Reds Announce Five Roster Moves
The Reds made five moves prior to today’s game with the Guardians, including the placement of catcher Jose Trevino on the 10-day injured list. Trevino is dealing with a left hamstring injury, and he’ll be replaced on the active roster by catcher P.J. Higgins, whose contract was selected from Triple-A Louisville. To create room for Higgins on the 40-man roster, Cincinnati designated outfielder Rece Hinds for assignment. In two other moves to get a fresh arm into the bullpen, the Reds called up right-hander Jose Franco from Triple-A, and optioned righty Luis Mey.
This is already the second IL stint of the year for Trevino, who missed about three weeks in April due to a thoracic spine sprain. Trevino hasn’t contributed much when he has been able to play, delivering only a .143/.172/.179 slash line over 30 plate appearances. Though Trevino is far better known for his strong defense than his subpar hitting over his career, the combined lack of production from Trevino, Higgins, and starter Tyler Stephenson have resulted in a -0.1 bWAR from the Reds’ catching position this season.
Higgins had his minor league contract selected to the 26-man roster when Trevino was first sidelined in April, and Higgins posted a .450 OPS over 12 plate appearances while appearing in five games. Upon Trevino’s return, the Reds designated Higgins for assignment and then outrighted him to Triple-A, with Higgins opting to stay in the organization rather than reject the outright in favor of free agency.
That decision has now rather quickly led to another stint in the majors for Higgins, even if he’ll likely be DFA’ed again once Trevino is healthy. Higgins has signed minor league deals with the Reds in each of the last three offseasons, and his five games in April marked his first taste of MLB action since 2022, when he appeared in 74 games with the Cubs.
A second-round pick for the Reds in the 2019 draft, Hinds hit .261/.333/.717 with five homers in 51 plate appearances after making his MLB debut in 2024. Those early fireworks didn’t carry over, however, as Hinds hit only .118/.150/.250 over 80 PA (with 39 strikeouts) during the 2025-26 seasons.
The near-total lack of production at the big league level has now made Hinds expendable in Cincinnati’s view, though manager Terry Francona is still a supporter. “Maybe for his sake, I really hope he gets an opportunity he didn’t get here,” Francona told Charlie Goldsmith and other reporters today. “I love the kid. There are obviously tools there. Sometimes, things have a way of working out for guys.”
To Francona’s point about Hinds’ tools, Hinds has been crushing Triple-A pitching for the last two seasons, he has elite speed, and he has the ability to play all three outfield positions. Though Hinds’ Triple-A strikeout rate is still at 27.9%, he has greatly increased his walk total in Louisville. It seems quite possible that another team might be intrigued enough to claim Hinds off the waiver wire, but if he does clear waivers, he doesn’t have the ability to reject an outright assignment to Triple-A.
Reds Outright P.J. Higgins
The Reds have sent catcher P.J. Higgins outright to Triple-A Louisville, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. That indicates he cleared waivers after being designated for assignment earlier this week. He has the right to elect free agency but it isn’t stated whether or not he will do so.
Higgins, 33, signed a minor league deal with the Reds in the offseason. He was added to the roster in April when Jose Trevino hit the injured list due to a thoracic spine strain. Higgins was optioned to Triple-A later that month when Trevino came off the IL. During few weeks on the active roster, he appeared in six games and stepped to the plate 12 times. He struck out four times, drew one walk and picked up two hits, both singles.
That was the third time he had played in a major league season, though the other two were with the Cubs back in 2021 and 2022. He has a .209/.289/.342 line in 266 big league plate appearances on the whole. He’s generally been considered a decent defender in the minors. At the plate, he has done some good work, with a .273/.346/.405 line at Triple-A dating back to the start of 2021. His Triple-A line is just .133/.364/.133 this year, though in a small sample of 44 plate appearances.
Since Higgins has been outrighted in the past, he has the right to reject this assignment and elect free agency. The Reds probably hope that he sticks around or can be re-signed to a new minor league deal. Tyler Stephenson and Trevino are the only two backstops on the 40-man right now, so they’re a bit light on depth to cover for a potential injury to one of those two guys. Will Banfield is in the system on a minor league deal but he has only seven games of big league experience. If Higgins departs, the Reds could look to add depth in other ways. For instance, old friend Austin Wynns was just released by the Athletics.
