4 Reds who'll survive the non-tender deadline but are only delaying the inevitable

Friday marks the non-tender deadline, and teams from all over Major League Baseball will be making key making roster decisions about whether or not to offer contracts to both arbitration and pre-arb eligible players.

The Cincinnati Reds have a number players on the 40-man roster who fit that mold, and for one reason or another, may decide to non-tender sevreral of them before Friday's deadline. While the likes of Elly De La Cruz, Noelvi Marte, and Nick Lodolo are sure to be tendered contracts, a few players will be on pins on needles waiting to find out.

The Reds will be staring down a handful of borderline cases before the deadline, and while Cincinnati may indeed tender contracts to a few fringe players, their roster status will be hanging by a thread heading into the winter.

4 Reds who'll survive the non-tender deadline

Blake Dunn, Reds outfielder

Blake Dunn broke camp with the Reds last season, but he only appeared in 30 games and struck out in 33% of his plate appearances. While Dunn posted good numbers in Triple-A and has terrific speed on the base paths, if he survives the non-tender deadline, he'll be on thin ice once spring training gets underway next year.

Yosver Zulueta, Reds right-handed pitcher

Yosver Zulueta was off waivers from the Toronto Blue Jays, and he's accounted for 19 appearances in the big leagues since coming to Cincinnati back in 2023. His strikeout stuff plays well against the competition down in the minors (31.2% K rate), but it hasn't really translated to the major leagues. Zulueta's out of minor league options, meaning he'll have to be part of the Reds Opening Day roster in order to remain with the organization in 2026.

Lyon Richardson, Reds right-handed pitcher

Much like the aforementioned Zulueta, Lyon Richardson is out of minor league options too. Richardson made the switch from starter to reliever in 2025, and at times, his changeup was un-hittable. The right-hander got rocked during the latter half of the season, however, and it'll be curious to see how much longer Richardson can survive the Reds' roster crunch.

Will Benson, Reds outfielder

If Will Benson survives the non-tender deadline, one has to wonder how many more chances he has left. Though Benson has some loud tools and has one the team's biggest personalities, he's failed to secure consistent playing time at the big league level. He has minor-league options remaining, but he's also due a pay raise through arbitration. The eyes of Reds Country will be on Benson at Friday's deadline, and if he survives, it'll still be an uphill climb to stick on the roster.