Cincinnati Reds: Cody Reed has officially been put on notice

On Wednesday, the Cincinnati Reds designated Sal Romano for assignment. Cody Reed may be next if his spring falls short of expectations.

The Cincinnati Reds said goodbye to right-hander Sal Romano on Wednesday. To make room for Pedro Strop on the 40-man roster, Cincinnati designated Romano for assignment. The Reds will have a week to trade Romano, release him or place him on outright waivers. Romano’s departure should put tremendous pressure on Cody Reed, who, like Romano, is out of minor-league options.

Romano was always in a precarious spot. The former starter turned reliever did not experience much success the past two seasons, and the addition of Strop really put his roster spot in question. Cincinnati now has Strop, Raisel Iglesias, Michael Lorenzen, Amir Garrett and Robert Stephenson slated for the bullpen.

That’s five arms in a pen that can only hold eight. Lucas Sims has to be considered a favorite to find a home among the relievers. With the success he had last season, Sims would be perfectly suited as a reliever that could stretch beyond one or even two innings.

So, if we are under the assumption that Sims is also guaranteed a spot, barring injury, there will be several pitchers vying for this final two spots in the Reds bullpen. In addition to Cody Reed, Matt Bowman, José De León, Joel Kuhnel, Justin Shafer and Josh Smith are all on the 40-man roster. Reed has an advantage over all six names mentioned, as he’s the only one out of options.

Where Reed may face the stiffest competition is from the non-roster invitees. Among those who could challenge Reed for the final two spots in the Cincinnati bullpen are fellow lefties Jesse Biddle and Brooks Raley, along with right-handers Nate Jones, David Carpenter, Alex Powers and Tyler Thornburg.

Cody Reed was once a valued member of the Kansas City Royals farm system. Along with Brandon Finnegan and John Lamb, Reed came to Cincinnati in 2015 as part of the trade that sent right-hander Johnny Cueto to KC. None of those pitchers ever lived up to expectations and Reed is the only player still on the Reds 40-man roster. Finnegan is also part of the organization.

After injuring his knee just a few innings into the 2019, Reed never got the opportunity to showcase the improvements he’d made to his game over last offseason. Reed pitched just in just 6.1 innings, but put up a 1.42 ERA and struck out seven batters with a 1.105 WHIP.

Being left-handed and out of options, I’d give Cody Reed the inside track for one of the final spots in the Cincinnati Reds bullpen. However, if he doesn’t perform up to expectations or is outperformed by one of the non-roster invitees, it may be curtains for Reed in Cincinnati.