While Kyle Tucker dominated baseball’s headlines, the Rays, Angels and Reds worked out a three-team trade. Outfielder Josh Lowe heads from Tampa Bay to the Angels. The Rays acquire utilityman Gavin Lux from Cincinnati and minor league pitcher Chris Clark from the Halos. The Reds get left-handed reliever Brock Burke from Los Angeles. The deal was finalized on Friday morning.
It’s the second trade involving an everyday outfielder for the Angels this offseason. This time, the player is coming their way. Lowe will fill the outfield void left by Taylor Ward, who was shipped to Baltimore for Grayson Rodriguez. Tampa Bay entered the winter with a pair of Lowes, but the club will head into 2026 without either one. The versatile Lux can fill the void left by the Brandon Lowe deal. Cincinnati nets a veteran southpaw, while also getting off the $5.525MM contract Lux received in arbitration. Burke will make about half of that this season.
Lowe seemed like a fixture in Tampa Bay’s lineup after a massive 20/30 campaign in 2023. He posted a 135 wRC+ in his first season as a regular. Injuries would stifle his production the next two seasons. Oblique and hamstring issues delayed the start of his 2024 season. The oblique cost him time later that year, and then again at the beginning of this past season. He wasn’t productive when healthy this year, stumbling to a career-worst 79 wRC+ behind a .220/.283/.366 batting line. Lowe hit .139 with a 35.3% strikeout rate in his final month with the team.
With Ward gone and Mike Trout penciled in at DH, the Angels had limited options in the outfield prior to the move. Lowe will now slot in alongside Jo Adell and Jorge Soler. The Rays shielded him from lefties for much of his time there, and with good reason. Lowe has a .504 OPS and a 33% strikeout rate in his limited work against same-handed pitching (288 plate appearances). He could be ticketed for regular at-bats given the lack of a platoon partner. The right-handed bench outfielder is currently Bryce Teodosio, a glove-first option. Trout only made 22 starts in the outfield last season, but that could change considering the alternatives.
A former first-round pick, Lowe is a plus runner who has slightly above-average bat speed. The aforementioned 20-30 season hints at his physical upside, but the durability and strikeout concerns kept him from establishing himself as a cornerstone player. He has only once reached 500 plate appearances in a season.
Lowe played a little bit of center field early in his career. The vast majority of his experience has come in right, and he has only logged seven innings up the middle over the past two seasons. He’d be stretched in center defensively, yet that’s also true of Trout and Adell. The Halos will probably need to live with rough up-the-middle defense from Lowe or Adell to get a better bat than Teodosio’s in the lineup, at least until 20-year-old center field prospect Nelson Rada arrives.
Tampa Bay and Lowe settled on a $2.6MM deal to avoid arbitration this year. It was his first trip through the process. He’s controlled for three seasons and still has a minor league option remaining, so the Halos could send him down without putting him on waivers. The Angels’ estimated payroll on RosterResource still sits at about $30MM below last year’s mark.
The Reds acquired Lux last offseason in a trade with the Dodgers. He delivered league-average results at the plate in his lone season in Cincinnati, hitting .269/.350/.374 with five homers over a career-high 503 plate appearances. Lux made most of his appearances in left field, while also spending time at second base and third base. He was also used frequently as a pinch hitter.
Lux was one of Cincinnati’s more reliable on-base hitters, but he has never developed into much of a power threat. The former top prospect hasn’t hit more than 10 homers in any of his five-plus MLB seasons. Last winter’s change of scenery trade and move to Great American Ball Park didn’t really move the needle. The left-handed hitter has a solid offensive floor but probably doesn’t have much untapped upside as he enters his age-28 season.
The bigger drawback is that Lux has never settled into a clear positional home. He has moved around less because he’s an incredibly versatile and more due to his defensive struggles at various positions. His throwing accuracy has been an intermittent issue on the infield, even at second base. Defensive metrics haven’t looked favorably upon his work in the corner outfield.
The Rays had a clear gap at second base after the (first) Lowe trade. The internal choices were uninspiring, though Richie Palacios has some similarities as a left-handed hitter whose game is built around his on-base skills. Lux should step into a near-everyday role, with Tampa Bay’s typical platoon shenanigans likely capping his reps against left-handed pitching. He could also get some rotational corner outfield work, replacing Josh Lowe as a lefty bat in an outfield that remains without much certainty. Lux is a one-year addition who’ll reach free agency for the first time next winter.
The Angels claimed Burke, coincidentally a former Rays’ draftee, off waivers from the Rangers in August 2024. His one-and-a-half years with the club represented one of the better stretches of his big league career. Burke put together a 3.40 ERA across 90 appearances as an Angel. He pitched in a career-high 69 games last year. The 29-year-old is in his final year of arbitration and will hit free agency next season.
Burke was able to tap into more velocity after joining the Angels. He sat 94-95 mph after transitioning from the rotation to the bullpen with the Rangers. In L.A., Burke bumped his heater to 96 mph. He also upped his slider usage with the club. Burke had a career-high 30.5% strikeout rate with the Angels in 2024. That number fell by more than 10 points in 2025, but he counteracted it with a career-best 53.3% ground-ball rate. Burke doesn’t have huge platoon splits and isn’t a situational specialist so much as a generally steady arm whom Terry Francona can use in the middle innings.
