10:31AM: The contract will pay Bleday $1.4MM in guaranteed money, plus more is available via incentives, MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand writes.
9:30AM: The Reds have signed outfielder JJ Bleday, according to FanSided’s Robert Murray. MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon adds that the contract is a one-year Major League contract, and that the signing will become official once Cincinnati makes another move to clear a spot on its full 40-man roster. Bleday is represented by Excel Sports Management.
Selected fourth overall by the Marlins in the 2019 draft, it looked like Bleday had broken out in 2024, when he hit .243/.324/.437 with 20 homers over 642 plate appearances during the Athletics’ final season in Oakland. This 120 wRC+ at the plate was enough to power Bleday to 3.2 fWAR during the season, despite some very rough (-19 Defensive Runs Saved, -3 Outs Above Average) reviews of his defensive performance in center field.
One would’ve expected that, if anything, Bleday’s bat would’ve become even more potent as the A’s moved to Sutter Health Park, yet he instead struggled through a brutal 2025 campaign. Bleday delivered only a 90 wRC+ from a .212/.294/.404 slash line and 14 homers over 344 PA, and he played in just 98 big league games as he was twice demoted to Triple-A. Bleday’s barrel numbers and strikeout rate both dropped off considerably from 2024, falling to below-average marks. The A’s moved Bleday out of center field, but his glovework was still passable at best as a corner outfielder.
MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projected Bleday to earn $2.2MM in his first of three trips through the arbitration process. The Athletics chose to move on entirely by designating Bleday for assignment in November, and he was then cut loose at the non-tender deadline. The Reds now control Bleday through the 2028 season, and since he has a minor league option remaining, Cincinnati can send him back to down to Triple-A if necessary.
Bleday is a left-handed hitter, which makes him something of an imperfect fit in a Reds outfield that already includes such lefty-swingers as TJ Friedl, Gavin Lux, and Will Benson. Noelvi Marte is a right-handed hitter, but he is also likely the only outfielder slated for everyday duty in the wake of his successful transition to the right field position in 2025. Today’s move could indicate that the Reds are thinking about parting ways with Lux or Benson, or since this entire group is pretty inexpensive, Cincinnati could wait until Spring Training to figure out exactly how the outfield playing time will be split.
A bounce-back candidate like Bleday is far from any kind of clear-cut upgrade to the Reds lineup. Cincinnati squeaked into the postseason despite middling numbers at best in most offensive categories, and the multi-positional flexibility of most of the Reds’ current players gave the team plenty of room to maneuver in considering offseason moves. Such names as Brandon Lowe (since dealt to the Pirates), Jake Meyers, and Luis Robert Jr. have reportedly been on the Reds’ trade radar, and the club even considered an uncharacteristic free agent splash with a five-year offer in the $125MM range for Kyle Schwarber. However, that specific pursuit seemed linked to Schwarber’s local ties to the Cincinnati area, and the Reds are very likely not spending anything close to that number for any other free agent bat.
In that sense, Bleday is a better fit within the Reds’ limited budget, and perhaps a sign that the Reds will be focusing more on trades than free agents. If the move to Sutter Health Park didn’t agree with Bleday, perhaps playing in another hitter-friendly venue (and a proper big league stadium) like The Great American Ballpark will do the trick. Bleday isn’t likely to be the last of the Reds’ offensive additions, as a better lineup would help the club take a step forward as true contenders.
Krall, King of the dumpster diving world
Worse than Hoyer?
Reds should have made the Cubs a decent offer for Ian Happ.
Right… that way he wouldn’t crush us every time we play them
Happ crushes the Pirates too and he’s from the Pittsburgh suburbs.So much for being home.
David Stearns is throwing things right now in a fit of rage because the Reds outbid him.
He got this one out of the toilet. JJ Bidet.
I liked him in The League.
The guy is a #1 pick, he had a pretty good year in Oakland a few years ago. Hitting in Cincy has to be a plus. Good luck to him.
HOPIUM
Cause Sacramento is real tough on hitters.
He had 43 doubles and 20 homers in 2024. They didn’t play in Sacramento until 2025. Way to know what you’re talking about
Haha, I think you misunderstood monroe.
