Cincinnati Reds: Didi Gregorius could be surprisingly affordable

While it’s just an estimate, the latest projection of Didi Gregorius’ market value is surprisingly affordable. Should the Cincinnati Reds sign Gregorius?

There’s a strong contingent of Cincinnati Reds fans that would love to see Didi Gregorius return to the Queen City. Originally signed by the Reds, Gregorius was traded to the Arizona Diamondbacks after the 2012 season. Gregorius is slated to become a free agent this offseason and the latest projections may put Sir Didi in the Reds price range.

Spotrac, an online resource for player contracts, team payrolls and more, recently calculated the market value of Didi Gregorius to be $13.4M per year. The website uses comparable player’s contracts, statistical output and age to arrive with the figure. Spotrac estimates that Gregorius could land a 3-year/$40.5M contract this winter.

While this is just an estimate, and it’s ultimately up to the agents and teams to set the market, the analysis is fair. Gregorius will be 30-years old next season and is coming off a subpar season, due mostly to the fact that he underwent Tommy John surgery and only played in 82 games last season for the New York Yankees.

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Still, Gregorius hit 16 homers, drove in 61 runs and had a .441 slugging percentage. Don’t forget, in his previous two seasons with the Yankees, Gregorius put up some terrific numbers. The left-handed hitting shortstop compiled 50 doubles, 52 home runs, 172 RBIs and an .812 OPS during the 2017 and 2018 seasons.

The shortstop situation for the Cincinnati Reds will be a fascinating story to follow this offseason. Do the Reds re-sign José Iglesias? Will the team pick up Freddy Galvis’ club-option? Does the front office go all-in for a player like Francisco Lindor? There are so many plausible scenarios and we’ll start to get a better picture of the Reds plan after the World Series.

As we discussed earlier this week, the biggest issue surrounding Gregorius will be whether or not the Yankees extend a qualifying offer to their shortstop. Our friends over at Yanks Go Yard are cautioning Brian Cashman and the Yankees front office against such a move.

As Mike Callendrillo correctly points out, the Yankees have Gleyber Torres, who’s a natural shortstop, and D.J. LeMahieu, who’s likely to get some votes for the AL MVP. These two capable middle infielders, combined with Miguel Andujar and Gio Urshela give the Yankees a formidable group of infielders, making Gregorius expendable.

If the Yankees refuse to extend the $17.8M qualifying offer to Gregorius, then he’ll be a hot name on the free agent market. While he doesn’t provide the same level of defense as Iglesias and Galvis, Sir Didi definitely has some pop in his bat. The Cincinnati Reds would be wise to pursue Gregorius if there’s no strings attached.

The Yankees went toe-toe with the American League Champion Houston Astros. If the Bronx Bombers added another quality starting pitcher during the offseason, New York may be the team to beat heading into next season.

There’s a certain pitcher named Gerrit Cole who may be on the Yankees radar this winter. That would cost the Yankees a pretty penny, making it unlikely they’d extend a qualifying offer to Gregorius. A decision like that could greatly benefit the Reds.