Photo courtesy of Sam Greene, Imagn Images.
Reds Designate P.J. Higgins For Assignment
The Reds have designated catcher P.J. Higgins for assignment, per a team announcement. His spot on the 40-man roster goes to veteran righty Chris Paddack, whose previously reported agreement with Cincinnati has now been officially announced. Right-hander Rhett Lowder has been placed on the 15-day injured list to open an active roster spot. Manager Terry Francona said a couple days ago that Lowder would be IL-bound due to shoulder troubles. The team’s formal designation at this time is a vague “right shoulder pain.”
The 33-year-old Higgins appeared in six games with the Reds and took 12 plate appearances, going 2-for-10 with a pair of singles, a walk and a sacrifice fly in that time. He’s now played sparingly in parts of three big league seasons. In a total of 89 games and 266 plate appearances, the former 12th-rounder out of Old Dominion is a .209/.289/.342 hitter with six home runs, a 9.4% walk rate and a 26.3% strikeout rate.
Higgins obviously hasn’t hit much in his limited major league experience, but he’s been a solid hitter in parts of seven Triple-A seasons: .274/.349/.414. He’s thwarted a strong 29% of stolen base attempts against him in the minors. Baseball Prospectus credits him as a plus framer with slightly above-average blocking skills at the Triple-A level. The Reds will have five days to trade Higgins or place him on outright waivers. That’d be a 48-hour process. His DFA window will last a maximum of one week. Higgins has been outrighted in the past, so if he passes through waivers, he’d be able to elect free agency.
As for Lowder, while the IL placement was known to be coming, the formal announcement provides little in the way of clarity. Presumably, Francona will provide more information when he meets with the Reds beat later today. Lowder, the seventh overall pick in the 2023 draft, missed the 2025 season due to a flexor strain. He pitched well through his first six starts (3.18 ERA) but has been blown up for 11 runs over 4 1/3 innings in his past two outings.
NL Central Notes: Jones, Lodolo, Trevino, Pages
A little over 11 months after undergoing an internal brace surgery, Jared Jones is slated to begin a minor league rehab assignment on Wednesday with the Pirates‘ low-A affiliate in Bradenton. Pirates GM Ben Cherington made the announcement on his weekly radio show, telling MLB.com’s Jason Mackey that Jones has “passed all the physical checks. He pitched in an extended game last week [and] was up to 100 mph. He has the velocity and has been recovering well. Now he has to get back into that routine of being a pitcher and getting outs.”
While Paul Skenes naturally garnered most of the headlines in 2024, Jones also made his big league debut that season and posted a 4.14 ERA over 121 2/3 innings and 22 starts. He hasn’t been able to follow up on that solid rookie campaign due to elbow problems that surfaced late in Spring Training 2025, though Jones was able to avoid a full Tommy John surgery. The shorter timeline usually associated with an internal brace procedure means that Jones is on track to return to Pittsburgh by late May or early June, if all goes well in his rehab. Interestingly, Mackey floated the idea that Jones could be used as a piggyback starter or even as a reliever if the Buccos want to limit his innings in his return from major surgery, as the Pirates’ rotation is strong enough at the moment that Jones isn’t necessarily needed for starting duty right away.
More from the NL Central…
- Nick Lodolo recorded seven strikeouts and allowed only two hits over five scoreless innings and 51 pitches for high-A Dayton in the first start of the Reds southpaw’s latest rehab assignment. Lodolo has yet to pitch in the majors this season due to blister problems that arose during Spring Training, and more blisters cut short his first rehab start with Dayton back on April 2. A few more weeks of recovery may have finally gotten the problem under control, though the extra time away means Lodolo will need another rehab start or two to build up his arm strength. Despite a lack of hitting and the absence of top starters Lodolo and Hunter Greene, the Reds weathered the storm to post an 18-10 record in their first 28 games.
- The Reds also activated catcher Jose Trevino from the 10-day injured list prior to today’s game with the Tigers, and catcher P.J. Higgins was optioned to Triple-A in the corresponding move. A thoracic spine strain has kept Trevino out of action since April 4. Now in his second season with the Reds, Trevino will resume his duties as a glove-first backup behind starting catcher Tyler Stephenson.
