Terry Francona’s big gamble leaves Reds fans furious (but Nick Krall's to blame too)

Cincinnati Reds manager Terry Francona drew the ire of the fanbase following Monday's loss to the Philadelphia Phillies. With his team leading 1-0 in the eighth inning, Francona refused to remove starter Andrew Abbott despite the lefty allowing back-to-back hits and sitting on north of 90 pitches. The decision not to go to the bullpen may have cost the Reds the lead and game.

A double by Weston Wilson knotted the game at 1-1, but rather than bringing in a reliever to face the always-dangerous Trea Turner, Francona stuck with Abbott. The Phillies' shortstop laced an RBI single into left field to put the Phillies up 2-1. Abbott was replaced by Tony Santillan who promptly gave up a two-run bomb to Kyle Schwarber, and Cincinnati trailed 4-1 heading into the bottom of the eighth.

Failing to turn to Santillan against Turner may have been Francona's biggest blunder since handing the ball over to Ian Gibaut on Opening Day. And while Reds fans are furious with Francona's decision-making during the eighth inning — and they should be — there should be just as much outrage directed at president of baseball operations Nick Krall. Why? Because he failed to acquire any meaningful additions at the trade deadline that would help give this Reds' lineup a boost.

Terry Francona’s big gamble leaves Reds fans furious (but Nick Krall's to blame too)

The Reds, who play in one of the most homer-friendly ballparks in the league, rank 21st in round-trippers this season. The last time Cincinnati was making a postseason push (2023), they ranked 14th in home runs. The Reds are in the bottom-third of the league in both slugging and OPS. But rather than going after a big-bat at the July 31 trade deadline, Krall decided to snag a glove-first third baseman and right-handed hitting platoon bat.

The additions of Ke'Bryan Hayes and Miguel Andujar are not necessarily bad pickups, but neither player addressed Cincinnati's biggest shortcoming at the trade deadline. The Reds' offense has been sluggish since the All-Star break, and things have been bad especially since the July 31 deadline passed. If you removed Sunday's 14-run outburst, the Reds have averaged 1.9 runs per game this month.

Hindsight is always 20/20, and knowing what he knows now, Francona would've lifted Abbott after he gave up a two-out single in the top of the eighth inning. But if the Reds hope to make a run at the playoffs, the lineup has to score more than just one or two runs per game.

Though the trade deadline is now in the rearview mirror, Krall does have an opportunity to give this lineup a boost. Both Sal Stewart and Hectór Rodríguez are mashing down at Triple-A, and it may be time to see if those two 21-year-old prospects can uplift Cincinnati's offense over the final six weeks of the 2025 season.

More Cincinnati Reds News and Rumors