Reds' rival just made room for Garrett Hampson by cutting former top prospect

The St. Louis Cardinals' latest roster move couldn't be a clearer sign that they'll be looking to sell at the upcoming MLB trade deadline. The Cardinals just claimed Garrett Hampson off waivers from the Cincinnati Reds, and in order to clear a spot on the roster, designated former top-100 prospect Jose Barrero for assignment. This is essentially ex-Reds on ex-Reds crime, isn't it?

Hampson was cut loose by the Reds last week after the team needed to make room on the roster for Rece Hinds and Yosver Zulueta. Rather than clinging tightly to the veteran utility player, Cincinnati decided it was better to just cut their losses and send Hampson into the ether. One has to assume, however, that Cincinnati was surprised another team actually submitted a claim after Hampson went just 3-for-18 in nine games with the Reds this season.

The Cardinals did the Reds a favor by claiming the 30-year-old. Now, whatever amount of money was remaining on the Major League contract Hampson signed back May will be removed from the Reds' payroll and has now been shifted to the Cardinals' books.

The Cardinals just made room for Garrett Hampson by cutting former Reds prospect Jose Barrero

To be fair to the Cardinals, it's not as though Barrero has been any better than Hampson this season. Barrero, 27, is 4-for-29 on the season with a home run and three RBI. His .469 OPS is hardly worthy of a 40-man roster spot, and it's quite likely that every other team throughout Major League Baseball will pass on the opportunity to pluck him off waivers.

Barrero was once thought to be the Reds' shortstop of the future — a future that sadly never materialized. Instead, the former top prospect fell on his face time after time, and the Reds finally cut bait last spring and released Barrero prior to the start of the season. The shortstop, who's also seen time in center field, latched on with the Texas Rangers' minor-league club, but a season-ending injury derailed his chances of getting back to the big leagues.

For his career, Barrero owns a .182/.238/.257 slash line with a 34 OPS+. It remains to be seen what's next for Barrero, but Reds fans are quite content with their current situation at shortstop. After Barrero was pushed aside in 2023, the Reds turned to Elly De La Cruz, who's well on his way to his second All-Star campaign.

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