Cincinnati relied on Taylor Rogers as its primary lefty last season, until he was sent to the Cubs at the deadline. The Reds have added Burke and Caleb Ferguson to fill the role for 2026. They also tendered a contract to the out-of-options Sam Moll, so it seems they’ll begin the season with three veteran lefties in the relief corps.
Clark was a fifth-round pick by the Angels in 2023. He posted a 4.73 ERA across 28 minor league appearances this past season. Eric Longenhagen of FanGraphs praised Clark’s developing changeup and loose arm action heading into the 2025 campaign. The righty uses a sinker and sweeper as his two main pitches. A changeup would fit in nicely. The 24-year-old Clark topped out at Double-A last year. He made just one start at the level and will likely be back there to open the 2026 season.
Jeff Passan of ESPN was first on the trade. Respective images via Chris Tilley, Gary A. Vasquez of Imagn Images.
Classic baseball move. No need for the Dodgers.
Dodgers got two legit prospects for Lux. Reds get a relief pitcher? They are smarter than everyone else too
They have more leverage
The Reds traded a comp A pick for him. Nobody forced them to do that
Yeah but they can afford to keep a bad player…
BTW, Reds did make the playoffs with Lux (who did have almost 450 AB last year). Siroka and the Comp A pick aren’t even near playing in the ML. Trading for Ke’Bryan Hayes last year eliminated possible playing time at 3rd for Lux and acquiring Bleday eliminates outfield opportunities for 2026 with the Reds. He just isn’t worth $5MM to the Reds as a pinchhitter and backup 2nd baseman.
Embarrassing as it is to say, the Mets laid down for the Reds to get that playoff spot and eventual Dodgers smack down. But to be fair, nobody was beating LAD.
He still had prospects vapors dripping off him. He now is what he is.
Reds were just stupid to make that trade. Dunno if Dodgers are smart but they are smarter than many teams.
If Lux can get his form back again and regain his confidence, he has an excellent bat.
I hope he has a great year.
He has only hit 10 homers and batted .270 once in his career. I don’t know where you got the excellent bat thing from.
He has good on-base skills, with a.350 OBP last year. That’s about it.
Or the Reds aren’t as smart as some?
Lux should have been nontendered. Reds are lucky to get anything.
Nonsense!
Players return values change year by year even day by day. You’re not comparing apples to apples
Angels
Everyone’s over in the Tucker announcement lol
There will be like 3 comments on this post
Nah, my fellow Reds fans will find time to whine that the OF in the trade is going to the Angels and not the Reds.
Me mad
The reliever is solid and lux is gone, chefs kiss
And they wont be able to score runs…..
Not because lux is gone
You really think they are going to get anything of value to help the offense? I dont think so.
Lux being gone is great but we can’t forget the fact we traded Mike Sirota a legit top 50 prospect in the game for him. I am actually a big fan of Nick Krall and the reds scouting department they’ve had some major wins in the draft an international market but this was a massive mistake
Hindsight is twenty twenty. and if Burke and lux were both free agents right now I’d still be glad they got Burke. Teams pivot from offense to pitching all the time like the Sox just did. Sure in a perfect world the reds would sign bichette or something but I can still be glad they helped the bullpen and moved lux.
No hindsight needed. All the experts said Sirota was great. Lux just a guy. Plus a high draft pick in a strong deep draft class. It was a awful trade for Cincinnati. Fleece by LA.
Lux .361 obp. Not easy to replace.
@AI GM. They can get rengifo and watch him look like Ozzie Smith one play and throw home when a runner is on first.
Rexhudler86 Lux was mostly a outfielder for them. They seem to have infield options or at least guys who need a look. Might be a fit though.
@oppo nacho. Burke is good. I know angels picked him up on waivers so it sounds scary, but his problem wasn’t from his delivery. He was to far right on the rubber and it was a simple fix. the angels d probably inflated his numbers. Either way a cheap bullpen arm with upside.
They are going to sign Eugenio Suarez and Harrison Bader. Suarez will hit.198 with 45 Homers and 62 rbi. Bader will play good defense but will lose his job due to poor offense. Reds miss the playoffs again.
Its unbelievable how awful Nick Krall is as a GM/Player Personnel guy. I do not care how bad your favorite team’s GM is, he isnt Krall bad. Less than zero charisma too. Mike Sirota is a DUDE and Krall traded him for Gavin Lux, then trades Lux for a reliever who was nearly out of baseball a year ago.
This is an all around good trade for all three teams.
Josh Lowe a good addition to the Angels. He is a former 1st round pick, good size at 6’4 220lbs. has good power potential. He has had issues with oblique injuries that have thwarted him some but if he gets strong and returns to form he will be great for the Halos who badly needed a lefty bat in the lineup. Three years of control on Lowe is nice.
Franklin, this was a good. Bull pen pick up for the Reds. We have Callihan back, no need for Luz and saved money. Good baseball move.
@franklin. Whose this reliever you speak of? If you’re talking about burke he was to far right on mound and was missing his spots. It was a minor problem that was fixed.
He wasn’t a good power bat fit for what we need anyway.
There are 58 so far
Any chance the Kyle Tucker signing means LAD now willing to move blocked Minor League slugger Ryan Ward and the Reds had a contingent deal in place with LA?
Cheap slugger, move Lux, add pitching…this move looks a lot better if there’s another move that results.
The Reds could land a pick of prospects from the Dodgers for Hunter Greene and Elly De La Cruz.
4 yrs./67M on Greene’s contract. 4yrs. control on Elly.
