It would appear that the Cincinnati Reds are going to be buyers at the deadline. At least in some small way.
One day before the trade window shuts, Jeff Passan of ESPN was the first to report that the Reds have agreed to a deal with the Pittsburgh Pirates, one that will send third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes to the Reds. In exchange, the Reds will send relief pitcher Taylor Rogers to the Pirates, along with infield prospect Sammy Stafura.
Not The Big-Time Third Base Name Some Desired
The hot corner had been thought to be a target of the team for a while. After calling time on the unsuccessful Jeimer Canderlario experiment earlier in the year – cutting him despite still owing $22 million on his contract – the Reds had been linked to Arizona Diamondbacks third baseman and former Red, Eugenio Suarez. The acquisition of Hayes – the league’s best defensive third baseman, and by quite some way – will surely put that to bed.
Hayes is not nearly the caliber of upgrade at the position that Suarez would have represented, simply because he is not even nearly the same caliber of hitter. His .236/.279/.290 line so far this season – and his resultant 59 OPS+ – tells the emphatic story of a distinctly below-average MLB hitter, which Hayes had now been for two full seasons after a much better three to begin his career.
That said, the downgrade is reflected in the greatly-reduced price paid. Moving Rogers – a useful if not especially relaxing reliever whose 1.46 WHIP belies his 2.45 ERA – and an A-ball shortstop in Stafura (who ranks ninth in MLB’s list of the team’s best prospects, but who is some years away from the majors) means a small degree of expenditure for a player on whom, the Reds will hope, they are buying low.
Reds Hopeful For Opportunity Cost
The main attraction behind trading for Hayes is less about who he is; it is instead who he might be. Or perhaps, who he should always have been.
Despite two distinctly poor seasons at the plate, Hayes is still only 28 years old, and has time to turn it around. Back injuries plus changes in his swing – not necessarily deliberate ones – have stymied any growth at the plate hitherto, but both are fixable (or somewhat fixable, if Hayes’s back injury is in fact chronic), and the Pirates have not had much success in developing offensive talent internally in the recent past. Perhaps, with a change of scenery and a generous hitter’s park, Hayes can at least get back some pop in the bat.
Given that he is only partway through a $70 million contract, the Reds will sorely need Hayes to improve his offence, as one Gold Glove alone does not justify that level of expenditure. Even if he does not, though, acquiring Hayes allows for a rebalancing of the line-up.
Young infielder Noelvi Marte’s bat is breaking out, and he needs to be in the line-up, but he also needed moving off of third base because the throwing errors were too plentiful for too long. With Marte moving to the outfield/designated hitter role, Hayes now fits in at third, improving a defensive unit that needed it and reducing the reliance on utility player Santiago Espinal, whose versatility – while valued – does not need 400 at-bats a season. Additionally, with this smaller deal, the Reds also get to keep hot pitching prospect Chase Burns.
A replacement left-hander for the bullpen in place of Rogers may now be required, but may also be forthcoming. After all, the Reds are now the ones making moves. They may now be out of the running for Eugenio Suarez, but at least the Reds were buyers in some fashion.
Reds Buy Low, And Buy Now – But Take $70 Million Gamble