Cam Smith's breakout performance could prompt Reds-Astros trade ahead of Opening Day

The Cincinnati Reds are just days away from opening the 2025 season, but there are still some roster concerns ahead of Thursday's game against the San Francisco Giants. Cincinnati's new manager Terry Francona has yet to finalize the Reds Opening Day roster, and the outfield remains the team's biggest question mark.

At the moment, the final couple of spots on the Reds roster are still up for grabs. Cincinnati's coaching staff has not yet decided which two of Stuart Fairchild, Jacob Hurtubise, or Blake Dunn will be part of the Reds Opening Day roster.

One of the reasons for the delay is the likely pursuit of an upgrade. Nick Krall is no dummy, and the Reds President of Baseball Operations is surely scouring the waiver wire at the moment in an attempt to improve the roster; particularly the outfield. The answer, however, might not be a waiver claim, but a trade.

Cam Smith's breakout performance could prompt Reds to trade for Astros OF Chas McCormick

Cam Smith, the former Chicago Cubs farmhand, was the key piece of the Houston Astros return in exchange for sending Kyle Tucker to the Windy City. Smith, Isaac Paredes, and Hayden Wesneski were packaged and shipped to Houston as compensation for sending the three-time All-Star outfielder to Chicago.

Smith has been a revelation for the Astros this spring. Despite having only 32 minor-league games under his belt, Smith has been the Astros' most impressive player this spring. The 22-year-old hit .342/.419/.711 during Houston's spring training games, and is likely to break camp as a member of the Astros Opening Day roster.

That could prompt the Astros to find a trade partner for Chas McCormick. A member of the 2022 World Series championship team, McCormick is coming off a down-year in Houston. The outfielder posted an .842 OPS with 22 home runs in 2023, but a horrific season in 2024 saw his OPS drop over 250 points while barely hitting above the Mendoza line. This spring, McCormick still struggled to hit above .200, but managed to draw 11 walks in 16 games and post a .404 on-base percentage.

A right-handed hitter, McCormick's splits definitely favor his performance against lefties. McCormick owns a career slash line of .288/.360/.505 against left-handers and he also has 27 outs above average in the outfield. Another plus is McCormick's affordable $3.4 million salary, along with two years of team-control and minor-league options remaining.

If Houston is willing to part with McCormick, the 29-year-old would seem to provide some measure of improvement over the team's current crop of outfielders. While Luis Robert Jr. is a popular name among Reds fans, McCormick could be had for much less in terms of salary and prospect capital, and is definitely a name to keep an eye on over the next couple of days.

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