Reds are making painful realization about once-promising draft pick

When the Cincinnati Reds selected Ty Floyd with the 38th overall pick in the 2023 MLB Draft, expectations were high. Though not as talented as his LSU teammate Paul Skenes, Floyd had amassed a solid résumé with the Tigers that year and put together an unforgettable 17-strikeout performance during the College World Series.

But Floyd's time with the Reds has been marred by injuries. He didn't pitch in 2023, and in 2024, he was placed on the full-season injured list. The right-hander finally made his professional debut last season, but was shut down after just eight starts for the Class Low-A Daytona Tortugas.

This year was supposed to be different for Floyd. Though he began his 2026 campaign on the seven-day IL, he was sent on a rehab assignment with the in the Arizona Complex League on May 18, and then joined the Tortugas on May 21.

Unfortunately, Floyd has suffered yet another setback. Unlike Major League Baseball, not all Minor League injury placements aren't always defined, but Floyd was placed on the seven-day IL earlier this week. At this time, his injury status is unclear.

Reds' 2023 draft class is struggling to stay on the field

This latest trip to the IL isn't just a setback for Floyd, but for the Reds' prospect development as a whole. The entire upper-echelon of the 2023 class has either been bitten by the injury bug or traded.

Floyd has just 31 innings pitched as a professional, but the team's 2023 third-round pick Hunter Hollan has even less. The former Arkansas Razorback was taken with the 74th-overall pick that year, and he's tossed just 30⅓ innings since turning pro. Hollan is currently on the 60-day IL with the Tortugas.

Ethan O'Donnell and Sammy Stafura were each traded over the last calendar year. O'Donnell was shipped to Miami Marlins in exchange for Dane Myers, and Stafura was dealt to the Pittsburgh Pirates as part of the return from Gold Glove Award-winning infielder Ke'Bryan Hayes.

So far, the only Reds' draftee from the 2023 class to make his big-league debut has been Rhett Lowder. The right-hander has battled some injuries issues of his own the last two seasons, but Cincinnati hopes to have him back on the bump this weekend in St. Louis.

A small-market club like the Reds must receive meaningful contributions from their draft picks. Not all of them will make their way to Cincinnati, but even if they're to be used as a trade asset, they have to find a way to remain on the field.

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