Reds could get an epic haul for that duo. Empty the Dodgers entire system.
Freeland
Ward
De Paula
Quintero
Hope
Sirota
Sheehan
Wrobleski
Ferris
Ryan
Reds would still have Lodolo/Abbott/Burns at the top for the next two seasons. Could extend Lodolo and Singer. Have Lowder and Brandon Williamson available too.
This trade stacks the Reds farm system and saves them a lot of cash on the De La Cruz extension.
Yes, I am sure the Dodgers are working on that trade, even as we speak.
Who cares about the farm system. That trade gets Nick Krall fired and he ends up in a dumpster.
Who is going to play CF for the Angels? And…another corner outfielder? Does Minasian realizes there are only two corner outfield spots?
My thought as well, maybe other moves coming?
I assume they’ll make Lowe do it. Or just tell Trout to stop injuring himself.
you know, telling Trout to stay healthy just might work. don’t know that the Angels have ever tried that. love it.
Trout, Adell, Soler, Lowe. What’s the point?
Can’t say that I’ve seen him pitch a whole lot but isn’t Burke more valuable to LAA than Lowe, or are the Angels not sold on either Burke’s K-rate or likelihood of regression?
And the Angels lost Clark. And for what? A superfluous corner outfielder?
like it or not, lowe can play against RHP which are the majority of starters. that leaves adell in another cOF spot and puts trout and soler in line for semi-regular DH time, presuming theyre healthy at the same time. teodosio and meckler will provide better defense in a cf platoon than what we had last year and peraza provides backup at all IF positions.
@halo11fan. Trout is the centerfielder. Lowe is replacing ward.
lol Soler aint playing in the OF anymore, cmon.
Relief pitchers are extremely volatile especially ones without long track records of success so they probably think Lowe has a better chance at a bounce back than Burke does at repeating his success he had last year. If Lowe puts up anything near the 4WAR he did in ’23 this is an absolute steal for Anaheim.
@halo. I guess soler could get moved with money sent. Still doubt it lowe is in the outfield. Teodosio and meckler are battling for the 4th, and trout is CF.
I agree. But I have to imagine that Trout splits CF duties with Teodosio. With Jorge Soler as DH whenever Trout plays CF.
@orange2001. I think they will crash and burn with trout at CF. Meckler and teodosio battle for the 4th until rada comes up mid-season. Of course injuries will happen but lowe can maybe replace ward if he plays like he did two years ago. They can replace Burke with chafin or garcia. All the moves are money related and perry is trying to get lucky putting his powerball numbers in. Sell the team arte you cheap s.o.b.
Trout should be a corner outfielder at this point of his career, but adding Lowe pretty much eliminates any chance of that happening with Lowe and Adell at the corners. So, I think that Trout will be alternating between CF/DH.
I’m fine with either Teodosio or Meckler as the 4th OF.
Brock is essentially replaced with Drew Pomeranz.
I’m still hoping that they will pick up a legit CF, then trade Jorge Soler for a minor leaguer or two.
@orange. I agree but it doesn’t look like the plan. They actually saved money on this trade. Trout is more valuable at CF. They got another maybe player with injury concerns. As far as Burke they will sign someone. The outfield market is dry like Arturo pen as far as spending. This offseason is a bunch of lotto tickets and maybe it works. The outfield market is a trap so I get it, its a trade and flip kinda deal.
@bkbk we hope Soler isn’t in the outfield but…
If Soler is at DH, where is Trout.
I get it Halo11. I see it too. My response was buried in sarcasm. Soler doesn’t belong in the field but that’s exactly where he’s going to be unless a move is made which you and I both know is unlikely for both Tout and Soler. So he’s going to be in the field, and Trout for that matter. Unless one is hurt or both
Hopefully this also means Scary Perry has found a deal for Soler to free up outfield reps for Lowe and DH ABs for Trout.
They’re moving the CF fence into a corner shape. So now they can play 3 corner outfielders
It doesn’t make sense. The Angels traded Ward because they have too many corner OFs and now they trade for one. I hope they don’t plan to put Adell back in CF because that was a disaster.
@GoogleMe: that’s not the main reason they traded Ward. They traded him because of his salary and free agency status after this season. And they wanted to get something back for him (Grayson Rodriguez, a controllable starting pitcher, made sense). Now Lowe gets to replace Ward, as a controllable and affordable corner outfielder.
Neither Trout or Soler should be seen as everyday outfielders anymore. They will be more productive (and healthy) as designated hitters. Which means that there really isn’t much of a spot for Soler on this roster.
The Angels have proved recently that they don’t care about getting anything back. They could trade Ward because had a replacement already, Adell. Now you add another corner OF, which puts you in the same muddled situation, 4 corner OF and no one to place center.
I like the Ward trade, but this trade is puzzling. If they get someone to take half of Soler’s contract and trade him away then it makes a little more sense, but that hasn’t happened. I don’t know if Teodosio can hit enough or if Rada is ready to play CF.
How many times has a team been in a three team trade in one off-season? Tampa Bay feels like they’d have that record.
Lots going on tonight within the last few minutes.
One of the trades of all time.
Yes, it certainly was a three-team trade.
Wow the Reds will be good at preventing runs but wont be able to score.
Preventing runs on both sides of the game!
