Reds could squelch the Hunter Greene trade rumors by following the Rangers' example

Just when the Cincinnati Reds fanbase thought it was safe to come out, the Hunter Greene trade speculation has returned. Last week it was revealed that the New York Yankees have widespread interest in the Reds ace, showing once again that president of baseball operations Nick Krall and the front office have done a terrible job of quelling these rumors.

It's difficult to separate actual trade conversations from here-say and conjecture, but the fact remains that Greene's name has been floated about early and often since the offseason began. Krall and even manager Terry Francona have maintained that Greene is a valuable member of their rotation and that it would be difficult to replace him, but neither one has explicitly said, "We're not trading Hunter Greene."

Down in Arlington, however, Texas Rangers president of baseball operations Chris Young has done just that. During a recent appearance on MLB Network Radio, the Rangers' top decision-maker made his organization's intentions clear — they have no plans to trade shortstop Corey Seager this offseason.

Reds Rumors: Cincy could squelch Hunter Greene trade talk with one simple statement

"We are not shopping Corey Seager," Young said. "We want Corey Seager to help us win our next championship. But we call and check in on other teams with great players as well. So teams are doing their job, I get it. It got out in the media from another market and I think it got a little more momentum than it deserved, but we are not shopping Corey Seager. I want to make that very clear."

The Reds need to reach out to Young and his staff to see which PR firm they used to train their employees, because Cincinnati's brass could use a lesson in how to put out these types of fires.

There is, of course, the other end of the spectrum, and it's the one that Reds fans don't want to think about. Perhaps there is some truth to these Reds rumors and Greene really is being dangled out there for the highest bidder.

There's little doubt that the Reds fireballer could fetch a huge return if traded this offseason, and Krall may be leaving the door open for another organization to blow the front office away with an offer they can't refuse. While most experts and pundits don't expect Greene to be moved this offseason, the more fans hear these rumors, the more skeptical they become.