Cincinnati Reds: Who will lead the team in home runs this season?

2. Yasiel Puig

If you’re not excited about Yasiel Puig in a Reds uniform next season, I don’t know what to say to you. This guy has made baseball fun in Cincinnati again and he hasn’t even taken the field. So, the question now becomes, can Yasiel Puig live up to all the hype? I’m here to tell you that he can.

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Puig was traded from Los Angeles not because of his antics, which can be a bit questionable at times, but more because of his value to the team. The Dodgers organization is loaded with talented outfielders and obviously the Dodgers felt comfortable moving on from their former All-Star.

Puig has never recaptured that same success he had in his first two seasons that made him a household name and fan favorite in LA. In his first two big league seasons, Puig slashed .305/.386/.502 with 35 home runs and 111 RBIs. In the four seasons since, his combined batting average has dropped to .263 and his on-base percentage to .331.

Yasiel Puig is in his walk year,  meaning he’ll be a free agent at the end of the season. This is a big year for Puig and a chance to show the other 29 teams,  likely only 28 this offseason, that he’s worthy of a big contract. There’s an outside chance that the Cincinnati Reds could re-sign Puig in the offseason, but with the plethora of outfield talent on the roster and in the minor leagues, this looks like a one-year deal.

Puig has power, there’s no doubting that. With the short porch in Great American Ball Park, Puig may enjoy seeing a few big flies that would’ve been long fly ball outs to the warning track in Dodgers Stadium. It’ll be interesting to see what Yasiel Puig brings to the table in 2019, but it’ll, no doubt, be fun.

Predicting Yasiel Puig’s home run total in 2019: 33 HRs