Pretty much this. Focusing on one side of the ball. Kind of like another Cincinnati sports franchise I know…
I don’t think trading an outfielder for a reliever was necessary expected by the Reds when the Reds need an… outfielder. But not a terrible move…
Pity the reds just couldn’t say whoops and get back what they gave up for lux
Krall wouldn’t do that. He values his place as Friedman’s mistress.
So now Adell, Soler, Trout, and Lowe can all cover right field but we have nobody good in center or left.
Brilliant.
I think Adell can play an adequate left. He played an adequate right.
He was a horrible CF.
I don’t understand this move foe the angels. But then, they never do anything that makes sense.
Keli , I don’t either. Do we really need a platoon corner outfielder?
Well the other OFs including Teodoro all bat right so from a platoon perspective he fits?
Are you going to strong side platoon him in CF?
At least Moniak could play CF. And who did they get for Moniak?
Minasian and Moreno both have to go.
Lowe can be better than Ward based on raw talent. Lowe’s power and swing is legit! Instant plug in!!
Better than Ward? Based on what? Again he’s 28 years old with a lifetime OPS+ of 102.
Three years ago he had a good year.
This is optimism on steroids. Occasionally you’ll draw to an inside straight, lord knows Angel fans are due, but the Angels haven’t drawn to an inside straight this decade.
I remember when they tried him in left to open the 2023 season. It was worse than last year in CF.
Leave Adell in a single corner outfield spot.
Dunno why but I like both lower not being a ray and lux being one.. not even on a team basis. Just think its good for both.
Only real baseball fans also care about this and not just dodgers Tucker
Someone remind Perry that the Angels need a CF, not another corner outfielder
Classic . The Angels get poor man’s Kyle Tucker the Doyers get Kyle Tucker.
Do not disrespect Josh Lowe he can become a really good ball player
102 lifetime OPS+. 306 lifetime OBP. And he’s 28 years old.
No… he can’t be. This is why the Rays are the Rays and the Angels are the Angels.
Lowe has had flashes of greatness but has really struggled possibly due to family issues, mental issues, and injuries. A great change of scenery candidate tbh, but he would never rebound with the Rays
Flashes, sure. And if he was a CF I’d love it. But he’s a bad defensive corner outfielder.
That kind of sounded like Byron Buxtons career offense before this season
Lowe will not get as high as Buxton but all it takes is a healthy season and something could happen
He has shown zero ability to play defense or hit RHP.
Do the Angels really need a platoon corner outfielder?
I don’t know about the Angels’ needs but you could be right. I don’t think his defense will suddenly improve in the corner, but there is hope that his bat can improve with some new coaching. Time will tell.
My bad LHP
“but has really struggled possibly due to family issues, mental issues, and injuries.”
He’ll fit in perfectly with the Angels.
I like PM, but I don’t care for this trade. The big blunder was missing out on the Japanese 3B Okamoto . He was a perfect fit for the Angels. He would have been affordable and hoped to play for the Angels, I wonder if they would have signed him and maybe Imai if the court case would have ended a little later. I do think the team might be sold after the the contract with the union is done. I think he thought there was too many unknown dark clouds for new owners, I think he was going to let Perry spend around last years money and if he could get Rendon’s contract done he could have that space to work with. This year after the new bargaining agreement, Probably would in his mind be the perfect time to sell, Everything is pretty much a clear slate after 26.
The court case hurt more than he thought, The money from Rendon Is now going mostly to pay the court case and the loss of a TV network deal.
I wish the Rays had one more year with him to see how close he could get back to that 2023 season while fully healthy, but this may be the last year he has any trade value. What worried me last season was his bat speed has gone way down. I don’t know if his injury had anything to do with that, but that is always a major red flag.
Brace yourselves… Lux about to morph into what prospect lists predicted him to be.
On the Rays? Doubtful, but he’s a massive improvement over seeing Walls there all year.
Not sure I agree. He can’t steal bases, hit for power, or get on base at a special clip.
He got on base at a.350 clip last year. Not bad.
Agree @braves. Got a feeling he’s gonna stick at 2nd next year, and hit close to .300.
So far he’s dealt with injuries, and a big position switch. If he can settle in and stay reasonably healthy, he still looks like he can become an above average bat.
If the Rays play Lux at 2B he can be a fine addition to them. In Cincy he was blocked by McClain so they tried moving him to areas of need which didn’t work out. If you want him to hit 20 homers that won’t happen but he is a good hitter with a good OBP. He doesn’t chase pitches and will give you solid at bats in clutch situations. Just wasn’t a great fit in Cincinnati.
Rays need to run a promotion of free tickets to anyone that can name more than 5 players on the team. I’m seriously searching at this point: Diaz, Aranda, Junior, Palacios, Jax, and… who?
Forgetting out awesome acquisition last year? Baker!
But c’mon man, if you watch them you know. Simpson, McLanahan, Pepiot, DeLuca… Many guys left.
Forgot about Pepiot. Good call. Shane and Johnny B. Goode are great, but haven’t played in a while. Kinda feel bad about forgetting Simpson, but I was boycotting Stu last year.
Every Rays fan should boycott $tu, as well as the new ownership group until they spend and try for a championship. I have been boycotting since 2023. Rays up!
They should run this promotion for if fans can name who is on the catcher depth chart this year. Off the top of my head, Fortes and that old minor leaguer we got from the Dodgers.
Looks like they are trading a whole lot of nothing. All disappointing players. Weak prospects. Brock Burke is oddly the most intriguing.
