Predicting 3 roster moves Reds will make before 2024 spring training

Reds permanently move Jose Barrero to the outfield

While you can never have enough pitching, the Cincinnati Reds are proving that you can certainly have enough infielders. With the Reds' reluctance to trade Jonathan India this offseason, plus the addition of Jeimer Candelario, Cincinnati has more quality infielders than almost any other major league team.

But Jose Barrero no longer qualifies as a quality option. With Elly De La Cruz the likely starting shortstop, along with the likes of Matt McLain and Noelvi Marte on the 40-man roster, a lot of things would have to go awry in order for Barrero to find himself lined up on the infield dirt. In fact, non-roster invitee Erik Gonzalez probably has a better chance of breaking into the mix than Barrero.

But that doesn't mean that Cincinnati should be so quick to dismiss Barrero. While he's done nothing to maintain his spot on the 40-man roster, the Reds have yet to trade Barrero or designate him for assignment. This would seem to suggest that the 25-year-old is getting one last shot to prove that he belongs on a big league roster.

If that's that line thinking for Nick Krall and David Bell, then Barrero needs to be permanently moved to the outfield. While he was given some reps there last season, once Barrero was demoted back to the minors, he played almost exclusively at shortstop. Why? That's a great question that someone should've asked last season when it was painfully obvious that his future in Cincinnati wasn't going to be at shortstop.

The Reds infield is full - overflowing, in fact. There's no room for Jose Barrero. But, if the team is dead-set on giving him another opportunity, it needs to be in the outfield. Barrero possesses the raw tools to make the transition defensively, but it's his bat that will ultimately decide whether or not he breaks camp with the Reds.