Is Reds pitcher Jeff Hoffman at risk of being non-tendered?

The Cincinnati Reds have some very interesting decisions to make in the coming days. While the deadline to protect players from the Rule 5 Draft is less than 48 hours, Friday is the deadline for teams to decide whether or not to tender contracts to players who are eligible for arbitration.

While Luis Cessa, Tejay Antone, and Justin Dunn are all bu guaranteed to be tendered contract heading into next season, the picture is not as clear for a handful of other players on the roster.

Kyle Farmer's predicted salary and Nick Senzel's underwhelming performance may well see them jettisoned from the Reds 40-man roster. But what about reliever Jeff Hoffman?

Is Reds pitcher Jeff Hoffman at risk of being non-tendered?

Jeff Hoffman came to the Cincinnati Reds organization in 2021 from the Colorado Rockies. The right-hander was part of a deal that sent from first-round pick Robert Stephenson to the Mile High City.

Hoffman actually began his Reds career as a starter, but after several poor outings and an injury, the right-hander was moved to Cincinnati's bullpen midway through the 2021 season. The transition probably helped Hoffman hang on to his roster spot, as the splits revealed a much more productive version of the former first-round draft pick after making the switch to the bullpen.

This past season, in 35 appearances out of the Reds pen, Hoffman owned a 3.83 ERA and recorded 45 punch outs in 44.2 innings of work. Hoffman's season ended prematurely, however, and the 29-year-old was placed on the 10-day IL with an elbow injury in July. Hoffman was transferred to the 60-day IL in September when it became apparent that a return to the roster was unlikely.

By all accounts, most Reds fans probably assume that Jeff Hoffman will be back in a Cincinnati uniform next season. After all, the right-hander has had success since shifting his focus to the bullpen, and ranked as one of the best pitchers in terms of fastball spin according to Baseball Savant.

Jeff Hoffman's health may become the primary reason that he's non-tendered at the upcoming deadline. If it's likely that Hoffman will bounce back and arrive to Goodyear in tip-top shape, then the right-hander probably has nothing to worry about.

However, as we've already seen with Art Warren, these elbow injuries can become problematic very quickly, and if Hoffman's health is in question, the Reds may decide to part company in order to open up his roster spot for another young player.