Nothing 700 ops players.
i’ll be waiting for that announcement patiently
So does this mean Adell is going to be the CF now with Trout and Lowe in the corners? TB must really have no confidence in Lowe.
Ngl, this is a weird trade on all fronts.
Or they realized how easily replaced a corner outfielder is and would rather have a pitching prospect and fill a much harder to replace position 2b.
The second time Burke has been involved in a three-team trade. The first time was in a deal for his new teammate Emilio Pagan. I like the deal for the Reds.
looks like the Reds are getting a decent left handed reliever… can’t have too many arms, not a bad trade for the Reds
Was it 4D chess or just dumb luck that Tampa bailed Kroll out of his questionable decision to tender a 2026 contract to Lux in the first place?
Like they say, I guess anything including an MLB contract is only worth what someone else is willing to pay for it.
.361 obp 2b is a bargain at 5m.
If Krall didn’t tender Lux then this trade would not have happened. Lux would have become a free agent. Burke wouldn’t be a Red. I can’t speak to luck or 4D chess but it was without doubt a good move.
Seems like a nice deal for the Reds. Burke is very useful and Lux seemed like a non-tender candidate.
Burke is the best player in this deal.
@halosheavenjj. Lowe is probably the best outfielder available. Bader is probably out of their range after that it’s bleday or hays. Guess trout is center field and angels will get another reliever, and pack it up.
I look forward to seeing Trout for 20-30 games this year.
.361 obp .761 ops guys making 5m or whatever aren’t non tender candidates. Why he was traded and not non tender.
@AI GM. Agree he’s probably the best outfielder available as far as we know. Talking about in the angels price range my guess Bader for 12 million was to expensive. Trout likes center, and at this point he can get hurt walking into the dugout still a 20 million dollar player most coming from his defense. Angels grab another 5 million reliever on a one deal and trade at the deadline to compensate losing Clarke
Rexhudler86 I was talking about Lux but Lowe is positive value as well.
@AI. My bad. At the end of the day it’s just reshuffling the deck. I can see them all being moved at the deadline. Burke being the most possible, lowe next, and lux is just a stop gap and rays got a prospect.
Lux OBP’d .350 with a .724 OPS and his swing decisions are really his only saving grace at this point. Not sure where you’re getting your numbers from, AI. AI? lol
Baseball reference
After opening day I won’t watch another baseball game ever again. Thank you dodgers
Avg player swap..yawn
Finally some news tonight
I’m calling it here. Lowe has better stats than Tucker next year!
You’re making a much more bold prediction about Tucker than I am, though I really don’t think he’s going to be better with the Dodgers than he’s been over his last two injury-shortened, slump-affected seasons.
What about this year though?
My bad. This year. Im still writing down 2025 on everything and in shock about the Tocker signing.
I feel like the Angels bought lowe here… 😉
Actually I’m glad for the lefty reliever who will do more for them than Lux.
But…are you reinvesting that 5 million plus the excess under last year’s payroll to upgrade the outfield? Or just sitting on your hands still?
We both know the answer, but I love this trade for the reds
We need left handed power and I don’t see much of that left in either the free agent market that we can afford or the trade market.
This is actually a frustrating move. Not because Lux provides value, but because the rays clearly wanted him. When the hot stove season started and all the talk about schwarber that I knew we couldn’t afford, I scoured other teams rosters to look for left handed hitters with 30 home run power and either last year of a team friendly deal or final year of arbitration that we could trade for. Brandon Lowe of the Rays stood out.
Brandon Lowe was in the final year of his deal set to make $12 million, a career 123 ops+, average of 35 home runs in 162 games and coming off a 30 home run season at age 31. At the time I was thinking maybe Brady singer for him with similar salary & team control since we have somewhat of starting pitching surplus and rays still need a starter I think.
The rays traded him to the pirates in a 3 team deal that sent the Astros #5 prospect and a former prospect that has fizzled in parts of 2 seasons to the rays. Couldn’t we have offered say lux who the rays evidently wanted and one of our better prospects say Rodriguez or lux and say CES one of our former prospects that hasn’t worked out to the rays for Brandon Lowe a proven 30 home run power left handed bat over the last 6 years to hit cleanup behind ELDC? It’s the type of question I plan to ask at Redsfest this weekend.
Since Krall took over I have noticed a trend. The reds seem to stockpile players or mlb ready prospects at certain positions or areas and neglect an area of need. A few years ago it was middle infielders. I guess now it’s left handed relief pitchers. A month ago we only had Sam Moll and now we have 4, two of which are high leverage, 8th inning types. Still no left handed power and running out of potential options.
Bye Bye Burke welcome Lowe
I like this for Cincy, now they need to trade for a nice bat.
Reds save 3.2M swapping these players. I like it for strengthening the pitching.
Now can you PLEASE work on the bats?! I’m so sick of losing 1-0, or 2-1!! Damn!
This is better than the Tucker news
Tampa must have signed a sponsorship deal with the Home Depot. Clearing out all of their Lowe’s.
I’m shocked the Rays got someone with 1 year of team control left. Burke is a great reliever when on, and Lowe is also not bad.
Anyways, Brock Burke is one reliever I saw often. He’s a high leverage guy I think that was used by Bochy a lot, and against the Astros in the ALCS. Nice facing you Burke, see you in Cincy.
Got a guy with 6 years of team control left. Might get another one if they trade Lux.
Burke has 1 year left.
I was well aware of this so need to comment it.