You’d think so but look at their lineup. Guys come here and get worse instead of better. Plus Tito brings in Valaika to be a hitting coach who was a terrible hitter when he played. Not counting on him to suddenly figure it out in Cincy.
Just because a coach could not hit himself does not mean he cannot coach. There are a ton of guys that couldn’t hit or pitch a lick in the minors and became great coaches or managers. They know what to do and can teach it, but couldn’t execute themselves for whatever reason.
Look at all the hitting coaches around MLB. I don’t think there is an All-Star in the bunch. Certainly no .300 hitters. Most of them had to work hard just to make it. Had to study and work at it just to be a .250 hitter. I read a story one time where a lot of the really, good hitters were terrible coaches. Their coaching consisted of “see the ball, hit the ball”. Um…okay, coach. Thanks.
The Mariners have Edgar Martínez as their hitting coach. Not sure what he does or says but I think just having him around makes guys go “oh s**t, I better hit this ball up the middle cause he’s watching”
Valaika as a player by MLB standards:
Negative career WAR
Short/chunky
Zero power/Zero speed
The Reds were shut out a boatload of times last year so maybe Valaika did influence Reds hitters (negatively)…
Ill take Bleday at 1.4m over 20 million Roberts any day.
I wouldn’t. It’s not my money
The most Reds move ever. Let’s grab trash from the heap and call it a big move.
Are they calling that their big move?
Do you see anything of value signed or traded for? Last year it was Hays which was mediocre.
Hays was the 5th best hitter on the team. He was not a bad signing.
But still mediocre…….
Combine it with the Chavis signing 😂😂😂
You don’t follow baseball, do you?
Exactly 🤣🤣
Don’t see anyone calling it a big move. It’s a move.
The majority of the moves that take place in MLB aren’t big ones.
Say good’ay to Reggie Ray?
Could be a good pick up. Had a decent 2024 so maybe he can pick it back up. Just a guess.
The Reds standby.Maybe someone will have a career year.
If it was between Bleday or Roberts, I like the move honestly. With that said, it is still very disappointing if Krall doesn’t make an impact trade for a hyped up yet proven impact bat. Time will tell.
Maybe makes a Robert trade a little less likely. But they hit from opposite sides. And Bleday can still be stashed in AAA if they add another OF.
And Roberts can play center lol, I thought the ljr trade was unlikely anyways since they obviously overvalue him. Maybe this removes some leverage idk, they probably just walk away though.
Neither Bleday or Robert move the needle for this team. Will Benson is basically the same hitter as Bleday but better defensively. Now with Bleday we are paying not only his $1.4 million but Thompson who we cut $1.4 million for his services as opposed to the $1.4 million we pay benson. So basically paying double for something we already had.
We already have a ton of average right handed hitters like Robert all making less than he makes.
I wanted Schwarber not because he is local but because in the history of free agency I have never known of a borderline playoff team that had a specific need (left handed power bat) with an available free agent as schwarber that fit that specific need. Not saying Schwarber was as good of a free agent as Ohtani or others but the reds biggest fault last year was power and Schwarber probably the best pure power free agent past 20 years.
Understandably we didn’t get Schwarber given our market size but the pirates got 2 affordable left handed bats with power last week. Josh Lowe via trade and O’Hearn via signing. No reason we couldn’t have done one and been within budget.
At this point the only left handed 25 plus home run bat left is Kyle Tucker and we ain’t getting him so any other moves we make like Bleday will not make a difference or hurt the team overall like trading Greene or Abbott to one of the Red Sox surplus left handed hitting outfielders.
Good get. Guys who have a 120 wRC+ season on their resume, are only 28, and can play CF don’t grow on trees.
He can’t play CF though
Agree with everything except the CF part. He’s out of position there.
His CF Defensive runs saved metric is something like -35.
Poor OBP and defense but was good 2 years ago and in that small park might be able to slug some homers as a reserve outfielder.
20 hr in 2024, former #4 overall pick
A’s play in a little lg park and they didnt even wanna pay the $2mil?
He might bounce back in cincy a la austin hays
If it’s a minor league contract or a split contract, then is a solid signing. If it’s a major league deal, then is at least questionable.
