Santiago Espinal's ascension is reminiscent of this former Reds fan-favorite

Santiago Espinal has been a ray of light in an otherwise dim season of Cincinnati Reds baseball. The club swung a trade for the former Toronto Blue Jays All-Star just before the start of the regular season after learning the extent of Matt McLain's injured shoulder.

The Reds needed a backup shortstop, and were happy to deal a minor league pitcher to the Blue Jays in order to acquire Espinal's services for the 2024 season. After a rough start, Espinal has been everything Cincinnati could have hoped for, and more. The 29-year-old is hitting .366/.411/.550 since July 1st and has played all over the diamond.

Espinal is, in a word, a ballplayer. Strangely enough, Espinal's versatility and gritty, hard-nosed attitude are eerily similar to that of former Reds utility player Kyle Farmer. Espinal may well be on his way matching the former Reds fan-favorite's role with Cincinnati.

Santiago Espinal's ascension is reminiscent of former Reds fan-favorite Kyle Farmer

While Reds fans have marveled at the superstar talents of Elly De La Cruz this season, the Cincinnati faithful always have a soft spot for the blue collar-type of player that shows up every day and plays the game the right way. Farmer fit that mold, as did former All-Star Scooter Gennett, and, of course, Pete Rose.

Espinal's game, and even his route to Cincinnati matchup well with Farmer. The current Twins infielder came to Cincinnati by way of an offseason trade with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2018. Farmer was basically a throw-in as part of trade package that included Yasiel Puig, Matt Kemp, and Alex Wood.

But as it turned out, Farmer became the longest-tenured Red from that deal and became a fan-favorite in Cincinnati. Farmer was a utility player who eventually supplanted the Reds highly-touted prospect Jose Barrero at shortstop. Espinal has all but pushed Noelvi Marte off third base with less than a month to play in 2024, and could be in line to be part of the Reds Opening Day roster in 2025.

Espinal is under team-control for two more seasons, and is, at worst, a terrific option as the Reds primary utility player in 2025. Look for Espinal to maintain a key role with the Reds heading into next season and act as a bridge to several of the young prospect currently in the Cincinnati farm system — much like Farmer did in 2022. Cincinnati traded Farmer after that season, which paved the way for future their future star shortstop; Elly De La Cruz.

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