The only Elly De La Cruz trade package Reds should accept if Dodgers come calling

We're sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but the Cincinnati Reds could begin shopping Elly De La Cruz as soon as this offseason. There were whispers that the Boston Red Sox attempted to land De La Cruz at the August 3 trade deadline, and former Major League general manager Jim Bowden confirmed those rumors earlier this week.

During a radio appearance on 97.1 The FanLA, Bowden said, "The Red Sox and Craig Breslow did call the Reds at the deadline, and made an offer. A very strong offer for him. They got turned down."

Bowden went on to say that he believes the Reds will "absolutely" consider trading De La Cruz this offseason. He cited earlier reporting from The Athletic in which Bob Castellini asked Nick Krall and members of the front office, "Why aren't we the Brewers?" Krall reportedly responded by handing Castellini a laundry list of vetoed trades that he tried to make in the past.

As Bowden correctly pointed out during his interview, De La Cruz already turned down the Reds' attempt to sign him to a long-term deal. He's represented by Scott Boras, meaning that De La Cruz is going to test the open market after his arbitration window expires following the 2029 season.

Facts are facts, Reds fans. And the fact is, Cincinnati will never have more leverage in trade negotiations for De La Cruz than they do right now. The longer the Reds wait to trade him, the smaller the return gets.

There are only a handful of teams who'd be willing to give up what it's going to take to trade for De La Cruz, and the Los Angeles Dodgers are at the top of the list. Not only does LA have the prospect capital to make this type of blockbuster deal work, but they also have the financial resources to re-sign De La Cruz to a long-term contract once he reaches free agency.

So (deep breath, Reds fans), what might a Reds-Dodgers trade centered around De La Cruz look like? Let's dig in and see if we can't come up with something that's at least palatable.

The Dodgers would have to include Josue De Paula in a trade for Elly De La Cruz, right?

Now, everyone is going to be clamoring for Josue De Paula to be the centerpiece of any trade for De La Cruz. We get it, and there's no reason to believe the Reds wouldn't at least ask for De Paula as part of the return.

But, such an ask won't be well received by Los Angeles who see De Paula a cornerstone moving forward. Some Reds fans will chime in and say, "That's the point." But De Paula is not without his flaws. He's limited defensively, and his long-term fit could actually be as a designated hitter.

Furthermore, De Paula is MLB-ready now and a top-5 prospect in all of baseball. Adding him to the trade package will reduce the overall return itself. Heck, everyone's favorite replacement for Krall, Joey Votto, suggested a one-for-one swap — De La Cruz for De Paula — wouldn't be too outlandish.

Instead, the Reds should bypass the idea of adding De Paula and grab another one of the Dodgers top outfield prospects, Eduardo Quintero. Like De Paula, Quintero is still just 21 years old. He doesn't chase, and posted a .942 OPS with 44 stolen bases in High-A last season. He's also a lock to stick in center field as a plus-defender; something the Reds haven't had since Billy Hamilton was patrolling the outfield in Great American Ball Park.

If the Reds trade Elly De La Cruz to the Dodgers, it could contain a (sadly) ironic twist

Now, obviously there's more to add, and this next one's going to sting a little. Why? Because he was once part of the Reds' farm system. Yes, we're talking about Mike Sirota. The Reds traded Sirota and a draft pick to the Dodgers in 2025 in exchange for Gavin Lux. Well, now Krall has a chance to right a wrong and bring Sirota back to Cincinnati.

Sirota has 20-20 potential and tore up the minor leagues last season. He has an incredible eye at the plate, as evidenced by his 100 walks and .461 on-base percentage last season. If the Reds are seeking to be more disciplined at the plate moving forward, few young prospects will fit that bill more than Sirota.

But wait, we're still not done. Another top Dodgers prospect (who also could've been part of the Reds organization) would be part of this deal too. Davalan was selected with the Comp Pick Cincinnati traded to Los Angeles in the Lux deal, and he hit .292/.402/.535 with 24 home runs and 72 RBI in the minor leagues this season.

Davalan brings that defensive versatility that fans in Cincinnati love. A second baseman by trade, Davalan has spent much of his professional career in the outfield. But the Dodgers recently shifted him back to the infield dirt during his time in the Arizona Fall League.

We've basically just assembled the Reds' outfield of the future with this mock trade, but Cincinnati would need one more addition — perhaps on the pitching side — to make this deal actually work.

Christian Zazueta was traded from the New York Yankees to the Dodgers in 2024. He struggled during his first year stateside, but since 2025, he's been lights out in LA's minor league system. This past year, he covered 103⅔ innings and posted a 3.65 ERA with 144 punch outs. At worst, Zazueta projects as a back-of-the-rotation starter.

That's it, Reds fans. That's our best effort to get some sort of meaningful return for De La Cruz. This package contains two top-20 prospects, and all four are among the top-100 according to MLB Pipeline.

This is obviously the type of deal that would take any thought of competing in 2027 off the table, but with the impending lockout and current state of the Reds roster, there might not be a better time to hit the reset button.

The Reds could then conceivably head into 2028 with a starting lineup of Quintero, Sirota, Davalan, Sal Stewart, Edwin Arroyo, and Alfredo Duno — all of whom would be pre-arbitration eligible.

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