Reds: 3 players who could be sent down when Mike Moustakas returns

2. José De León, Reds relief pitcher

José De León has gone from starter to reliever, and by Tuesday night, he could find his way to the Cincinnati Reds’ alternate site in Louisville, Kentucky. De León seems to have fallen out of favor with the Reds coaching staff, but if sent down to Louisville, the right-hander could join the Bats’ rotation with the minor league season set to begin next week.

De León has shown the ability to get opposing hitters to swing and miss. Unfortunately, he’s also given up quite a few hits as well. The 28-year-old has a 6.92 ERA while allowing 13 hits and four home runs over 13 innings of work. On the plus side, De León does have 27 punch outs over those 13 innings as well.

De León was granted a fourth-year option, and it seems as though at some point this season, Cincinnati will take advantage of the arbiter’s ruling. The same option was given to Cionel Perez who was just optioned to the alternate site last week.

José De León has the talent, but he may be best served as an additional arm at Triple-A that Cincinnati can utilize as the sixth starter of a double header or as a spot starter at certain points during the season. De León’s time with the big league club may be up on Tuesday afternoon.