2 highly-touted prospects the Reds should give up on and 1 who deserves another chance

Cincinnati Reds outfielder Rece Hinds
Cincinnati Reds outfielder Rece Hinds | Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports
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The Cincinnati Reds have seen some of their top prospects ascend to the highest level and find success in the major leagues.

The latest examples are Spencer Steer and Matt McLain. Both rookies have performed admirably so far in 2023, and the duo look to be building blocks for the long-term future of the franchise.

But not every prospect is a success story. Baseball is a difficult game, and not every highly-touted minor league player makes it to The Show. Which two Reds prospects should the organzation move on from and which one deserves another chance to find his footing?

Reds prospects: It's time to give up on former 3rd-round pick Tyler Callihan.

Tyler Callihan has been dealt a difficult hand since joining the Cincinnati Reds organization as a high school infielder during the 2019 MLB Draft. Taken in the third-round, Callihan was supposed to be a hit-first prospect with developing gap-to-gap power.

But 2022 was the first real season that Callihan was able to play in more than 52 games. The cancellation of the 2020 minor league season and Tommy John surgery saw Callihan play in just 80 games from 2019-2021. During that span, Callihan hit .273 with an OPS of .754 and a wRC+ of 103 according to FanGraphs.

Last season, upon his return from the IL, appeared in 88 games while hitting .250/.311/.396 with a wRC+ of 98 and 30 extra-base hits. But so far this season, Callihan is hitting .204/.282/.376 with 16 extra-base hits at Double-A.

This is it for Tyler Callihan. Heading into the offseason, the Reds will have to make a decision whether to add him to the 40-man roster or make him available in the Rule 5 Draft. Callihan is limited defensively, and if fans are already worried about where Jonathan India is going to play in the future, there's little hope the 22-year-old has a spot on the Reds roster in the near future.

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