Cincinnati Reds: Brian O’Grady adds another layer of versatility

The Cincinnati Reds made a few roster moves on Monday, one of which was the promotion of Brian O’Grady to the big leagues.

Though he didn’t make it on time for the first pitch, Brian O’Grady was suited up for last night’s game against the Los Angeles Angels. The Cincinnati Reds selected O’Grady’s contract from the Louisville Bats, and the left-handed slugger will add some versatility to the Reds lineup while Derek Dietrich is on the injured list.

Dietrich, the hero of the first two months of the season, has hit a wall of late. Perhaps his recent slump was due to the shoulder injury that landed the second baseman on the injured list. Dietrich was placed on the 10-day IL with shoulder inflammation. To fill his spot in the lineup, Cincinnati brought up a player who has plenty of pop in his bat.

Brian O’Grady, an eighth-round draft pick of the Cincinnati Reds in 2014, was called up to the big leagues for the first time in his career. O’Grady, who’d been teammates all season with the recently promoted Aristides Aquino, was part of a duo that was flat-out destroying the ball at Triple-A Louisville. O’Grady had 27 homers and 70 RBIs with the Bats this season.

With Dietrich on the injured list, I’d expect Josh VanMeter to get the majority of playing time in his stead. Honestly, that’s what we’d seen of late anyway. Dietrich’s lack of production from the left side had caused the Reds to look elsewhere. VanMeter has obliged with a slash line of .341/.426/.683 in his last 15 games.

So where does that put O’Grady? Well, I’d expect we’ll see the 27-year-old get a few opportunities to start over the next few weeks. As we’ve seen with Aquino, the Reds are not shy about giving some of their young players a chance to succeed. Aquino has received 12 at-bats since his call-up last week and is 4-for-12 with a home run and 4 RBIs.

O’Grady, like VanMeter, can play all over the field. Mainly a first baseman, O’Grady’s seen time at third base and in the outfield this season for the Bats. Don’t be surprised to see O’Grady give Joey Votto a break at some point during his stay with the Reds. I’d also expect to see an outfield of O’Grady, Winker, and Senzel with VanMeter occupying second base when there’s a right-handed pitcher on the mound.

The Cincinnati Reds have shown a penchant to go with several players this season that offer a lot of versatility. While Votto, Senzel, Eugenio Suárez, and José Iglesias have been mainstays at their respective positions this year, we’ve seen the majority of the Reds roster plug in at different spots throughout the season.

Players like O’Grady, VanMeter, Dietrich, José Peraza, and Kyle Farmer have been invaluable for the Cincinnati Reds this season. It’s obvious that David Bell will fill out his lineup card based on matchups, and adding versatile players like Brian O’Grady to the roster helps the Reds skipper to take full advantage.