If Jose Barrero lands on the Injured List, look for this Reds player to take his place

Jose Barrero got his first start of the season in center field. Normally holding down things at shortstop, this was the 24-year-old's first start in the outfield since September of 2021.

Unfortunately, after getting his first hit of the season, Barrero exited the game with hamstring tightness. David Bell, per C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic, said that removing Barrero from the game was just precautionary, but hamstring injuries can oftentimes linger.

Should Barrero land on the Injured List it would present quite the quandary. With three catchers on the 26-man roster, the Reds can ill-afford to be down a man for a game or two before placing said player on the IL.

Reds OF Michael Siani could replace Jose Barrero.

If Jose Barrero lands on the IL, look for outfielder Michael Siani to take his place. Now, this is far from ideal as Siani is an outfielder and Barrero is primarily an infielder. But the Cincinnati Reds don't have a lot of wiggle room when it comes to how their 40-man roster is currently constructed.

For those wanting to see Elly De La Cruz, keep dreaming. The Reds top prospect is currently on the IL at Triple-A Louisville with a hamstring injury of his own. Fellow shortstop prospect Matt McLain is not yet on the 40-man roster. Cincinnati would have to remove someone from the 40-man roster before selecting McLain's contract.

A pitcher like Bennett Sousa might be considered expendable. But with both Joey Votto and Nick Senzel on the cusp of rejoining the major league club, it's more likely that the Reds would opt to roll with Siani over the short term.

Furthermore, if the Reds were forced to add a player to the 40-man roster, despite McLain's pedigree, it seems unlikely that it would the former first-round pick. Matt Reynolds or Alejo Lopez would be the more candidates at this point in the season.

Hopefully all is well and Jose Barrero is back in the lineup on Tuesday night when the Cincinnati Reds face the Chicago Cubs. According to Rosecrans, had Barrero been playing shortstop, it's likely that he'd have stayed in the game.