- Cardinals catcher Pedro Pages left Saturday’s game due to left hamstring tightness, but Pages told media (including Daniel Guerrero of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch) that he is day to day after scans revealed no substantive damage. “Everything’s intact from the hamstring. It’s just more swelling in the area, which is fine. I just got to flush it out and be ready to go,” Pages said. The backstop didn’t play today but believed he could be ready Monday when the Cardinals open a series in Pittsburgh. Though the Cards don’t have an off-day until May 11, they have the catching depth to afford Pages extra rest time if necessary since Ivan Herrera and Yohel Pozo are both on the active roster. Known more for his glove than his bat, Pages has a respectable 101 wRC+ (from a .250/.310/.404 slash line) over his first 59 plate appearances.
Reds Designate Christian Encarnacion-Strand For Assignment
Reds first baseman Christian Encarnacion-Strand has been designated for assignment, the team announced. Catcher P.J. Higgins is taking his spot on the 40-man roster. Higgins was selected after catcher Jose Trevino went to the IL due to a thoracic spine strain.
Encarnacion-Strand was the heir apparent at first base as Joey Votto‘s legendary career wound down. He delivered a 113 wRC+ across 63 games as a rookie in 2023. With Votto moving on at the end of that season, Encarnacion-Strand opened 2024 as Cincinnati’s everyday first baseman. He hit just .190 over the first six weeks of the year. A broken wrist ended his campaign in early May.
It was more of the same for Encarnacion-Strand last year. He had the first base job to begin the season, but posted a .482 OPS through three weeks, then hit the IL with back inflammation. Encarnacion-Strand spent most of June with the big-league club, slashing .230/.262/.410 over 17 games. He was sent back to Triple-A in early July.
The Reds landed Encarnacion-Strand in an August 2022 trade that sent right-hander Tyler Mahle to Minnesota. Cincinnati also acquired infielder Spencer Steer and left-hander Steve Hajjar in the deal. The swap seemed like a good piece of business for Cincinnati after 2023, with Mahle limited to nine starts in his Twins tenure and the infielders looking like key cogs for the Reds. Outside of Steer’s league-average contributions the past couple of seasons, it’s largely ended up as a wash for both sides.
Higgins hasn’t appeared in the big leagues since 2022 with the Cubs. He was decent in part-time work with Chicago, delivering a 99 wRC+ with six home runs across 74 games. After bouncing to the Diamondbacks and then back to the Cubs, Higgins landed with the Reds on a minor league deal ahead of the 2024 season. He’s provided subpar offensive numbers over the past two years at Triple-A. The 32-year-old will serve as the backup to Tyler Stephenson while Trevino is sidelined.
Photo courtesy of Paul Rutherford, Imagn Images
Players Entering Minor League Free Agency
Major League free agents became eligible to sign with other teams on Thursday, but the minor league free agent market has technically been open since season’s end. MLBTR has published several posts detailing players who had already elected to become minor free agents, but Baseball America’s Matt Eddy (multiple links) has the full account of all the minor league free agents that officially joined their big league counterparts on the open market on Thursday.
This list details only players who have played in the Major Leagues, and whose minor league free agency hasn’t already been covered on MLBTR in the last month.