What is this weird rant?
Josh Lowe had his moment in 2023, but since then? .220/.283/.366 in 2025. That’s not a bat you build around—that’s a lottery ticket you hope doesn’t bounce. If this three-way deal with the Rays and Reds is real, feels like we’re buying high on a name, not a bat.
We need production, not projections. Not sold.
He had a great start to 2024 as well. He’s had a lot on his plate since 2023 that you can find with a quick Google, but the situation reminds me of Stephen Piscotty’s a few years back. Long way of saying I don’t think the talent has changed and I would mostly disregard his recent stats.
And recent stats are fine. Above 700 ops vs RHP. Higher road ops.
Corner OFer. Replacement quality.
Artie Moreno cucked by the Dodgers yet again, this time in the news department
Dude does it to himself.
Makes you wonder if the Angels were in on Tucker…quickly adding OF help after that signing
We could have pivoted Bellinger if that was the case. I’m sure we were not in on Tucker.
I’m partially joking. Lowe is no Tucker. But the timing is weird
If the Angels weren’t in on Ohtani, they weren’t in on Tucker.
At this point, what would Bellinger do for us? Instead of 107 losses this season we’re gonna have 102
soccer – In your other response to me regarding Adell, you suggested he’s valuable to the team because of his 37 dingers. So do you think Adell is a better value to the team than Bellinger would be? Bellinger can play CF and is a proven major league hitter. He actually has value where Adell, despite his power, loses games by his feast or famine hitting and rare clutch moment success, and horrible defense.
In general, I would much rather have a guy with zero homeruns but gets on base instead of a guy who hits an occasional dinger but strikes out a third of his at bats. And Adell’s defense is awful, especially in CF.
In summary, Bellinger would be a great acquisition to solidify the outfield and the lineup. We have a surplus of mediocre outfielders that we can part ways with and never notice they are gone. Adell should be one of them.
Sorry for the long response.
soccer – btw I agree with you that we will likely have around a 100 loss season again.
Trading one of the better pitchers on your roster for a guy who produced 0.1 bWAR last year is classic Angels.
Angels did awesome. Hopefully they aren’t using bwar.
Can Lowe play CF? Will be curious who spends more time on DL between him, Troat and Tucker over on the Dodgers in 2026.
Adell will be in CF with Lowe in RF and Soler in LF
Teoscar Hernandez and significant relief on his remaining salary may be available now.
Let the reds go get him ! Thats exactly who they need
When will the Reds ADD an outfielders? I don’t understand what they’re doing!
Agree, they have removed 4 (Hays, Andujar, Fraley, Lux) and have added two depth pieces in Bleday and Myers. They have some work to do!
It’s not corner outfielders turn yet. Past few years during the offseason the reds have stockpiled middle infielders or middle infield mlb prospects. This offseason we have evidently pivoted to stockpiling left handed relief pitchers. In a few years, when we no longer have our starting pitching we will have 8 corner outfielders mlb ready prospects.
We need a left handed hitter with 30 home run power. We have some positional flexibility where say if we got a left handed first baseman with 30 home run power steer could move to left field. The problem is not many 30 home run left handed hitters left either free agent or trade market. Bellinger via free agency but don’t think the reds will pay that. Dodgers now with Tucker might be willing to trade muncy even though not same positions. Muncy entering the last year of a contract the reds should be able to afford but does he really have the potential for 25 home runs left?
Reds are concentrating on upgrading their relief pitching and defense- which are stll somewhat affordable.
Sorry, how is swapping Burke for Lowe a good move? Burke was the only stability in the bullpen last season,aside from Jansen.
Nobody hates playing baseball more than Josh Lowe now that Anthony Rendon is done.
@tyler it would be if the player they got was any good. You really think Lowe improves the team? I don’t.
Guess the “…more to come” part will be after the Jays fans that write here wake up from drinking themselves to sleep over Tucker.
The Angels got a good player, not sure if it was a good move
JLowe, good player? Sadly, below average.
They’ve made a couple this off-season, actually, but I’m not sure this is one of them.
A for Angels. 3 years of Lowe 700 ops with possibility of mid or high. For 1 year of a easily replaced reliever.
C for Cincinnati. Lux wasn’t a great fit. Shed some salary.
B for Tampa. I like the prospect. They need a 2b. Any luck trade him at deadline for another prospect.
D for Angels. Sub-replacement level OFer. Poor fielder. But, easy on the eyes.
D-.The angels have never done well acquiring the former Rays.
Just curious with the AI feature on MLB the show 25 on my Xbox app approved this trade?
Angels get three years of control and a .772 career OPS vs RHP for a soon to be free agent that plays a position where annual results are notoriously volatile. I would prefer less swing and miss, but im on board as long as Lowe isn’t in the lineup vs LHP. As a side note, in a crazy low sample size (27 PAs), Lowe has hit exceedingly well at Angels Stadium… albeit vs Angels pitching.
You can’t get more swing and missing this lineup the angels league, major league baseball, in that category
Agreed. I would prefer to see more plate discipline. I’m not a fan of three true outcome baseball – strikeout, walk or HR.
Which means JLowe will fit right into the lineup. Bottom 7th percentile in chase. Bottom 27% percent in whiffing. But, he does run very well.
Lux should replace Brandon Lowe at 2B for the Rays next season. Burke gives the Reds a solid lefty out of the pen and Lowe gives the Angels some lefty pop which, they don’t really have
In other news, the Dodgers announced they bought Greenland for $1 Trillion just so Trump couldn’t get it.
