3 young Reds players teams could buy low on during trade talks

2. Alejo Lopez, Reds infielder

Alejo Lopez forced his way onto the Cincinnati Reds roster last season. After annihilating Double-A pitching during his 25 games for the Chattanooga Lookouts, Lopez was quickly promoted to Triple-A Louisville where he continued to shine.

Lopez is a versatile fielder with an aggressive approach at the dish. That said, he did not strikeout a ton during his time in the minor leagues last season. Lopez hit .320 in 96 between Double-A Chattanooga and Triple-A Louisville last season while posting an 11% walk-rate and 7.8% strikeout-rate. The bottomline was, Lopez was putting the ball in play.

Lopez could be kept in minors no longer and made his major league debut on June 28th as a pinch hitter against the Philadelphia Phillies. Lopez promptly wasted no time, and, on the first pitch he saw, laced a base hit into the outfield.

So, why might the Cincinnati Reds look to move on from Alejo Lopez? Because the 25-year-old represents a redundancy that the team could do without. With Jose Barrero, at the very least, likely to platoon at shortstop with Kyle Farmer, Lopez's opportunities will be limited.

If Barrero becomes, as I believe he will, the Reds starting shortstop, then Lopez will be playing behind both Farmer and the left-handed hitting Max Schrock. The Reds also have Brian Rey likely to make his 2022 debut at Triple-A Louisville. Rey enjoyed a meteoric rise similar to Lopez in 2021, dominating opposing pitchers at both High-A Dayton and Double-A Chattanooga.

With NL Rookie of the Year Jonathan India firmly entrenched at second base, and the high-priced Eugenio Suárez playing the hot corner, it may be hard for Alejo Lopez to find playing time in the bigs next season.