Reds vacancy after JR House exit could reunite Terry Francona with familiar face

The Cincinnati Reds invited the entire 2025 coaching staff back for next season, but at least one member has already decided to go elsewhere. It was announced on Wednesday that Reds' third base coach J.R. House will be joining the Arizona Diamondbacks' staff in 2026. House served on the Reds' coaching staff for the past seven seasons, but will now be in the dugout for his home-state D-backs.

This obviously creates a vacancy on the Reds' coaching staff, and Terry Francona will now have scour the landscape in order to find House's replacement. Not only did House set up shop in the third base coach's box, but he was also the team's catching coach.

Cincinnati may be able to promote Curt Casali from the front office to take over an on-field role next season as the Reds' catching coach, but the former backstop has no experience as a third base coach; at least professionally.

Former Terry Francona coach Mike Sarbaugh could replace J.R. House as the Reds third base coach

Thankfully, Francona's connections throughout the game of baseball run deep. Though some have mentioned Collin Cowgill as a potential replacement for House at third base, Francona could reach out to his former colleague Mike Sarbaugh who was recently released by the New York Mets.

Sarbaugh was the third base coach for the entirety of Tito's tenure as the Cleveland Guardians manager. A former minor league infielder during the late-1980s and early-1990s, Sarbaugh was a manager inside the Guardians' organization for several years before joining Francona as the team's third base/ infield coach in 2013.

Sarbaugh was not retained by current Cleveland skipper Stephen Vogt, and joined the New York Mets' coaching staff after the 2023 season. Sarbaugh then served as New York's third base coach for two seasons, but neither he nor bench coach John Gibbons will return to Queens next season.

Sarbaugh is essentially a free agent at this moment, and it's a good bet that Francona has already placed a phone call with his longtime associate. It's almost a slam dunk that Sarbaugh is on the Reds' coaching staff in 2026, right?