98% of it deferred
Two time World Series Champion Gavin Lux.
As if the Angel didn’t need more bullpen arms! Face palm!
This seems like a completely lost season anyway. Who cares who they lose and what dud is added. Fire away, Minassian!
One great thing is Arte Morono couldn’t sign tucker for 10/350.
Rada is the center fielder of the future maybe even late this year? Look for Soler to get moved. Lowe was only acquired because he bats from the left side.
This Clark guy better be Nolan Ryan-type good. Lowe was a great guy who had 30-30 type potential who just got unlucky with injuries. Do the Rays really think Fraley, Mullins, and Simpson is the best they can do at outfield? Do they really think a non-hitting Lux at 2b and worse than Mendoza Taylor Walls at SS are their best options up the middle? I’m sure Diaz is going to be traded for peanuts and some .200 hitting 1b man with no power is going to be all they get for him. Just a shame what the Rays management is doing to this team. They go from almost winning a title in 2020, then trade Snell, Adames, Arozarena, Paredes, both Lowes, Baz, probably Diaz, and I’m sure Rasmussen and McClanahan are next. And for what? Sell the team again and either get owners that will give Tampa fans the title they deserve, or move them out of Florida and let central Florida fans try their luck with expansion and a new ownership group. Shame on you, Rays ownership!!
Good morning, fun deal here!
Despite the complaints of who exactly plays center, getting Lowe for Burke and Clark is a damn steal. Kid has 3 years of control and is a legit 30/30 threat if healthy. Incredible deal for the Angels. They can mix and match for center tbh as Adell, Trout, and Lowe can all play it ok.
Lux had a good season, MLBTR is underselling it so him plus Clarke is a decent get for Lowe. He can slot right into 2b for Tampa.
I think the Reds make out the least here. Giving up Lux for Burke, who is decent but not inspiring, seems like a dump more than anything. Eh.
Still very fun deal to examine.
Good morning Salzilla. If Adell is the plan for CF, it would be another example of how poorly they are run. They are already putting Detmers back in the rotation after proving his place is in the BP. Adell is at best a Triple A player and should have been traded years ago. He’s lost on defense but the bigger issue is he can’t hit major league pitching. He’s a .220 career hitter with a sub .300 OBP and a strike out rate near 30%. He likely would not be in the majors with any other organization.
I will give you 37 reasons why he is still in the majors. One reason for each home run hit last season.
…move to later
I’m not sure why any team did this
I guess the reds save money
Do the rays? I guess they went for obp here
I get buying…low (sorry) on Lowe but how many corner ofs do they need?
Every non-big market move, mainly Dodgers & Blue Jays, is like a “so what?” move and that’s a damn shame.
If some of the smaller market owners were given an offer they couldn’t refuse to sell their team, would they be considered fools for staying in MLB?
Reds dumped Lux to free up money to sign a free agent. They’ve been talking about this for months.
So by my calculations the reds payroll is now $110 million and per the team “payroll same as last year” we have another $5 to $6 million left to spend and still need a left handed bat with proven power. 40 man is full so that would mean a trade and since we have 3 catchers on the 40 man that can’t be optioned to Louisville in all likelihood that trade would involve Tyler Stephenson which would give us $12 million for a left handed proven power bat. Short of such trade our lineup and pitchers would look like this for 2026:
1. Friedl center field
2. Marte right field
3. EDLC shortstop
4. Bleday DH
5. Steer 1st base
6. Benson left field
7. Stephenson catcher
8. McLain 2nd base
9. Hayes 3rd base
Stewart utility
CES backup infielder
Trevino backup catcher
Rortvedt backup catcher
1. Greene
2. Lodolo
3. Singer
4. Abbott
5. Burns
Pagan closer
Santillion 8th inning RHP
Ferguson 8th inning LHP
Johnson 7th inning RHP
Burke 7th inning LHP
Phillips 6th inning RHP
Moll 6th inning LHP
Ashcraft long man
We have good starting pitching depth with lowder & Williamson at triple A but not much position player depth there with calihan, dunn & hinds the headliners. Matter of fact we have a below average offense from position players at the big league level based on the above. Starting pitching is very good though and the pen is better than average. Expect a lot of low scoring games.
Time to get trade talks going again with the Sox for Robert with Sox picking up at least half the salary
Id say Sal Stewart is right there with Bubba Chandler for pre-season favorite to win RoY in the NL amd needs to get everyday ABs. I also think Elly De La Cruz should move to LF and McClain to SS.
Stewart as your everyday 2B. Have to keep Stephenson at C.
If Steer and McClain progress at the plate and Stewart hits the Reds could shock the world in ’26.
That is 3 if’s. You can count on about half the ifs happening with young players. You could also say what if burns & Lowder take as long to develop as Greene & lodolo or if Stewart has a sophomore season like McLains last year or if Marte is the 2024 Marte or improves on last year. Some ifs could also work in our favor like if CES & Hinds finally hit in the majors like they do in triple A or if Benson figures out to hit left handed pitching.
Even going into last season we still had a lot of ifs with our rotation because Abbott was the only one coming into last season with a career era under 4 but I don’t feel that way anymore. Just to many ifs on offense though for 2026 the way the team is constructed.