What JJ is missing is a contact, but the discipline is there, and he has 20-25 HR potential. He is a decent corner OF with a good arm, and can also play Center Field on an emergency or a if you want to give your starter a day off. Again, solid if not guaranteed.
So you don’t think a guy who in 2024 that had 43 doubles and 20 homers deserves a major league contract?
Well, everything on the right context. He has only one above average season in his 4-year career, so as good as he was in 2024, that season is still looking like a fluke. So yeah, he might not.
However, he wasn’t all that bad last season (92 OPS+) and the Reds are definitely needing all the help they can get in the OF grass, so it makes sense to give him a major league contract, but most other teams, probably not.
I was hopeful the Royals would sign him. Seems to me the A’s were quick with the non-tender here. Maybe there is something going on behind the scenes here?
When this happens I get confused…does he just go through arbitration with the Reds? Or did they sign him to a deal then?
He won’t go through arb this winter….whatever they’ve signed him for is what he gets. Hopefully it’s close to league min.
He will be eligible for arbitration again next offseason
The minor league option is really important. Considering his pedigree and performance a season ago, he’s a good guy to have in AAA hoping to break out.
Cheap move, high upside, the only problem is it takes a 40 man roster spot. Otherwise why not…
1.4 M$ that could have been added to what’s left to sign someone better – that’s the why not. But that would be expecting someone better. Not likely, Reds fans look at Steer and Lux starting in LF all year.
So you let someone else sign him and then you can’t sign someone better and you’re left with nothing
He doesn’t preclude the Reds from signing someone better and keep him. He’s better than Rece Hinds and Jacob Dunn…and Will Benson. Easily the 4th OF at least
Actually it does prevent it if they don’t have the salary to do so. None of those players you mentioned should be playing either.
Very good signing by the Reds and I think it has the potential of being the best under the radar move of the offseason. High upside with Bleday.
If he could play defense he would’ve been a brewer 😂😂
Kinda had some reverse splits last year albeit in a small sample size
I guess… He doesn’t have enough service time to both reject an outright and keep his salary, so he could be a candidate to send down if they eventually get a roster crunch.
Need to trade for Rooker
Not going to happen. This would take almost all of the Reds top of the farm system.
lol tiger
Eh I doubt that. A’s need to shore up money to lock up young core. Reds have enough pitching prospects to land him.
No they dont. Giving up Burns or Lowder would be a stupid move.
A .215 average , another great signing by the worst organization in professional sports. ( Sorry , I forgot that they signed a AAA hitter a couple days ago ) . Pathetic
What’s pathetic is analyzing players using batting average.
Please baseball professor , teach me how to analyze ! 😀
And the reds offseason comes to a close. Well done fellas
They probably get another reliever but yeah I would assume that will be the final free agent move. Could still surprise us with a trade though
Just another reclamation project, can go either way. Takes a 40-man spot but also one option remaining.
Reds got their guy! Who needs Schwarber.
Benson, Bleday, Lux, And Hector Rod- just too many LH hitting corner oitfielders. Somebody has to go
I’d vote lux
It shouldn’t be to hard to find a buyer for lux. It’s definitely a sellers market for bats.
If you wanna call him a bat with his 97 OPS+. He only managed to hit 5 homers playing in a great homer park. Not exactly a bat.
Platoon 2Bman with no power aren’t worth much.
Still has value thou. Worst case if healthy, he’s gonna give you 400 league average at bats
He should have been nontendered, his salary can be put to better use.
What does JJ’s roommate say to him in the am? Bleday, mate!
I’ll allow it
Good signing, still need a thumper likely a DH or if they trade MM a power hitter 2B makes sense I think DBacks have a guy
Marte is 31 and not worth Greene or the equivalent in prospects.
That makes 7 of the top 100 picks in the 2019 draft are now Reds: Bledday, Lodolo, Sikkema, Hines, Williamson, Callihan, and Steer. Wendzel would make 8, but Reds released him last month. They also had Stoudt- but released him a couple years ago.
Interesting pickup for the Reds. Too many LH hitting Outfielders on the roster though maybe they plan on trading someone, Lux? Benson? Friedl?
You can have all 3 for casas
We need friedl
I am guessing he replaces Benson and the Lux OF experiment is done.
