Cincinnati Reds: 3 questions we hope to answer at the Winter Meetings

1. Will the Reds sign a top-level starting pitcher?

This has been the question for the Cincinnati Reds since the season ended. If we’re bing honest, this has been the question for the franchise for the past several years. The Reds must improve their starting rotation this offseason and there’s no better time to do that than this year’s Winter Meetings.

So, what do we know about the Reds pitching situation? For starters, we know that the team has one, maybe two viable starting pitchers on the roster currently. Both Luis Castillo and Anthony DeSclafani can be penciled in as part of the Reds’ starting rotation.

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Secondly, we know that there’s a handful of young pitchers on the team that have yet to prove themselves. For some of those players, there time may be up. Robert Stephenson, Brandon Finnegan, and Cody Reed have been given ample time to produce and none of them have grabbed hold of that brass ring.

Tyler Mahle, perhaps the Reds best young pitcher, had a roller coaster first year in the big leagues. It’s very possible that Mahle will get every chance to lock down a starting spot in the rotation heading into 2019. How about Sal Romano? Personally, I see him as more of a relief pitcher next season.

So, will the Reds get the pitching and who will it be? To answer the first part of the question, yes, I believe the Cincinnati Reds will leave Las Vegas with at least one, if not two additional starting pitchers. As for the second part of the question, I have no clue who it could be.

With Patrick Corbin already off to D.C. and Nathan Eovaldi back in Beantown, the No. 1 free agent target is obviously Dallas Keuchel. The left-hander would be a fantastic addition to the Reds, but it’ll cost Cincinnati big bucks. Think close to a $20-million per season average over at least 4 years. Is he worth it? I believe he is.

If not Keuchel, then who? The Reds could always go bargain hunting for a player like Anibal Sanchez, Gio Gonzalez, or Wade Miley. But those types of players will be available after the Winter Meetings. They’re not in high demand, so Cincinnati should stand pat this week if the best they can get is a player like that (taking nothing away from any of those players, of course).

Another name that’s made the rounds is J.A. Happ. He’s a lefty and a ground ball pitcher, so naturally he’d fit in well at GABP. The problem with Happ is two-fold. While he had a phenomenal run with the Yankees last season, he is a bit long in the tooth. Also, the Yankees really like him and it’s likely he’ll return to New York on a two or three year deal.

So there you have it. Will the Reds walk away from the Winter Meetings with a new starting pitcher added to the roster? Yes, but it may not be via free agency, which leads us to our next question?