Like deal for Reds , Burke more serviceable player for team at less money than Lux
Any takers from other teams for a decent hitting catcher with $6.5 million for one year for a proven 30 home run left handed hitter at any position owed $12 million for one year? Reds could throw in a mid tier prospect as well.
I get it. Perry has filled his quota of injured, underperforming backup infielders., and relievers. Now he needs to beef up his depth of injured, underperforming backup outfielders. He still needs to fill in on some injured, underperforming starting pitching.
Reds opening up spot for Bo Bichette…
Kyle Tucker isn’t dominating the headlines of true baseball fans. Anything the Dodgers do we just push to the side. We don’t even think about them. This is a great baseball trade for all teams involved. I think a change of scenery was necessary for Josh. Gavin is going to the Perfect situation in Tampa. Lovett all around.
So long Gavin, we hardly knew ya
Let’s add the latest moves to Public our review the Angels and Perry Moronassian ‘s absolutely pathetic off season. Can we all say it is a carbon copy of the last three
✅ Trade an established major league hitter with 37 home runs for a pitcher that was a top prospect at one time coming off major arm injuries the last two years and is a huge question mark
✅ Sign a pitcher that was fantastic two years ago. Then forgot how to pitch had major arm injuries and is on his third team in 6 months
✅ Sign a one time highly touted prospect with ties to the braves who cannot hit major league pitching
✅ Sing two pitchers for the bullpen that were both great 6 years ago that will both he DFA candidates by the all star break
✅ Sing a pitcher who is out of options who only has 56 innings of mlb experience and walks to many hitters
✅ Sing a pitcher who was very good before the pandemic then had arm issues and was so bad in the minor he was forced to pitch overseas and wait for it with ties to the Braves
✅ Trade for a middle infielder who at one time could hit but injuries set in and he has not hit above .190 in three years. And guess what. With ties to the braves
✅ Sing a 39 year old reliever who watched his era balloon over five and has hardly pitched due to arm and back problems.
✅ Rendon well SMH LOL 🤮 good riddance. Sums that one up
✅ Hire your fourth manager in five seasons who has not managed a game in little league let alone the minors or the show and give him a one year deal.
✅ Be alleged in on Okamoto a player that said naw I’m good I am gonna sing with a team that is worse than yours because they actually have a direction and are improving
✅ allegedly be in on Nolan Arenado a third baseman that was good four years ago and cannot hit now and his current team is so desperate to get rid of the money. He would be this years Jorge Soler
✅Miss out on another player from Japan who said no I think I will go play third for a team that just came off a World Series appearance
✅ Sing a left handed reliever who was good at one time and then in typical Angel player requirement got hurt and had his career completely implode
✅Claim an outfielder off waivers who has 69 plate in four plus seasons of pro ball and hit .232 at the mob level but it’s a hand me down from Moronnassian’s brother
✅ Sign another former highly touted prospect who is on his third team in two seasons. The kid can actually make contact and not strike out but in typical Angels fashion coming of a major injury
✅ Sign a reliever who has never had an era under 4.00 and has bounced between triple A and the majors. His velocity is down and walked 12% of his hitters. Shock in true Angels fashion coming off major knee issues
✅ Trade one of the better young relief arms for a corner outfielder coming off a .220 season and struck out 106 times in 396 at bats. And get this. Has a long history of injuries He is Taylor Ward with less power and is always hurt.
✅ lose your local tv contract (not your fault) so now MLB and ESPN can price gouge us to watch games Remember in the before time when all the games were on KTLA.
To quote a recent ESPN article a clueless GM making signings that would’ve been all great moves in 2022. Moronassian could run the Angels into the ground in franchise mode on MLB the Show on Xbox
Yet still have not filled the holes of CF,3B, back of the rotation, closer and anyone that can hit above .230
The quest for 100 losses in in full effect
Can’t wait to wear my paper bag over my head at home games
Operation extreme redundancy is almost complete
Love ya Perry and Artie
Signed
An extremely satisfied fan
Remember the 02 angels. Plenty of unknowns. Shawn Wooten., etc
Josh Lowe is a known name. Big in 2023. Hits left handed. Leave gold glover teodosio in center.
Why is everyone obsessed with Teodosio. He is a 5th outfielder. Late inning defensive replacement at best
HE CAN’T HIT
Soooo… Soler is being traded right guys?
He will be DFA’ed or released before a competent general manager, has a mental lapse and trades for him
How is anyone thinking this is a good deal for the Angels? The claim is that JLowe has not performed well for the past two years because of injuries. Yes, if he couldn’t swing the bat with a high speed, then I would agree that he is injured. But that is not what Statcast measures. His bat speed is fine. What Statcast measures is a player who is spectacular at swinging at pitches out of the strikezone and for missing pitches in the strikezone. These attributes are not the result of an injury. It should not surprise us should JLowe last no more than a season in the majors.
As for hitting vs. RHP, he hit 100 wRC+ in 2025. (Nobody should be quoting OPS. OPS is highly affected by the park.) And he is a definite below-average fielder. No wonder he was sub-replacement quality last year.
Based on the MLB Angels Site article about this acquisition, it’s fairly clear that Minasian plans to use Lowe as our starting center fielder.
Ira Kaufman, a Tampa sports reporter told Mad Dog Russo today that the Rays will announce a new stadium deal in two weeks. He said it would be located next to the Yankees spring training complex and the Buccaneers stadium. Will be a non-retractable dome.
How’s that for a rumor?
A bunch of mediocre players have new addresses.