Athletics: Aaron Brooks, Carlos Duran, CD Pelham, Bryan Lavastida, Nick Martini, Alejo Lopez
Braves: Ian Anderson, Davis Daniel, Enoli Paredes, Amos Willingham, Brian Moran, Jonathan Ornelas, Chandler Seagle, Matthew Batten, Conner Capel
Orioles: Jakson Reetz, Livan Soto, Thaddeus Ward
Red Sox: John Brebbia, Isaiah Campbell, Mark Kolozsvary, Chadwick Tromp, Seby Zavala, Trayce Thompson
Cubs: Yency Almonte, Zach Pop, Caleb Kilian, Austin Gomber, Forrest Wall, Billy Hamilton, Joe Ross, Tommy Romero, Antonio Santos, Tom Cosgrove, Dixon Machado, Nicky Lopez, Carlos Perez
White Sox: Elvis Peguero, Kyle Tyler, Vinny Capra, Chris Rodriguez, Caleb Freeman, Joe Perez, Owen White, Andre Lipcius
Reds: Tejay Antone, Alan Busenitz, Buck Farmer, Josh Staumont, P.J. Higgins, Eric Yang, Levi Jordan, Edwin Rios, Davis Wendzel, Evan Kravetz, Adam Plutko, Charlie Barnes, Alex Young
Guardians: Riley Pint, Tyler Naquin, Parker Mushinski
Rockies: Xzavion Curry, Sean Bouchard, Owen Miller, Karl Kauffmann,
Tigers: Kevin Newman, Brian Serven, Jordan Balazovic, Nick Margevicius, Blair Calvo
Astros: Jon Singleton, Joe Hudson, Kenedy Corona, Greg Jones, Matt Bowman, Luis Contreras, Tyler Ivey, John Rooney
Royals: John Gant, Spencer Turnbull, Bobby Dalbec, Diego Castillo, Geoff Hartlieb, Jordan Groshans, Nick Pratto, Isan Diaz, Stephen Nogosek, Nick Robertson, Joey Krehbiel, Noah Murdock, Ryan Hendrix
Angels: Shaun Anderson, Brandon Drury, Yolmer Sanchez, Ben Gamel, Evan White, Cavan Biggio, Logan Davidson, Travis Blankenhorn, Oscar Colas, Kelvin Caceres, Dakota Hudson, Chad Stevens, Angel Felipe, Jordan Holloway, Victor Gonzalez
Dodgers: Michael Grove, Luken Baker, Giovanny Gallegos, Kyle Funkhouser, Chris Okey, CJ Alexander, Zach Penrod
Marlins: Jack Winkler, Lane Ramsey
Brewers: Luis Urias, Oliver Dunn, Julian Merryweather, Daz Cameron, Drew Avans, Josh Maciejewski, Jared Oliva
Twins: Jose Miranda, Anthony Misiewicz, Jonah Bride, Thomas Hatch, Daniel Duarte, Connor Gillispie
Mets: Joey Meneses, Jose Azocar, Joe La Sorsa, Gilberto Celestino, Ty Adcock, Bryce Montes de Oca, Yacksel Rios, Oliver Ortega, Luis De Los Santos
Yankees: Kenta Maeda, Jeimer Candelario, Rob Brantly, Andrew Velazquez, Jose Rojas, Joel Kuhnel, Wilking Rodriguez
Phillies: Matt Manning, Adonis Medina, Lucas Sims, Jacob Waguespack, Phil Bickford, Rodolfo Castro, Oscar Mercado, Brewer Hicklen, Christian Arroyo, Payton Henry
Pirates: Brett Sullivan, Nick Solak, Nelson Velazquez, Beau Burrows, Ryder Ryan
Cardinals: Zach Plesac, Anthony Veneziano, Tyler Matzek, Zack Weiss, Drew Rom, Aaron Wilkerson
Padres: Eguy Rosario, Tim Locastro, Reiss Knehr, Nate Mondou
Giants: Sean Hjelle, Miguel Diaz, Max Stassi, Sam Huff, Cole Waites, Drew Ellis, Ethan Small
Mariners: Michael Fulmer, Casey Lawrence, Collin Snider, Jesse Hahn, Nick Anderson, Josh Fleming, Austin Shenton, Jacob Nottingham, Beau Taylor, Cade Marlowe, Jack Lopez, Michael Mariot, Hagen Danner
Rays: Cooper Hummel, Jonathan Hernandez, Jamie Westbrook, Tres Barrera
Rangers: Omar Narvaez, Cal Quantrill, Ty Blach, Alan Trejo, Joe Barlow, Cory Abbott, Michael Plassmeyer, Alex De Goti
Blue Jays: Eloy Jimenez, Buddy Kennedy, Joe Mantiply, Elieser Hernandez, Rene Pinto, Adam Kloffenstein
Nationals: Francisco Mejia, Juan Yepez, Joan Adon, CJ Stubbs, Parker Dunshee, Erick Mejia, Adrian Sampson, Delino DeShields
Reds Sign P.J. Higgins To Minor League Deal
The Reds announced Monday that they’ve signed catcher/infielder P.J. Higgins to a minor league contract. The Bledsoe Agency client will receive an invitation to big league camp in spring training.