I bet Krall scooped Bleday to play 2nd. He obviously can’t play outfield lol
Here’s to another mediocre-subpar year Reds fans! The Pirates went out and got Lowe, Mangum, and O’Hearn and the Reds got an A’s non-tender.
Does this close marte out of the of now and brings him back to the if logjam? Hope not.
Definitely not
Replace Benson’s sub par bat with another one. Brilliant!
It does seem that Will is soon gone…
Google says
J.J. Bleday’s initial signing bonus with the Miami Marlins after being the 4th overall pick in the 2019 MLB Draft was $6.67 million, just above the slot value, as part of a standard minor league deal he signed right before the deadline. This was a significant bonus for the Vanderbilt star, kicking off his professional baseball caree
MLB owners are pressuring lower-salary teams to sign players; this helps in negotiations against a Salary Floor. Pittsburgh, the WSox and A’s are on board, but the Reds seem to be holding firm, so to speak, and could end up with the lowest team salary in MLB…
More shopping at the flea market. I really doubt they made a real attempt to sign Swarbs. Just trying to excite the fans with some good press reads. This ownership group will go down in Reds history,with a brown stain on their reputation. Over 60 years as a Reds fan,but if they don’t care,why should I. Move them to Nashville or Indy,Phil.
This was one of the better available outfield bats left in my ojos
This is who I wanted my white sox to sign, bleday is a better batter than the Japanese player. We just got, good job reds.He’s gonna do really well for you.
Why do the Reds keep adding players they already have an abundance of when there are gaping holes elsewhere on the roster(Candelario, Lux, Bleday)? Terrible allocation of limited resources.
What/who should they sign, Jimmy?
Use that money for a relief pitcher
Let the wealthy, more stupid trans waste money on bullpens.
Statcast says bleday would have hit 31 homers in Cincy in ‘24. Don’t see a downside here at the price they paid. Someone will be paying Robert $20 million this year.
This is a savvy signing for Cincy, can play LF vs. RHP and CF in a pinch. He’s on the younger side for a FA, with just enough speed and pop to bring out the best of his abilities in that ballpark. Won’t regret relegating a 40 man spot to him, not for under $2M.
Not sure I understand this move. If you pour thru the numbers it’s hard to see a negligible difference between Benson and Bleday. Bleday k’s rate is less than Benson but they very similar across the board. One thing I can tell you is if the FO thinks this completes our OF for 2026 it doesn’t.
Bleday has an option remaining and is cheaper, I believe
Correct, but now they are paying both.
All time single season center fielder doubles leader for A’s. Beat Dave Henderson’s record from the eighties.
This is another solid pickup for the reds today.
I know all the whiners are at it(I passed on reading the responses) but former number one pick with an option year that had a very good 2024. 1.4 mil and controllable thru at least 2028.
Would some whiner explain to me how this is not a solid move?
.215-.307-.394
Bob told Phil to starting the WS tickets with this move.
Pencil him in for Foster like numbers 320/52/149 with a .440 obp
Did you buy that property down by the river too?
(Someone said there was a free van down there too)
I really don’t understand why the Braves are paying Yaz $13m when they could have gotten Bleday for a little over a million. Way more upside in Bleday, especially in a limited role on a serious team.
I like this signing. Nothing flashy. No risk, high reward. And at the very least, Bleday should replace Will Benson on the 26-man roster. Bleday > Benson and it’s not particularly close IMO.
Now I await (hopefully) a big trade for a big bat.
True this guy is not what we wanted, but it does make sense from a business point. Bleday had a decent performance until this year. He’s under team control until 2028 and has a minor league option left. Good reclamation project to me, and he’s costing less than $2 million. Better than trying to rebuild Roberts after 3 down years at $20 million.
His cost is $2.8 million. $1.4 million for his contract and $1.4 million to Thompson who we signed just last month but DFA’d to make room for Bleday. I agree with you on Robert though. We have Stephenson, Steer & Mclain all in the lineup that can give about what Robert does offensively.
One wonders sometimes why they sign other teams’ failed prospects rather than promote and play their own, because it is not as if they trade them for real talent or something.
Hinds and Dunn never got many ABs overall before seemingly bypassing them and I fear the same will happen to Rodriguez soon.