LOS ANGELES — The trade deadline is Tuesday and the Reds haven’t made any deals yet.
There’s an increasing possibility they don’t actually make one before Tuesday at 6 p.m.
The Reds could use pitching — it doesn’t take too much analysis to recognize that. The Reds have called around the league and done their due diligence, according to league sources, but yet nothing has materialized, and it may not.
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Reds general manager Nick Krall has repeatedly said he’s not going to risk the club’s future for deals that don’t make sense long-term.
The Reds have several prospects that other teams desire, but they are unwilling to give up top-tier prospects for lower-tier returns. If a starter with multiple years of team control were to be in the conversation, the Reds would consider dealing one of their better prospects. But they’re not going to spend prospect capital when it doesn’t make sense.
While much of the focus is on the rotation, the bullpen could be a bigger need. Not to improve upon the performance they’ve gotten from relievers this season, but to help continue it.
The National League’s pitching appearance leaderboard counts four Reds among the top five in appearances: Alexis Díaz, Buck Farmer and Ian Gibaut are tied with Miami’s Tanner Scott with 49 appearances, and Alex Young (48), is tied with four others.
The Reds could also use a left-handed reliever, with Young the only lefty in the bullpen.
The name that seems to make the most sense is Colorado’s Brent Suter, a Moeller High School graduate. Other available lefties include the Tigers’ Chasen Shreve and Aaron Bummer of the White Sox.
Other possible targets include right-handers Scott Barlow (Royals), Paul Sewald (Mariners), Brad Hand (Rockies), José Cisnero (Tigers), Alex Lange (Tigers), Carlos Hernández (Royals) and Kyle Finnegan (Nationals).
As for starters, former Red Michael Lorenzen, now with the Tigers, seems to be a good fit. A veteran like the Pirates’ Rich Hill might also make sense.
While the Rangers are going for broke this season, the Reds are looking at a longer window and won’t sacrifice cutting it short for a marginal upgrade in the immediate future.
Votto, De La Cruz back on track?
In the 15 games since hitting his seventh homer of the season on July 8, Joey Votto had a line of just .102/.241/.184 with 13 strikeouts and eight walks in 58 plate appearances. Sunday, however, he hit his second home run since then and nearly had another, until James Outman robbed him of the homer in the fifth inning. Votto also doubled, but struck out twice.
Votto said he hasn’t been worried about his overall production, and is instead focusing on cutting down his strikeouts.
“I need to get out there and continue to put the ball in play,” he said.
Elly De La Cruz came into Sunday’s game hitting just .221/.265/.379 over 102 plate appearances in July. Sunday, he had the third four-hit game of his brief career, hitting his seventh homer of the season in the second inning after starting the game with a single and scoring on TJ Friedl’s double to start the Reds’ three-run first.
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“There’s always going to be bad times when you’re going up to bat,” De La Cruz said, according to team interpreter Jorge Merlos. “You just have to make those adjustments to make it seem like it’s going to break out. Sure enough, eventually you’re going to turn the tide and make it work out.”
Like Votto, De La Cruz said strikeouts are the biggest thing he needs to avoid.
“The biggest adjustment I have to make is swinging at my pitches,” De La Cruz said. “That’s the only thing I’m trying to do up there and execute them well as well.”
Pinch runner on third
Friday night against the Dodgers, Tyler Stephenson hit a one-out single to left in the seventh inning. He went to second on a walk and then to third on a wild pitch. It was only then that Reds manager David Bell put in a pinch runner, sending Nick Senzel in for Stephenson.
It was the second time in a week that Bell had put in a pinch runner for someone on third base. He also did it in the eighth inning of the July 22 game against the Diamondbacks, replacing Spencer Steer with De La Cruz.
In both cases, the pinch runner scored.
“We go on contact a lot, so we’ve seen how close those plays are at home — we’ve been thrown out, but we’ve also scored a lot,” Bell said. “They’re always close plays, so every inch matters so much. There’s also the sac flies, balls can get by the catcher. I just think it’s where it can show up the most from that position.
