoda!
Solid on base guy his first 3 years in the minors with a little pop and a little speed. Projected well…….but way more prospects fail than pan out.
Has he ever been?
Moniak and Senzel. 12.3 million well spent.
There’s a big shocker right there and of course they had no plan for it even though Stevie Wonder could see it coming.
I laugh at the controllable comment. What does it matter if he is never available anyway?
The Reds haven’t done this guy any favors. He played CF for 2 weeks and learned it on the fly in the majors. He never had injury issues as an infielder at UT and in the minors.
Being designated a CF instead of a 3B hasn’t changed his injury issues. He’s spends more time on the DL than the active roster. He’s Grady Sizemore without the flashes of talent.
Why is this being reported everywhere today? We knew this weeks ago going into spring training
People will call him a bust but I suspect most top prospects would have the same luck in that organization.
A top 2 draft pick from one of the best baseball schools. It’s not just him though, the reds have struggled to develop enough MLB talent for years. Hopefully Hunter Greene continues to prove me wrong they get better at player development
I think more people would have been surprised if he was ready…
Senzel has every chance imaginable. You break your toe in September and your not ready byApril, sadly that doesn’t surprise any Reds fan.
As much as the Reds front office screws up this isn’t one of those.
What did Cincinnati do to this guy? He was lighting up the minors and then came to the MLB and he withered away.
Thoughts and prayers to his career.
Benson already has 11 hits and 5 stolen bases this spring, not to mention he looks like an outside linebacker. I think the Reds will be fine without the oft-injured Senzel.
Left-handed Eric Davis
Plus 2 inches and 45 pounds
Terrible defensively though from what I have seen so far.
But Senzel not that great there either.
Particularly given that nobody on the IL plays great…cuz they’re on the IL.
Not great when he is sporadically playing either. In fact, I would say contributes to his injuries.
It’s not Senzel’s fault that he has had legitimate health issues. But it is someone’s fault if they plan a team around him.
Shocker!! He’s a waste. Cut him! He can’t play through a paper cut.
It’s unfortunate for Senzel, but not a big thing for the Reds anymore. Just more playing time for Friedl, Benson, perhaps Fairchild.. When healthy, Nick might end up seeing time in Louisville.
Like the Angels did with Moniak, Reds will find no shortage of suitors for Senzel from the lot of rebuilding clubs if they look to trade him.
#2 overall draft pick who won’t take much to acquire. Note: Moniak was traded for two months of Noah Syndergaard.
I could see the Nats, Pirates, A’s or Marlins being interested. Frankly, as a Phillies fan, I’d be happy to have Senzel roaming CF instead of Brandon Marsh.
Marsh always plays like he’s stuck in the marsh. Don’t need him.
5 months+ for a professional athlete to recover from toe surgery. Impressive – even by Nick Senzel standards
Make lemonade out of lemons. Like previous Reds OF focus article, another reason to get Benson consistent ABs playing a corner spot. Nothing to lose playing a higher upside guy when rebuilding. Others that can play better D can compete for CF/have a timeshare.
Interesting how pretty much all of the usual suspects are already hurt this spring..just waiting on Buxton..(although in fairness, he usually makes it to around May.)
Senzel has been injured often and seems to take longer than most to be ready to play . Seems like his time with the Reds may be running out with too many other outfield options to to take his place
No biggie…..he bats .231 with 25 rbi.
Does senzel have an autoimmune disease or something? He heals slower than any athlete I have ever seen. Look at the original toe injury. Expected to heal without surgery, then surgery needed, now cant get healthy from the surgery that should have been fully healed 4 months ago. Crazy.
Nick Senzel:
“A former #2 overall pick, and a consensus top prospect before reaching the majors in 2019.”
Add to that, lifelong natural infielder ….
Yeah, I get the injury bug but Senzel never should have been forced to move to centerfield just to make the roster in the first place. Blocked by two guys riding hot streaks, one who’s no longer in the league and the other who went back to being a one-trick pony somewhere else. At the time he was the Reds best prospect in years. They should have asked him where he wanted to play and put him there. (Hint: it wouldn’t have been CF). They were to cheap or dumb to find a proper CF at the time. Could’ve signed AJ Pollack who was a free agent and gotten those couple good years that instead went to the Dodgers. It would have been a better overpay than Moose, certainly. Senzel could have developed comfortably in his natural habitat, the dirt.
The Reds also swore to the fan base he wouldn’t be blocked (Google it) but then did it anyway.
Again, I get that he’s become injury prone but you couldn’t have known that at the time and if they did, all the more reason CF was a stupid idea. At least two major injuries came from crashing into the outfield wall. And having to learn the hardest outfield position from scratch certainly took mental space away from focusing on hitting!
He deserved the same red carpet that they finally later gave to India. Instead, he’s now seen as practically a total bust and that’s on the FO, player development and David Bell.
The Senzel story encapsulates why the Reds are where they are, finally rebuilding as there’s no other option, eating Moose’s salary, sticking with Bell and a first time GM who’s currently reading “rebuilding for dummies” and a trail of dumb decisions that will take twice the time now to correct. No wonder Dick Williams slunk off like the fraud that he was.
The rebuild should have started with Nick Senzel, instead they signed Moose and some hyped dude from Japan etc etc And the fans are all half a decade older and wondering which will come first, a Reds championship or the grim reaper. So it goes….
I’m about to turn 44, Grim Reaper will be here sooner
who cares