Jonathan India's post-All-Star lull exposes Reds' regrettable decision

Jonathan India spoke his mind this past week after the Cincinnati Reds parted ways with manager David Bell. The Reds second baseman talked about his frustrations with the team's lack of success and ownership's lack of spending money.

During his interview prior to Tuesday's game against the Cleveland Guardians, India said, "Who knows if I’ll be here next year. Who knows if (Tyler) Stephenson will be here. We’re running out of time. We were the young core. Then, we added Elly and so many guys. They need to make moves. I want to win. Everyone wants to win. That’s the bottom line. We know we can. There are certain things that I think should happen."

Those are pretty powerful words coming from one of the leaders on this Reds team. India's future is certainly cloudy and has been for the past two seasons. Prior to the 2023 MLB trade deadline, India's name was tossed about by a number of insiders as a possible trade candidate. Those rumors intensified this past offseason and carried over into the summer as well.

The Reds should have traded Jonathan India at this year's deadline

India is still part of the Reds organization, but that may not have been the best strategy on the part of Nick Krall and the Cincinnati front office. After watching India's production go into neutral after the All-Star break, the Reds are probably wishing they'd have traded him earlier this season.

With injuries to Christian Encarnacion-Strand, TJ Friedl, and Matt McLain, India's presence was a must during the early-part of the regular season. The Reds were also without Noelvi Marte, and at the time, Santiago Espinal wasn't even hitting his weight.

Prior to the All-Star break, India was Cincinnati's best hitter with a .275/.377/.427 slash line, 21 doubles, eight home runs, and 38 RBI. India was also 8-for-9 on stolen base attempts. But since the Midsummer Classic, the 27-year-old is hitting just .205/.320/.344 with seven doubles, seven round-trippers, 20 RBI, and five stolen bases.

The Jonathan India trade rumors will reemerge once the Reds offseason begins

The Reds will enter the offseason with India signed through next season and arbitration eligible for 2026 as well. With two years of team control remaining, don't be surprised to hear India's name emerge in trade rumors once again. While the Reds' front office held onto the former NL Rookie of the Year last winter, that may not be the case this year.

India's trade value has taken a hit, but there are plenty of teams who'll be looking for a bat like India's to help inject some life into their lineup next season. The Jonathan India trade rumors will return in a few short weeks, but after watching him struggle over the final few weeks of the 2024 season, the Reds are probably wishing they'd made the move already.

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