“The other approach is to pinch run as soon as they get on first. But with a catcher (Stephenson on Friday), I wasn’t willing to take that chance, having a lead on that. But those add-on runs are worth it.”
The week that was
After dropping two of three in Milwaukee, the Reds bounced back by taking two of three on the road against the Dodgers. The Brewers were the last NL Central team the Reds faced this season and the first NL Central team they’ve completed their season series against. The Reds finished the season 3-10 against the Brewers, with all 13 games coming since June 2. In that time, the Reds are 29-9 against teams with names unrelated to beer making. Away from the field, the Reds signed Bell to a three-year extension before Friday’s game in Los Angeles.
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The week ahead
Besides the trade deadline? Oh yeah, there are games. And four pretty big ones against the Cubs, whose eight-game winning streak was snapped Sunday. The Cubs went from sellers to buyers over the last week and are four games behind the first-place Reds in the National League Central and 3 1/2 games behind the Brewers and Marlins, who currently hold the last two wild-card spots. After four games in Chicago, the Reds return to Great American Ball Park to host the Nationals.
Injury updates
• 2B Jonathan India (heel pain) was placed on the 10-day IL on Sunday. India said he’d been dealing with the pain for about a month, but it intensified Friday and he was scratched from Saturday’s lineup.
• RHP Tejay Antone (elbow) is scheduled to pitch for Triple-A Louisville Wednesday.
• RHP Hunter Greene (hip) is scheduled to start a rehab assignment for Arizona this week. The current schedule has him returning to the Reds on Aug. 20.
• RHP Vladimir Gutierrez (elbow) started a rehab assignment this week in Arizona and is scheduled to pitch again Tuesday.
• RHP Casey Legumina (shoulder) is on a rehab assignment and is expected to pitch again Tuesday for Louisville.
• LHP Nick Lodolo (calf) is scheduled to throw a side session Monday in Arizona. The Reds’ current timetable has him returning at the end of August.
• LHP Reiver Sanmartin underwent Tommy John surgery on July 7.
Minor League Roundup
• Triple-A Louisville (53-47): The Bats must be the most appropriately named team in the minors. Looking at the box score for Sunday’s 11-3 loss to Indianapolis, I just noticed that the lowest OPS in the lineup belonged to No. 9 hitter Michael Siani (.718). Siani was the only hitter for the Bats whose OPS was below the league average of .803. They lead the league in OPS at .885, well ahead of Iowa, which has a .840 OPS. Louisville leads the league in runs (656), hits (994), RBI (612), average (.288), on-base percentage (.385) and slugging (.500).
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• Double-A Chattanooga (51-44): RHP Joe Boyle has been one of the team’s most interesting prospects since he was drafted out of Notre Dame in 2020. Always able to strike out batters, the 6-foot-7 Boyle has also always struggled with walks. On the season, he’s 6-5 with a 4.50 ERA and 122 strikeouts and 75 walks, but in June and July, he’s improved, going 4-2 with a 3.83 ERA in 10 starts and 67 strikeouts with 35 walks over 49.1 innings.
• High-A Dayton (50-46): Edwin Arroyo’s stock isn’t as high as it was a year ago when the Reds acquired him in the Luis Castillo deal, but the Reds are still bullish on what they’ve seen. Overall, the switch-hitting, switch-throwing shortstop is hitting .249/.320/.407 with nine homers and 22 steals in 85 games. Still just 19, he’s had 372 plate appearances this season and just three have been against a younger pitcher. Arroyo entered June hitting .197, but since then he’s tied for the lead in the Midwest League in hits (53) and has hit .291/.376/.473 in 210 plate appearances.
• Low-A Daytona (40-53): LHP Jacob Heatherly allowed his first run in eight relief appearances on Sunday. He’s allowed just two runs since the start of June over 13 appearances. In all, he’s thrown 20 innings over the two months with 37 strikeouts and 18 walks.
(Top photo of De La Cruz scoring Sunday: Harry How / Getty Images)