The one trade Reds fans begged for but didn't get

The Cincinnati Reds walked away from the MLB trade deadline with some mild-mannered upgrades, but fans were hoping to see Nick Krall and the front office hit a home run. Though the additions of Ke'Bryan Hayes, Zack Littell, and Miguel Andujar should help the Reds make a second-half push for the playoffs, fans are still steamed over the one that got away.

Eugenio Suárez was on the Reds' radar over the past week, but Cincinnati failed to work out a deal with the Arizona Diamondbacks. Instead of returning to Cincinnati at this year's trade deadline, Geno found his way back to the Emerald City after the Seattle Mariners struck a deal to reunite with the third baseman on Wednesday night.

While one can reasonably argue that Hayes has a better glove than Suárez, cost less in terms of prospect capital, and provides a long-term fixture at the hot corner, he also offers little-to-no power for a lineup starving for some pop.

Making a deal for Eugenio Suárez was the one trade Reds fans begged for but didn't get

Would there've been pitfalls to trading for Suárez? Absolutely. Geno has 36 homers on the season, something this year's Reds lineup could've used, but also owns a 26.8% strikeout rate and 32.1% whiff rate — both of which rank among the 15th percentile or worse this season. Suárez is also nowhere near the defender he used to be, and is worth -5 outs above average on the year.

Then there's the cost of doing business. The D-backs were able to gain three new prospects in their deal with the Mariners; the sum total of which probably would've added up to something akin to the three prospects Cincinnati surrendered at the deadline.

Would a trade package of Sammy Stafufa, Adam Serwinowski, and Kenya Huggins have brought back Suárez back to Cincinnati? It would've at least got the conversation started. However, doing so would've caused the Reds to part with even more prospects in order to upgrade the pitching staff — something Krall and Co. appeared reluctant to do.

While it's fair to debate whether or not the Reds made the correct choice to forgo a trade for Suárez, what's not open to question was the fans desire to see Geno return to the Queen City. With Hayes now fully entrenched at third base, that reunion seems all but dead despite the fact that Suárez is a free agent after the season.

Although they don't like it, much like they did back in the spring of 2022, Reds fans are surely wishing Geno nothing but the best now that he's with the Mariners.

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