Higgins, 30, logged Major League time with the Cubs in 2021-22, batting a combined .210/.291/.348 with six home runs, 11 doubles and a triple in 254 trips to the plate. Modest as that production may be, Higgins has spent parts of four seasons at the Triple-A level and clobbered opposing pitchers at that level, posting a .318/.401/.499 slash in 672 overall plate appearances.
Beyond the production at the plate in the upper minors, Higgins has some quiet versatility that could help him eventually win a spot on Cincinnati’s bench. He’s primarily been a catcher in his professional career, but the Cubs have also given him 867 career innings at first base, 584 innings at third base, 93 innings at second base and even 37 frames at shortstop. If he can ultimately deliver anything within a stone’s throw of league-average production at the plate, he could make for an interesting bench player — particularly for a Reds club that carried three catchers for much of the 2023 season (Tyler Stephenson, Luke Maile, Curt Casali).
As things stand, Stephenson and the recently re-signed Maile figure to handle considerable work behind the plate. That said, Stephenson was more productive at the plate when he was playing first base or serving as a designated hitter than when he was catching — and his glovework behind the dish also graded out quite poorly. It wouldn’t be all that surprising if the Reds again opt for three catchers, with Stephenson spending ample time at first and DH. Higgins could potentially factor into that equation if he impresses next spring. He hasn’t drawn particularly strong defensive grades in limited action in the majors, though Baseball America touted him as at least an average defender at catcher before his MLB debut.
Cubs Acquire P.J. Higgins
Per The Athletic’s Patrick Mooney, the Cubs have acquired catcher P.J. Higgins in a minor trade with the Diamondbacks in exchange for cash consideration.
It’s a homecoming for Higgins, who was drafted by the Cubs in the 12th round of the 2015 draft. He made his big league debut on the north side back in 2021 with a nine-game cup of coffee before getting a longer look in the organization the following season as the club’s third catcher behind Willson Contreras and Yan Gomes. Higgins made it into 74 games that season, slashing .229/.310/.383 in 229 plate appearances, good for a roughly average wRC+ of 97. In addition to his 236 innings of work behind the plate, Higgins spent time at both infield corners with the Cubs in 2022.
Despite that solid performance, Higgins was eventually designated for assignment by the Cubs during the offseason to make room for newly-signed catcher Tucker Barnhart on the 40-man roster. Higgins elected free agency shortly thereafter before signing with the Diamondbacks on a minor league deal shortly after the new year. In 2023, Higgins has hit well at the Triple-A level for Arizona with a .317/.407/.473 slash line (116 wRC+) in 58 games. Unfortunately for Higgins, he was blocked with the Diamondbacks by Gabriel Moreno, Carson Kelly, and Jose Herrera, all of whom were on the 40-man roster in Arizona.
Higgins now returns to Chicago, though he’s once again blocked by a trio of catchers on the 40-man roster: Barnhart, Gomes, and Miguel Amaya. That being said, Barnhart has struggled massively at the plate with a wRC+ of just 58 in 110 plate appearances this season, while Gomes was among MLBTR’s Top 50 Deadline Trade Candidates earlier this month. Should the club move on from either Barnhart or Gomes in the near future, Higgins could have a path to a roster spot with the Cubs as the club’s third catcher. In the meantime, he figures to head to Triple-A where he’ll share time with Dom Nunez and Bryce Windham at the Triple-A level.
Diamondbacks, P.J. Higgins Agree To Minor League Deal
The Diamondbacks are signing catcher/corner infielder P.J. Higgins to a minor league contract, reports Jon Heyman of the New York Post (Twitter link). He’ll be in big league camp as a non-roster Spring Training invitee.
Higgins, 29, joins the second organization of his career. He’d spent his first eight seasons with the Cubs after being drafted out of Old Dominion in the 12th round in 2015. Higgins slowly climbed the minor league ladder and reached the big leagues for the first time in 2021. He played in nine games before suffering a torn UCL in his throwing elbow that required Tommy John surgery and ended his season.
