Nick Krall's track record should force Reds into a safer trade deadline approach

The Cincinnati Reds have reportedly told other organizations that they're open to moving players on expiring contracts ahead of the upcoming trade deadline. Good. They should. Cincinnati is an embarrassing 16½ games behind the NL Central-leading Milwaukee Brewers, and trail six other teams in the chase for the final NL Wild Card spot.

But does the Reds' trade deadline strategy go far enough? I mean, what's the best they can hope to get back in exchange for Brady Singer, Tyler Stephenson, Eugenio Suárez, Nathaniel Lowe, and handful of relievers? None of those players is likely to fetch a top-100 prospect.

In a seller's market, one would think the Reds should be bolder. If the intention is to compete with the big boys in the National League, you're going to need more than a few top-10 organizational prospects in order to move the needle heading into 2027 and beyond.

Shouldn't the Reds look to trade players like JJ Bleday, Spencer Steer, and even Hunter Greene? Sure, the short-term outlook would look somewhat bleak, but return for those players could be astronomical compared to just dumping rentals at the deadline.

In other words, why not offload some of your best assets at this year's deadline, retool during the offseason, and reload the roster with an eye toward 2028? It's not a bad plan, but do you really want Nick Krall making decisions that could greatly alter the future of the franchise? I didn't think so.

Nick Krall's very presence is reason for the Reds to be cautious at the trade deadline

Gavin Lux, Ke'Bryan Hayes, Jeimer Candelario, Christian Encarnacion-Strand, Noelvi Marte, Santiago Espinal, Frankie Montas, Kevin Newman, Austin Hays, and Zack Littell are just a handful of players that Krall has either traded for or signed since taking over as the Reds' top decision maker in 2020. The first three names on that list should be enough to warrant his termination.

Krall essentially surrendered Mike Sirota and Charles Davalan — both top-100 prospects in the Los Angeles Dodgers farm system — for Lux. He also offloaded Sammy Stafura, who's now hitting .317/.380/.652 with the High-A affiliate for the Pittsburgh Pirates organization, in exchange for Hayes.

One of Krall's biggest mistakes, however, may have been handing a three-year, $45 million contract to Candelario, who's now playing at Triple-A Salt Lake for the Los Angeles Angels and while being paid $16 million by the Reds. Cincinnati DFA'd Candelario in 2025, but are still on the hook for the remainder of his 2026 salary.

For all these reasons, and so many others, the Reds cannot trust Krall to be in charge of a trade deadline fire sale and the rebuild that follows. He was given that chance once, and the results speak for themselves. Such a task must be left to Krall's eventual successor — one that's hopefully appointed after the 2026 season comes to a close.

Not all of Krall's decisions have been awful. He was able to acquire Spencer Steer as part of trade package for Tyler Mahle. Flipping former Rookie of the Year Johnathan India for Brady Singer should be viewed as win for the Reds as well. He's also made some savvy free agent additions over the years like Brandon Drury in 2022 and Nathaniel Lowe this past offseason.

But by and large, most of the Reds success has come in spite of Krall's decision making. Do the Reds need to completely overhaul the roster? That's up for debate. But if they do, Krall can't be charge of that operation.

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