Reds news: Nick Castellanos will return to Cincinnati in 2021

Nick Castellanos will be the Reds right fielder in 2021.

This has been expected since the Cincinnati Reds 2020 season concluded, but today it became official. Nick Castellanos did not invoke his right to opt out of his current contract, meaning the right fielder will be back in Cincinnati next season.

Castellanos signed a four-year/$64M deal last offseason with the Reds, but some unique language in the contract allowed the slugger to opt out following both the 2020 and 2021 seasons. Castellanos will make $14M next season, and should he have a successful campaign, he’ll be able to enter the free agency market next winter.

However, a lot could change between now and then. With the coronavirus pandemic causing Major League Baseball to shrink the 2020 season from 162 to 60 games, owners missed out on a lot of money. Moreover, fans were absent from the ballparks this season, so gate revenue was nonexistent.

What that means is that player salaries will be one of the first places teams will look in order to recoup their losses. We’ve already seen players like Brad Hand, Jon Lester and Ryan Braun have their options declined by their respective teams as a means to save some money towards next year’s payroll.

With Nick Castellanos opting to stay in Cincinnati, the Reds now have one of their three outfield positions set and ready to go heading into next season. The trio of Nick Senzel, Jesse Winker and Shogo Akiyama will likely be competing during spring training for the other two spots.

Castellanos didn’t put up quite the numbers everyone expected last season. The right-handed slugger dominated the headlines early, but his numbers dipped during the second half of the season. Castellanos finished with a slash line of .225/.298/.486. He racked up 14 round trippers and 34 RBIs.

Castellanos, not known for his defense, didn’t show many improvements in that area last season. According to FanGraphs, Castellanos had -4 defensive runs saved and -5 outs above-average according to Baseball Savant.

If the designated hitter finds its way back to the National League next season, that could be a very real possibility for Nick Castellanos. For now, it appears as the the universal DH will not be part of the equation in 2021, meaning Castellanos will be the Cincinnati Reds Opening Day right fielder on April 1st against the St. Louis Cardinals.