Thrifty MLB rankings place Reds' Hunter Greene ahead of MVP and Cy Young finalists

The Cincinnati Reds’ frugality has drawn some critique and eye-rolling this offseason, particularly from fans who see the lack of a big-name signing as the club’s resignation to also-ran status. However, that desire to tighten the belt pushed Cincinnati to pursue a long-term extension with Hunter Greene. According to FOX Sports, that deal ranks as one of the best bargains in all of baseball.

At first, the six-year pact seemed like a gamble. After all, Greene had just one year of big league experience under his belt and had a 5-13 record with a 4.44 ERA. He was a long-term project saddled with a sky-high signing bonus, and he had Tommy John surgery along the way. Still, the Reds offered him the franchise’s most lucrative pre-arbitration contract in history.

Hindsight reveals that the Reds-Hunter Greene contract extension was a shrewd move

Greene’s contract ranks among MVPs and Cy Young winners when it comes to the biggest bang for your buck. Clearly this could be a model for Cincinnati to build around. So what should the Reds do with this information?

First, the Reds need to recognize their limitations. This is a list dominated by the Atlanta Braves, an organization that locked up most of its young core to long-term deals at the beginning of the 2020s (and subsequently won a World Series). Reds general manager Nick Krall is no Alex Anthopoulos, either in personality or in drawing power, and Cincinnati can’t quite compete with the generation of young players who grew up in the Southeast and watched the Braves constantly on TBS.

With these factors in mind, the Reds probably realize they can’t sign the superstars, like Elly De La Cruz, to team-friendly deals. He — and agent Scott Boras — know he’s going to be able to make more in a large market. But that doesn’t mean Cincinnati shouldn’t try to pin down a few of the players in their young core who, like Greene, have the potential to develop into something really special.

Doing this, of course, assumes a certain level of risk. Greene could have flopped. He could have, like the Braves’ Ronald Acuña Jr. and Spencer Strider, spent significant time on the injured list. He could have (and could still) hit a bumpy patch like Luis Robert Jr. did in 2024.

Even considering these risks, the Reds are flush high-floor players that could bite at an extension, giving room for Cincinnati to pursue more expensive stars as the years roll along.

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