Surprising news: The Cincinnati Reds trade their most talented player to another weak baseball team.

Surprising news: The Cincinnati Reds trade their most talented player to another weak baseball team.

Remarkable news: The Cincinnati Reds trade their best player to a rival underperforming team.
Can the Reds maintain their current level of performance? That is the question, is it not? May 23 saw Cincinnati’s MLB squad at 20-28. Leading the National League Central by one game over the Milwaukee Brewers, it had gone 27-11 since then.

Actually, among the most thrilling offensive teams in baseball are the Reds. Elly De La Cruz (21), Matt McLain (23), Spencer Steer (25), Jonathan India (26), and Tyler Stephenson (26) are among their outstanding young players.

That pitching, though. The Reds’ ERA was 4.94, good for 27th in the Major League after Tuesday’s play. Starting pitchers for them ranked 28th at 5.71. Worse were just 24-63 Oakland (6.23) and 33-54 Colorado (6.55).

The question is, should Reds General Manager Nick Krall trade for a starting pitcher or two before the August 1 deadline as we approach the All-Star break next week? Is Krall better off keeping quiet and defending the organization’s robust farming infrastructure?

In a recent Substack piece, retired Cincinnati Enquirer sports columnist Paul Daugherty voted.

It is now, Daugherty wrote. The future is always now in sports. Had Tom Hanks played a general manager rather than a manager of a professional women’s baseball team, he would have responded, “Waiting?” In baseball, there is never any waiting.

Daugherty used former Reds GM Jim Bowden, a writer for The Athletic, to support his position.

Nick Krall is a strong candidate for MLB Executive of the Year, Bowden said. “Krall ought to deal for two seasoned starting pitchers who can throw five or six good innings per start. That was the tactic I employed in 1995 when I traded for Dave Burba, Mark Portugal, and David Wells with the Reds.

The Braves swept the NL Championship Series that the 1995 Reds made it to. The Reds finished 81-81, 76-86, and 77-85 during the following three seasons. Bowden had not qualified for the playoffs again by 2003, and he was unemployed.

Help may come in from young pitchers on the injured list who are hoping to return in August.

Nick Lodolo last made a pitch on May 7. In his 19 starts as a rookie the previous season, the 25-year-old former first-round selection had a 3.66 ERA. Prior to his left tibia stress response, he was 2-1 with a 6.29 ERA this season. He is in Arizona for treatment.

It has been since June 17 since Hunter Greene pitched. Prior to his hip issue, the 23-year-old fireball and former No. 2 overall draft pick had a 3.93 ERA and was 2-4. He is in Arizona for treatment.

Graham Ashcroft, 25, is back after his time in Illinois. Last season, the right-hander had a 3.97 ERA through August before running out of gas. This season he has a 6.66 ERA and is 3-6, although in his most recent start he gave up just one run in 6.2 innings.

Thank heavens Andrew Abbott is here. Ever since his promotion to the big club on June 5, the 24-year-old left-hander and former second-round pick has been outstanding. With a stunning 1.21 ERA through six outings, the former Virginia star is 4-0. 43 batters have been struck out by him in 37.1 innings.

Repeat: Greene is twenty-three. Abbott is 24 years old. Ashcraft is twenty-five, and Lodolo is too. Years to come hold the prospect of an outstanding starting rotation.

Several other potent young batters are also waiting to be called up to Cincinnati by the Reds. Christian Encarnacion-Strand, 23, is the most notable of them; he was traded to the Twins with Steer last season. Encarnacion-Strand is batting at Louisville, Triple-A.323 runs scored and 54 RBI.

And the NL Central this year is quite weak. The brewers are passably good. The Pirates have tanked after a promising start. The Cubs are 39-45, even though they have the best run differential in the division (plus-23). We hardly know these Cardinals in last position.

It would be wrong of the Reds to refuse assistance. A rent-a-starter for the balance of the 2023 campaign would be great. At a fair price. Krall shouldn’t risk his brilliant future for a shot at greatness this season.