Bleacher Report's wishful trade prediction will give Reds fans false hope

Hindsight is always 20/20, right? While there are a number of front office executives throughout Major League Baseball who would undoubtedly love to wave a magic wand and make some of their biggest blunders disappear, this is reality, not fantasy land.

Bleacher Report recently published an article titled 1 Trade Every MLB Team Wishes It Could Make and in it, the outlet suggested that the Cincinnati Reds dream of a scenario in which they could trade Jeimer Candelario this offseason. In case you're one of those Reds fans who desire the same thing, I'm here to tell you, that's not going to happen.

Candelario inked a three-year, $45 million contract this offseason. While the former Washington Nationals infielder had a productive season in 2023, that price tag seemed a little steep. Based on his production during his first year in Cincinnati, that's more than a fair assessment.

The Reds are not trading Jeimer Candelario this offseason

Candelario, outside of the month of June, has been wildly disappointing this season. Currently on the injured list and unlikely to return this season, Candelario hit just .225/.279/.429 with 20 home runs and 56 RBI. That type of production is nowhere close to being worth $15 million per season.

Not only was Candelario's offensive production awful, his defense was just as bad. Typically seen as a third baseman, the 30-year-old also received a number of starts at first base. According to Baseball Savant, Candelario is worth -9 outs above average (OAA) this season, which ranks among the bottom of the league. In fact, none of Candelario's advanced metrics were very impressive this season.

The addition of Candelario this past offseason was puzzling. Not so much because of the money doled out to bring the infielder to Cincinnati, but given the fact that the Reds' infield was already so crowded, adding Candelario to the mix made little sense. The Reds had already dismissed Joey Votto and were shopping fellow infielder Jonathan India. However, Matt McLain's injury and Noelvi Marte's suspension made the addition of Candelario more palatable.

It's more than reasonable to understand why Bleacher Report, and the Reds fanbase, believe that trading Candelario this offseason would be a tremendous option. But no team is going to trade for Candelario given how poorly he's played this season. If the veteran rebounds in 2025, perhaps the Reds could shed the remaining $15 million heading into the 2026 season. But don't count on it.

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