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Reds Acquire Mark Payton From Athletics

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The Reds have acquired outfielder Mark Payton from the Athletics for cash considerations, Bobby Nightengale of the Cincinnati Enquirer tweets. Cincy took Payton from Oakland during last winter’s Rule 5 Draft, but it returned him to the A’s on July 21.

The 28-year-old Payton entered the pro ranks as a seventh-round pick of the Yankees in 2014, and he hasn’t played in the majors yet. However, he is coming off a 2019 in which he was a tremendous minor league producer. Payton logged 447 plate appearances with the A’s top minors affiliate, mashed 30 home runs and hit .334/.400/.653 – good for a 148 wRC+ even in the offensively charged Pacific Coast League. He only struck out in 17 percent of trips to the plate, so Payton certainly wasn’t selling out for power.

Reds Add 3 To Player Pool

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The Reds have added left-hander Brandon Finnegan, infielder Rece Hinds and outfielder TJ Friedl to their 60-man player pool, Bobby Nightengale of the Cincinnati Enquirer tweets. All three players will report to the team’s alternate site.

While he was formerly a high-end prospect whom the Reds acquired from the Royals in the teams’ 2015 Johnny Cueto blockbuster, Finnegan hasn’t made a major impact in the bigs. Finnegan threw 172 innings of 3.98 ERA ball as a Red in 2016, but injuries have helped cut him down since then. He threw just 33 2/3 innings from 2017-18 and then didn’t pitch at all in the majors last season. The Reds outrighted the 27-year-old back in April.

Both Hinds and Friedl rank among the Reds’ most promising farmhands, as MLB.com places the former ninth in their system and the latter 22nd. Hinds, just 19 years old, was a second-round pick in 2019 who took a mere 10 plate appearances in rookie ball last season because of a quad injury. The 24-year-old Friedl has topped out at Double-A, where he batted .257/.353/.372 with seven home runs in 565 trips to the plate from 2018-19.

Reds Designate Brooks Raley For Assignment

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The Reds announced Thursday that they’ve designated left-hander Brooks Raley for assignment and recalled righty Jose De Leon from their alternate training site. Cincinnati also optioned second baseman Josh VanMeter and righty Tejay Antone in order to drop down to the requisite 28-player limit that went into effect today.

Raley, 32, was selected to the Reds’ big league roster last month when the club designated Scott Schebler for assignment. He pitched in four games with Cincinnati but yielded four runs on five hits and a couple of walks through four innings. Raley punched out six hitters but also plunked an alarming three batters in his brief time with the Reds’ bullpen.

That quick stint marked Raley’s first MLB action since way back in 2013 with the Cubs. He spent the 2015-19 seasons pitching for the Lotte Giants of the Korea Baseball Organization, for whom he compiled 910 2/3 frames of 4.13 ERA ball with averages of 7.5 strikeouts, 2.7 walks and 0.9 home runs per nine innings pitched. Because of that lengthy run overseas, Raley still has just 42 1/3 Major League frames under his belt. The Reds will have a week to trade him, release him or place him on outright waivers.

Free Agent Stock Watch: Nick Castellanos

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So … it’s early. Then again, we’re also already a sixth of the way through the season (for some teams, anyway). When it comes to assessing next year’s free agent crop, teams won’t have the luxury of watching a full season of repeat testing.

That being said, we’re not going to fall into the trap of hyping up early performances. Even a 60-game test is only so significant. Teams will be weighing past track record along with determinations of present skill.

All of this creates a perfect storm for a player who could end up being the most interesting potential free agent: Nick Castellanos of the Reds. He only donned the uniform for regular season action for the first time a couple of weeks ago, but it’s already time for the still-youthful slugger to ponder the future.

What’s fascinating in this case is the combination of intriguing factors at play. Agent Scott Boras negotiated a pair of opt out opportunities into the Castellanos deal, allowing him to exit after 2020 or 2021. At 28 years of age, the outfielder still has a good bit of prime left to market.

