Héctor Rodríguez gives the Reds a clear offseason problem to solve

The Cincinnati Reds have been waiting for at least one of their young hitters to emerge and become a building block in the lineup alongside Sal Stewart and Elly De La Cruz.

After seeing Noelvi Marte appear to squander what could have been his last chance and Edwin Arroyo fall flat after tearing it up in Triple-A, the Reds have turned to Héctor Rodriguez as their next great hope.

The 22-year-old outfielder took a few games to get his sea legs, but then went on a tear and showed us all what kind of damage his aggressive, compact swing can do. His bat speed, sitting at 74.8 mph has been sizzling and his homers have been majestic.

However, as he's gotten more exposure, a clear flaw has emerged. The lefty-swinging outfielder posted a .229/.270/.410 slash line over 41 big league games, but against southpaws he was abysmal, slashing .171/.171/.244.

In his current form, Rodriguez is a platoon player. That might seem like a disappointment from a highly-regarded prospect, but with a .253/.311/.474 line against righties, you can see that the potential is there. On top of that, if he's going to be a platoon bat, doing it from the strong side as a left-handed-hitter isn't a terrible thing. But one thing is clear, he'll need a platoon partner in 2027.

The Reds could look to some familiar faces to serve as Héctor Rodriguez's platoon partner in 2027

Before we go further, one last caveat on the platoon scenario. Rodriguez is so young that there's a decent shot that he can eventually become serviceable against lefties. The simple fact, though, is that if Cincinnati wants to try and compete in 2027, the organization can't rely on that happening right away.

The good news is that the free-agent market should present a decent number of options, and there are a couple that the Reds know well. Old friend Austin Hays will be a free agent, and pending an option decision that seems likely to be declined, 2025 trade deadline acquisition Miguel Andujar could join him there.

Hays is coming off a disappointing season that has been marred by injury. He hit just .233/.250/.326 over 12 games with the Chicago White Sox before being released following the August 3 trade deadline. However, he was picked up by the San Diego Padres and in 25 games there has hit a more Hays-like .302/.321/.453. Reds fans know full well what he can do in Great American Ball Park, so as long as he's healthy, he'd be a solid pickup.

Andujar is a bit of a clunkier fit. While he's a good bat-to-ball guy and tore it up for Cincinnati down the stretch last season, he's hit a more reserved .259/.303/.423 this season. Ironically, he's been better against righties than lefties this season, with an OPS of .746 against same-handed pitchers versus a .682 mark against southpaws. The bigger issue, though, is that the 31-year-old has played just 10 games in the field, with none of them coming in the outfield.

Another option without Reds ties is Tyrone Taylor. The former Milwaukee Brewer and current Chicago Cub has hit a fantastic .274/.322/.502 with 11 homers this year. Against lefties, he's been a menace with a .909 OPS. Taylor is also the best defender of the group and has the ability to play center field as well as the corners, meaning he'd have a role even if Rodriguez improves against lefties.

All three have merits to an extent, and all will come pretty cheap. Since this won't be a large financial outlay, the return on investment will be strong, and the Reds cannot afford to leave a promising bat like Rodriguez unprotected and risk shattering his confidence.

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