There’s only one logical reason the Reds are keeping Nick Krall and it’s hard to defend

It sounds as if Cincinnati Reds president of baseball operations Nick Krall will return next year. Though the official word has not been given, Krall spoke with the media over the weekend and sounded pretty confident about his future as the head of baseball operations in Cincinnati.

Obviously this news was met with a lot of angst from the Reds' fanbase, and deservedly so. The team has grossly underperformed this season, and after watching Cincinnati make just one playoff appearance during Krall's tenure at the top, Reds fans have lost confidence in his ability to put a championship-caliber roster together.

Though it's difficult to wade through the litany of angry and profane comments online, one specific question has emerged in wake of the news that Krall is likely to return in 2027. Why? With so many good, young baseball minds who've worked alongside winning small-market organizations, why are the Reds sticking with the same blueprint that's yielded mediocre results?

Why are the Reds sticking with Nick Krall?

The answer is actually rather simple, but also discouraging. It's quite likely that the impending MLB lockout helped make the Reds' decision for them. In other words, rather than blow it all up with a little more than two months remaining to put it back together, Cincinnati made the prudent (yet unpopular) choice to maintain the status quo.

The MLB owners are expected to lockout the players when the current collective bargaining agreement expires on December 1. That means that any and all baseball business will cease on that date, and there'll be no communication between the organizations and the players until a new CBA is negotiated.

From the Reds' perspective, a new GM search could easily take the organization into late-October or even November. That's hardly enough time for a new top executive to evaluate the Reds' roster, assess the coaching staff, make new hires, implement necessary transactions, and any number of other items on the agenda before the lockout on December 1.

Now, of course, once the lockout is lifted — a date that's indeterminable — business will then resume. But if Cincinnati fires Krall (and presumably the rest of the front office staff), the new regime would be behind the eight ball.

A large number of transactions are expected to take place before the lockout is implemented, meaning that any roster moves that happen after the lockout are expected to have minimal impact. Seeing as how the Reds roster is in need of a major overhaul if they hope to compete in 2027, having Krall at the helm might put Cincinnati in the best spot to make some impactful moves this winter.

Still, this news has been met with tons of criticism. Reds fans have reached their breaking point, and the hope of a new head of baseball operations would've given the Cincinnati faithful some measure of hope heading into the offseason. Instead, it appears their hopes have been dashed, and the only plausible reason Krall is back won't make the fanbase feel any better.

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