Impressive raw tools won't be enough for this Reds prospect to join the 40-man roster

In short order, the Cincinnati Reds will have some important roster decisions to make. The Reds will need to tender contract to pre-arbitration and arbitration-eligible players and also protect some of their top prospects from the Rule 5 Draft.

For those unfamiliar, the Rule 5 Draft allows teams to poach players from another organization. There are certain qualifications that a player must maintain in order to be selected, and in order to protect those players, they must be added to the team's 40-man roster.

But those spots are limited, and even with the Reds sitting at 36 right now, it'll be difficult to justify adding fringe major league prospects to the 40-man roster. One such player is Yerlin Confidan, who's unlikely to be added to the Reds roster later this month.

Impressive raw tools won't be enough for Reds prospect Yerlin Confidan to join the 40-man roster

There's a lot to like about Confidan. The 22-year-old is incredibly projectable at 6-foot-4 and brings a sweet swing from the left side of the dish. Confidan burst onto the scene in 2021 with a power-packed performance while playing in the Arizona Complex League. The outfielder slashed .315/.359/.573 with 11 home runs in just 50 games while posting a 135 wRC+ according to FanGraphs.

Injuries have slowed Confidan in recent years, and the slugger was only able to play in 91 games last season after appearing in just 74 in 2023. For a power hitter, Confidan does a great job of keeping his strikeouts down. Last season, the youngster struck out fewer than 25% of the time.

But the problem is that Confidan has yet to graduate beyond Low-A. Since 2022, Confidan has appeared in 196 games, all of which have been with the Daytona Tortugas. Though Confidan is eligible for the Rule 5 Draft this winter, the rules that govern the event will likely keep another team from selecting him this December. Once selected, the player must remain on that team's active (26-man) roster throughout the season.

With that in mind, the Reds shouldn't have to worry about adding Confidan to the 40-man roster this offseason. However, it would behoove the club to bump him up to the next level in the minor leagues, as it's time to see if Confidan's power translates beyond the Florida State League.

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