Uncustomed Heroes of 2025: Reds

 

Ever since that 2020 squad made it to an extended playoff picture, the Reds have been desperately trying to relegitimize themselves. This year they put Terry Francona in the driver's seat, made some very smooth moves in free agency and trading, and put together a very nice, if scrappy, mid-tier competitor. Now, I will say that if Hunter Greene had made it the whole season, they may have won enough games to not have to play the Dodgers in the wild card round, but as is, they were completely embarrassed. The Reds were engineered to win close games, and the Dodgers didn't give them any.

That doesn't mean that they're a bad team, it just means that this time around they were outmatched. Maybe a tad underdeveloped. Maybe a few healthy pieces from greatness. But this team was able to make Elly de la Cruz, Andrew Abbott, T.J. Friedl and, yes, Hunter Greene into guys playoff teams had to manage around. And it's only the beginning, because you can see Chase Petty and Sal Stewart coming up the pipe. Plus, Rhett Lowder could be back soon.

Tyler Stephenson is in a somewhat awkward position though, as one of the few pieces of the last rebuild effort in Cincinnati. Stephenson was a great hitting catcher in concept but has mellowed into a very okay everyday player, with middling defense and underwhelming power numbers. This year he hit .231 with 13 homers and 50 RBIs in an injury-shortened 88-game season. 

2026 Prediction: A healthy improvement, just in time for free agency in 2027.

Gavin Lux getting traded to Cincinnati was the Dodgers admitting that they have more faith in their ability to buy a great team than their ability to draft one these days. Between Lux, Dustin May, Hunter Feduccia, Michael Grove...it just hasn't been happening lately. So Lux got dealt to the Reds, and he primarily played a DH role, mostly because his defense has been atrocious. In 140 games, Lux hit .269 with 5 homers and 53 RBIs, meaning he's a decent contact bat without a ton of punch.

2026 Prediction: Lux is one of those 'oh who even knows' types because he'll either underwhelm or get injured. I say he does a little better than 2025 but the Reds are very quickly gonna get tired of him.

Nick Martinez has one of the surest gigs in Cincinnati, because all he has to do is sit there and wait for Nick Lodolo, Hunter Greene or Brandon Williamson to get hurt and then he does a nice job. Martinez was alright as a long reliever and depth guy, but unsurprisingly he also got 26 starts this year, going 10-10 with a 4.72 ERA yet a 1.248 WHIP and 106 Ks. Martinez, if nothing else, is sturdy, reliable and trustworthy. He fits into whatever role you've got and does what he can. Martinez also ensured that every Reds starter, of the core five, had a WAR higher than 2.2. Considering how many of these guys used to only be around for 10 starts, that's a good change of pace.

2026 Prediction: With the Reds supposedly moving on, and considering they have Burns, Lowder and probably Williamson backing up the core four, they have a right to, Martinez will find a mid-rotation job with a non-competitive team. Then maybe somebody cool trades for him at the deadline. Padres reunion perhaps?

Austin Hays, curiously I might add, didn't do as well in Philadelphia as he did in the laid back, homey southern tip of Baltimore. Also curiously he seemed to improve upon getting to play in Cincinnati. Very curious. I'm not gonna go into detail about my grievances against Hays, but suffice to say I think him getting to wear red this year was a bit on-the-nose. Anyway, Hays did well in a starting role in the Reds outfield, hitting .266 with 15 homers and 64 RBIs, plus some excellent defense, in 108 games. The injuries limited him, but it was a definite improvement for Hays.

2026 Prediction: Lol watch him sign with the Rays. Probably does okay somewhere. 

Will Benson was relegated to 'depth OF' position after an underwhelming 2024, and didn't make the team til midyear. This may have been the trick with Benson, as deployed in a bench OF/extra man sort of role he was way better, with 12 homers and 41 RBIs in 90 games. 

2026 Prediction: I think he's figured it out, he'll be even better in the first half and will play an elevated role in the stretch.

Tony Santillan, like a lot of Reds relief pieces admittedly, is terrific when he's healthy but will miss enough time to make you forget that. He was healthy all year this year, and appeared in 80 games with a 2.44 ERA, a 3.0 WAR and 75 Ks. It was the best season, and fullest season, of Santillan's career, and it was one the Reds had been waiting for for a while. 

2026 Prediction: Ow..

The Reds' main ninth inning option, in lieu of Alexis Diaz falling apart, was Emilio Pagan, the former Rays and Padres relief specialist who most recently figured his shit out with Minnesota. Pagan was not a perfect closer, and notoriously made things hairy in a few games against the Brewers, but still finished the year with a 2.88 ERA, 81 Ks and 32 saves. It was enough to ensure the Reds would keep him on long-term.

2026 Prediction: Not sure if he keeps the ninth all year but he'll be worth the cash I think.

Chase Burns, a HUGE organizational piece for the Reds, was given some midyear MLB starting opportunities. Usually that means the major league starters are all going down, but honestly this was a more natural and expected development than usual, despite Burns struggling to keep the job. In 13 games, Burns had a 4.57 ERA, despite a welcome 67 Ks. 

2026 Prediction: Well, ideally the Reds won't really need Burns for a while, but...if the opportunity presents itself, he'll be way better, and take a big role in a postseason run.

One of the smartest things the Reds did at the deadline was bringing on Ke'Bryan Hayes, on his way to a gold glove. Hayes continued to be one of the best defensive infielders in the game, despite not being especially helpful at the plate, hitting .234 with 3 homers and 13 RBIs in 52 games. So they platooned him with either Miguel Andujar or Noelvi Marte mostly.

2026 Prediction: At some point this season, Ke'Bryan Hayes is going to start hitting, and people will be too shocked about it.

And then to relieve Burns, and honestly Martinez, of starting duties, the Reds traded for Zack Littell, who'd been great in Tampa this year. Littell continued the strong work in Cincinnati, going 2-0 with a 4.39 ERA and 42 Ks in 10 starts. Unfortunately he was responsible for the loss in Game 2 of the wild card series.

2026 Prediction: The Rays want to bring him back, and I say they do so, but only for a year. And it goes alright.

Coming Friday: I'm giving you all Xmas off, and then on friday you get the baseball version of coal in your stockings, some extra Rockies.