Noelvi Marte's decline just thrust this Reds prospect into the spotlight

The Cincinnati Reds optioned outfielder Noelvi Marte back to the minor leagues after Sunday's game, and there are bound to be some fans who assume he'll never figure things out. Marte was the centerpiece of a Reds' trade in 2022 with the Seattle Mariners. His lack of Major League success could leave Edwin Arroyo as the sole player from that deal who can salvage the Luis Castillo trade.

Arroyo is currently playing at Triple-A Louisville and is off to a nice start. Though 15 games with the Louisville Bats he's hitting .262/.338/.426 with a 108 wRC+ and four extra-base hits, including two home runs.

The power has been lacking for Arroyo since he underwent shoulder surgery back in 2024. There's hope among the Reds' front office and coaching staff, however, that he can return to the type of player he was in 2023 when he hit .252/.324/.433 in 123 minor league games split between High-A Dayton and Double-A Chattanooga.

Arroyo has always been known as a glove-first prospect, and while his bat is never likely to be his carrying tool, there's reason to believe he can be a productive Major League player — perhaps as soon as this season. Frankly, because the rest of the Reds' return from the Castillo trade has been underwhelming, Nick Krall and Cincinnati's front office need Arroyo to exceed expectations.

Reds' return from Luis Castillo trade looks even worse after Noelvi Marte demotion

Most Reds fans will remember the 2022 season as one to forget. Cincinnati's fire sale began in March after Sonny Gray, Jesse Winker, and Eugenio Suárez were all traded. The Reds' doubled down on their sell-off at that year's trade deadline by offloading Castillo, Tyler Naquin, and Tyler Mahle.

Of all the talented prospects the Reds received from those various trades, however, Marte's name was head and shoulders above the rest. He was the Mariners' top prospect at the time and a borderline top-10 prospect in all of baseball.

Marte debuted to much fanfare in 2023, hit .316/.366/.456 during his first 35 games, and looked like a sure-fire bet to be Cincinnati's Opening Day third baseman in 2024. Since that time, however, he was suspended for 80 games for PED use, moved off third base because of his below-average defensive skills, and has hit just .236/.275/.377 over the last 167 games (2024-2026).

Marte will now have to rebuild his value once again, but he'll have to do it in the minor leagues. His chase rate was untenable, and pitchers weren't even trying to keep the ball in the strike zone. Cincinnati reporter Charlie Goldsmith revealed before Marte's demotion that more than 60% of the pitches he's seen this season were off the plate. And yet, he was swinging at those pitches 47.4% of the time.

With Marte in the minors and the other two pieces of that trade package — Levi Stoudt and Andrew Moore — no longer with the Reds organization, the success of the Castillo deal now rests on the shoulders of Arroyo. No pressure, right?