Reds: Abandoned offseason moves that could’ve saved 2021 roster

The Cincinnati Reds made one major league signing over the offseason, inking left-handed reliever Sean Doolittle to a one-year deal. However, the Reds were rumored to be after some of the hottest names on the market. What signings or potential trades that could’ve been made that would have really helped Cincinnati’s outlook this season?

The Cincinnati Reds non-tendered Curt Casali which paved the way for Tyler Stephenson to serve as Tucker Barnhart’s running mate behind the dish. While Casali was beloved by his teammates in Cincinnati, the current backup to Buster Posey in San Francisco is hitting just .104 and has an OPS+ of 10 on the season.

Moving on from Casali seems to have worked out well for the Reds. However, there were several potential moves that Cincinnati’s front office could have made this past winter, and David Bell’s squad would’ve been in much better shape. Let’s look at a few of those moves, shall we?

1. Reds should have tendered a contract to Archie Bradley.

The Cincinnati Reds made a deadline deal last summer with the Arizona Diamondbacks in order to secure Archie Bradley. Bradley had a nice track record as the D-backs closer, and after moving on from Raisel Iglesias, it seemed like a foregone conclusion that Bradley would supplant Iggy as Cincinnati’s closer in 2021.

However, the Reds front office chose instead to non-tender the right-hander and allow Bradley to sign a one-year/$6M deal with the Philadelphia Phillies. It was likely the Cincinnati Reds could’ve tendered Bradley a contract for even less than what he signed for in Philly.

The Reds bullpen is a disaster. Were it not for the heroics of Tejay Antone, who should actually be in the starting rotation, there’s no telling how bad the Cincinnati relief corps would be. Even with Antone anchoring the mix of relievers, the Reds bullpen has the worst ERA in baseball.

The Cincinnati Reds dealt a Top 10 prospect in Stuart Fairchild, along with utility player Josh VanMeter in order to snag Archie Bradley last summer. After non-tendering Bradley in December, the Reds essentially forfeited their former second-round pick and a serviceable infielder for 7.2 innings of Archie Bradley. Ouch!