Chicago ran him through outright waivers after the season but quickly brought him back on a minor league contract. Higgins made the MLB roster in May and tallied 229 plate appearances over 74 games last year. He hit .229/.310/.383, connecting on six home runs while walking at a quality 9.6% clip. He struck out in a little more than a quarter of his trips but generally posted solid offensive numbers for a catcher.
Higgins didn’t perform as well behind the dish, however. He split his defensive time roughly evenly between catcher and first base. In 236 innings as a backstop, he was behind the plate for 13 wild pitches and three passed balls. He had below-average arm strength and cut down only three of 19 attempted basestealers (a 15.8% success rate). Paired with below-average pitch framing marks, Higgins rated a cumulative six runs below average as a catcher, as estimated by Defensive Runs Saved. He graded out as a roughly average defender at first base and also picked up a pair of starts at the hot corner.
After the season, Chicago signed Tucker Barnhart to pair with Yan Gomes at catcher. The Cubs ran Higgins through waivers for a second time, and he again hit minor league free agency. This time, he’ll depart the organization for an opportunity to vie for reps in Arizona.
The D-Backs have three catchers on the 40-man roster. Rookie Gabriel Moreno will be the starter before long after coming over from the Blue Jays in the Daulton Varsho trade. Carson Kelly looks likely to settle into a backup role at that point, while José Herrera could head back to Triple-A Reno as a depth option.
Higgins adds some upper level depth behind them and a right-handed bat to potentially vie for some reps in the infield. He’s a .279/.365/.378 hitter over parts of seven minor league campaigns. He still has all three option years remaining, so the D-Backs would be able to shuttle him between Phoenix and Reno if he eventually grabs a 40-man roster spot.
P.J. Higgins Elects Free Agency
Catcher P.J. Higgins has rejected an outright assignment from the Cubs in favor of free agency, per Jon Heyman of the New York Post (Twitter link). Chicago designated Higgins for assignment in late December in order to open a spot on the roster for newly signed Tucker Barnhart, and Higgins cleared outright waivers last week. It was the second time in his career he’d gone unclaimed and been assigned outright to a minor league affiliate, however, which granted him the right to reject that assignment and explore his opportunities elsewhere.
Higgins, 29, appeared in 74 games for the Cubs in 2022, batting .229/.310/.383 with six homers, 11 doubles and a triple in 229 plate appearances. He walked at a 9.6% clip and punched out in 25.3% of those trips to the plate. That marked just the second season in which Higgins has had big league experience, with the 2021 season — when he appeared in just nine games — standing as the only other.
A 12th-round pick out of Old Dominion back in 2015, Higgins has been a generally productive hitter in the minors but has never received a particularly long big league look with the Cubs — due in no small part to the presence of Willson Contreras in the Majors for the entirety of his pro career to this point. Higgins has torn through Triple-A pitching at a .338/.429/.535 pace, though that’s come through just 274 plate appearances in a generally hitter-friendly setting. Overall, he’s a career .279/.365/.378 hitter in parts of seven minor league seasons.
Higgins was touted as an average or better defensive catcher back when Baseball America ranked him 22nd among Cubs farmhands in 2017, but he had some struggles in the Majors this past season. Higgins threw out just 16% of runners who attempted to steal against him — well below the league-average 24% — and he ranked near the bottom of the league with his average “pop time” in such situations, per Statcast. Both FanGraphs and Statcast pegged him as a below-average framer, as well, and Defensive Runs Saved dinged him at -6 for his work behind the plate in 2022.
That said, there’s more to Higgins’ defensive skill set than just his work behind the plate. He was an infielder at Old Dominion and in his first season of pro ball, and the Cubs have continued to get him work at other positions throughout his career. Catcher has remained his primary position since 2016, but Higgins has a total of 732 innings at first base, 575 innings at third base and even 93 innings at second and 37 innings at shortstop. He’s unlikely to be viewed as a regular option at any of those infield slots, of course, but it’s a nice bit of versatility to be able to market to other clubs as Higgins looks for a new opportunity as a minor league free agent for the first time in his career.