JJ Bleday signing sends clear warning to one Reds outfielder who's on thin ice

The Cincinnati Reds made an outfield addition on Saturday afternoon. While it might not be the seismic type of deal fans were hoping for, in agreeing to terms on a one-year, $1.4 million contract with JJ Bleday, the club has all but ensured that there will be ripple effects.

The 28-year-old Bleday is coming off a trying season in which he slashed just .212/.294/.404 and was squeezed out of the Athletics' crowded mix. The arrival of unanimous AL Rookie of the Year Nick Kurtz created a domino effect that sent Tyler Soderstrom from first base to left field, and left no place for Bleday.

However, it was just one year prior where Bleday looked to be on the verge of a breakout himself, with the former first-round pick hitting .243/.324/.437 with 20 homers in 2024. The Reds will be hoping that the once-promising outfielder can revert to, or surpass, his 2024 form this upcoming season.

In giving him that opportunity, however, it might cost Will Benson the chance to prove that he can pull it together in 2026. Benson now appears redundant on next year's roster.

The Reds' signing of JJ Bleday could spell the end for Will Benson in Cincinnati

Both Bleday and Benson are left-handed hitters, and with TJ Friedl and Gavin Lux also serving as lefty bats in the outfield (and top prospect Hector Rodríguez), the mix has gotten just a bit too crowded for them all to co-exist.

This isn't the first time we've heard about Benson nearing the end of his Reds' tenure, but Bleday represents a different type of threat than what earlier moves posed to Benson's roster security.

For one thing, the 27-year-old Benson has never reached heights quite like what Bleday put forth in 2024. Coming off a season in 2025 where his .226/.273/.435 line combined with his defensive and base running contributions to produce an utterly replaceable 0.0 fWAR, Benson didn't do much to strengthen his case.

Furthermore, as a depth option, Bleday is the more attractive of the two. In a perfect world, neither would face southpaws. Bleday isn't great against same-handed pitchers with a career .660 OPS against lefties, but he looks like a world beater compared to Benson, who has put together a putrid .495 OPS against left-handers over his big league tenure. That would matter a lot should an injury force either one into the lineup every day.

Furthermore, reading the tea leaves, it seems that Benson could never quite win over Terry Francona, and Francona's handling of him down the stretch was where the writing on the wall truly began.

Benson has become a fan-favorite during his Reds tenure, but the time has come to pull the plug. Bleday has a higher-ceiling at this point, and it doesn't make good baseball sense to carry so many lefty hitters who all play similar roles.