Angels' struggles could provide Reds a reunion opportunity at the trade deadline

The Cincinnati Reds' bullpen was a strength of the team during the first month of the 2026 season, but the relief corps has fallen on tough times of late. During the month of May, the Reds' bullpen ranks dead-last with a 6.90 ERA. The young relievers haven't lived up to the billing, and it may be time for Cincinnati to consider reuniting with an old friend.

Former Reds reliever Brent Suter, who signed a one-year deal with the Los Angeles Angels this past offseason, ranks among the top 30 in relief innings pitched this season, and has racked up a team-leading 26⅓ for the scuffling Halos.

It's been more of the same from the veteran left-hander, who has thrown nearly 150 innings out of the bullpen since 2024; the 27th-most among all relief pitchers in the league during that timeframe. Surprisingly, however, the Reds didn't reunite with Suter during the offseason, and instead traded for Brock Burke and signed Caleb Ferguson to fill their left-handed needs in the bullpen.

Suter's filled a variety of roles for the Angels this year, from opener to multi-inning fireman to ostensible LOOGY. His versatility has always been a key part of his value, as the Reds know all too well from his last few seasons in Cincinnati.

The Angels are saddled with the worst record in the American League, and it's a foregone conclusion that they'll be sellers prior to the MLB trade deadline this year. Should a low-cost trade like Suter be on the table?

Brent Suter is a low-risk candidate Reds should prioritize at trade deadline

For what it's worth, the Reds aren't in dire need of left-handed relief help at the moment. Between Burke,the now-healthy Ferguson, and the resurgent Sam Moll, Terry Francona has three reliable southpaws to turn to late in games. When weighing contributions exclusively from lefty relievers this season, the Reds rank third in batting average against (.193), eighth in ERA (3.00), and 12th in strikeout rate (23.4%).

Other metrics, however, are not quite as kind, with a 16th-ranked FIP (3.91) and 18th-ranked WAR contribution (0.3). A lot of that could be due to Ferguson's injury, but it also highlights a serious problem: the Reds have only received 51 total innings from left-handed relievers this year, which ranks 24th among all MLB teams.

That is a problem Suter is uniquely designed to fix. He's running a 4.20 ERA, which is basically in line with what he produced for the Reds, but he remains utterly elite at limiting hard contact and keeping the ball on the ground. The Angels, who rank 28th in the league with -15 Outs Above Average (OAA), can't take advantage of that skillset. The Reds, who rank sixth with +9 OAA, certainly can.

Considering how inexpensive his contract is ($1.25 million), Suter will easily fit into whatever budget the Reds are working with during the summer. He also shouldn't cost much in terms of prospect capital as a 36-year-old rental reliever. Thanks to his familiarity with the organization, it'd be easy to fold him back into the bullpen mix too.

In other words, trading for Suter is an obvious slam dunk.

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