On the other side is the swirling economic uncertainty. We know Mookie Betts still got a huge deal, but he could be a special case and he surely could’ve commanded more in “normal” times. It’s anyone’s guess how the season will play out, how 2021 will shape up, and how MLB owners will spend. Oh, and let’s not forget the other looming threat: labor unrest.

You can be sure that Boras is aware of all of these things. He’s always ready to go to battle. Castellanos is no shrinking violet either.

That’s why it’s so notable that Castellanos is mashing early on, with a league-leading five home runs and ridiculous .912 slugging percentage through ten games. He’s leading baseball (minimum 20 plate appearances) with a 261 wRC+ and has left Statcast agog at the contact quality. Lest we forget, Castellanos also turned in a monster second half in 2019. It doesn’t take a Boras-sized imagination to envision the narrative potential. If Castellanos ends up with huge numbers in a truncated 2020, Boras will be primed to argue that his client has been among the very best hitters in baseball over his past 162 games.

This could yet play out in so many different ways. Castellanos could fizzle, or just step back into his typically very productive levels of output. But you can see the potential for a unique bonanza even in spite of the broader uncertainty. The Reds might feel compelled to do what it takes to keep him around if he helps lead a magical season. The market will not feature Betts since he’s locked in with the Dodgers. George Springer remains, but hasn’t been knocking the socks off the ball early. It is fair to note that Marcell Ozuna has also been hot, right along with Castellanos, but there’s room for multiple corner outfielders to earn.

The biggest remaining wild card? It may be in the collective bargaining. Beyond the potential for a breakdown in negotiations, the next agreement is sure to come with major modifications of incentives that will have to be parsed closely by Boras and other agents.

But that’s not all. The designated hitter role could be absolutely critical to Castellanos’s outlook in a hypothetical return trip to free agency. That’s now in the game, but only for the unique 2020 season. Odds are it’ll be negotiated into the next CBA as a permanent fixture. If that happens, it’d be quite the boon for market interest in Castellanos. Teams would surely feel much more comfortable investing knowing that they could not only limit his exposure to the outfield grass in the early stages of a deal — while improved, Castellanos is still generally lightly regarded with the glove — but shift him into primary DH duties whenever appropriate.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

Reds Place Joey Votto On Injured List; Activate Anthony DeSclafani

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As expected, the Reds activated right-hander Anthony DeSclafani from the 10-day injured list today, as DeSclafani is scheduled to start the first game of a double-header against the Tigers.  He will take the roster spot of a notable figure, as first baseman Joey Votto will head to the injured list.

The Cincinnati Enquirer’s Bobby Nightengale reports that Votto told the Reds he was experiencing symptoms of COVID-19, though he hasn’t had any positive test results for the virus.  As opposed to the regular IL, the coronavirus injured list doesn’t have any minimum absence time attached, so Votto could be back in action within a couple of days if he is feeling better and he continues to test negative.

Matt Davidson tested positive for COVID-19 last week, a day after appearing in the Reds’ season opener.  This created worries that the entire Reds clubhouse could have potentially been exposed to the coronavirus, and those worries intensified when Mike Moustakas and Nick Senzel both began to exhibit symptoms.  Thankfully, neither Moustakas or Senzel tested positive for the virus and both are now back on the active roster, and Davidson was also cleared to return last Friday.

A right teres major strain sidelined DeSclafani just prior to the Reds’ first game of the season, though the injury was only thought to be serious enough to require a minimal IL stint and one missed start for the right-hander.  DeSclafani is looking to build on a solid 2019 season that saw him post a 3.89 ERA, 3.41 K/BB rate, and 9.0 K/9 over 31 starts and 166 2/3 innings for Cincinnati.  The man they call “Disco” seemed to be emerging as a quality rotation piece for the Reds in 2015-16 before a series of injuries set him back, including elbow problems that kept him out of action for the entire 2017 campaign.

