Angels may have just taken Reds' favorite deadline bat off the board

The Los Angeles Angels were stuck in limbo — until they struck of double-deal with the Washington Nationals to upgrade their bullpen on Wednesday. The Angels are apparently buyers after picking up Luis Garcia and Andrew Chafin from the Nats, and that all but torpedoes any hopes of the Cincinnati Reds trading for Taylor Ward at the deadline.

Ward may have always been a bit of a long shot. The Angels are notorious for being buyers rather than sellers at the trade deadline — even when they're woefully out of contention. LA stuck to their guns in years past, and it cost them dearly. This may be more of the same for the Halos, as they enter play on Wednesday with a 5.3% chance to make the playoffs this season.

Ward would've looked quite nice in a Reds uniform. An Ohio-native, Ward is hitting .229/.305/.495 this season with 25 home runs and a 115 wRC+. The Reds are sorely lacking a big-bat in the middle of the lineup, and Ward could've filled that void.

Angels may have just taken Taylor Ward off the Reds' wishlist at the MLB trade deadline

With Ward likely off the board, the Reds can now turn their attention to other bats with a little more than 24 hours remaining until the MLB trade deadline passes. The Reds have been linked to players like Eugenio Suárez, Yandy Díaz, and Ramon Laureano. Both Suárez and Laureano are known to be obtainable, but much like Ward, questions remain about Díaz's availability at the deadline.

Suárez is obviously the biggest name still on the board, and Reds fans would love to see him return to Cincinnati. The price tag for Geno, however, is said to be quite steep and recent reports suggest the Reds may no longer be in the mix.

In addition to an extra bat in the lineup, the Reds also need to bolster the bullpen before the deadline passes at 6 p.m. ET on Thursday. MLB.com's Mark Sheldon recently mentioned Colorado Rockies pitchers Jake Bird and Seth Halvorsen as potential targets, and other names have been tossed around of late as well.

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