Reds Reverse Option On Bowman, Place Him On 10-Day IL

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  • The Reds announced yesterday that they’ve reversed their option on right-handed reliever Matt Bowman and instead placed him on the 10-day injured list due to an elbow sprain. That’s both an ominous diagnosis for the 29-year-old Bowman and important distinction with regard to service time. Because Bowman was determined to have an injury that existed prior to being optioned to alternate camp, he’s been brought back up and placed on the Major League injured list, where he’ll receive MLB service time and MLB pay. The Reds didn’t offer a potential timeline for Bowman, who tossed 32 frames for them a year ago and recorded a solid 3.66 ERA with 25 strikeouts against 13 walks (three intentional) with just two homers allowed.

Reds To Place Wade Miley On Injured List

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Just one start into his tenure with the Reds, southpaw Wade Miley is headed to the 10-day injured list with a left groin strain, John Fay of the Cincinnati Enquirer reports. Miley joins righty Anthony DeSclafani (strained teres major) as the second member of the Reds’ rotation to go on the IL since last week.

The 33-year-old Miley, who put forth a solid 2019 effort as a member of the Astros, was one of the Reds’ many notable offseason pickups. The Reds signed him to a two-year, $15MM contract in free agency, but his Cincinnati stint has gotten off to an inauspicious start in the early going. The Cubs tuned up Miley for six runs (five earned) on four hits over 1 2/3 innings in his 2020 debut Monday. In fairness to Miley, though, manager David Bell revealed he “didn’t feel 100 percent and didn’t feel great” in that game. Now, the Reds are hopeful that Miley will return in short order.

Without Miley and DeSclafani, who Fay notes is doing better, the Reds will keep Tyler Mahle in their rotation behind Luis Castillo, Sonny Gray and Trevor Bauer. Castillo, Gray and Bauer have been excellent thus far, but the playoff-hopeful Reds have only mustered a 2-4 start.

Reds Activate Nick Senzel, Mike Moustakas

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Reds outfielder Nick Senzel has been cleared to return to the active roster today, he announced on his Twitter account. Infielder Mike Moustakas was also given the green light to resume play, C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic adds on Twitter.

This is obviously great news for the Cincinnati organization, which was missing two key pieces of its anticipated roster. As The Athletic reported earlier, they had appealed a league determination of a lengthier period of absence after the duo had reported some symptoms potentially consistent with COVID-19 over the weekend.

Thankfully, it seems as if there’s no reason to worry that either of the two players has come down with the coronavirus. Both players’ symptoms have since resolved and obviously neither has recorded a positive test.

The Reds have now announced the moves. The team has created a necessary active roster spot by optioning backstop Tyler Stephenson.

Marlins Claim Josh Smith From Reds

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The Marlins have claimed a second hurler from the Reds, per a team announcement. Southpaw Josh D. Smith will also go to Miami via waiver claim, joining Justin Shafer.

Smith, 30, appeared briefly last year with the Marlins and Indians. He’s now the second hurler by the same name in the Miami organization.

This is one of several roster moves the Marlins are working through. The club is in the midst of an extremely worrying COVID-19 outbreak, with at least 11 players sidelined after positive tests.

Marlins Claim Justin Shafer From Reds

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The Marlins have claimed right-handed reliever Justin Shafer off waivers from the Reds, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports (via Twitter). Cincinnati had designated him for assignment last week.

It’s surely an odd time for Shafer to learn that he’s on his way to the Marlins organization. Miami has had a reported 11 players and two coaches test positive for Covid-19 since Friday — the result of which has been the postponement of two games, an urgent wave of tests in the Phillies organization and undoubtedly some renewed concern among players throughout the league. The Marlins’ sudden shortage of players has likely left them in something of a scramble; MLB Network’s Jon Heyman tweeted earlier today that they’re working to acquire some MLB-caliber depth to fill the roster.

Shafer certainly qualifies as that. While the Reds were the second club to designate him for assignment in the past eight months, he has a solid track record in limited MLB action. In 48 Major League innings, Shafer has pitched to a 3.75 ERA  — albeit with an uglier 39-to-25 K/BB ratio. Still, Shafer has been sharp in the upper minors (both Double-A and Triple-A alike) and will give Miami a fresh arm to help soak up some innings in the wake of their team outbreak.

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