The Cincinnati Reds have had a very questionable start to their offseason, losing starting pitcher Wade Miley on waivers to the Chicago Cubs, as well as trading star starting pitcher Sonny Gray to the Minnesota Twins in return for two prospects.
Both moves were seemingly salary-saving moves, but from a pure baseball perspective, they were very perplexing decisions by the Reds front office.
Monday brought an equally shocking move by the Reds, as they decided to trade All-Star outfielder Jesse Winker (seen above last July) and Eugenio Suarez to the Seattle Mariners in return for Justin Dunn, Brandon Williamson, and Jake Fraley.
This trade was met with a ton of reactions from the MLB world, with most questioning the decision-making of the Reds.
I want to throw up. #Reds @Reds https://t.co/YOz2l7YZQA
— John Martin (@EVLIVjohnmartin) March 14, 2022
This is an absolutely disgusting look for the Reds and MLB. https://t.co/VTcrKinCmL
— MLB Nerds (@MLBNerds) March 14, 2022
y'all Williamson is really good but also this is a no-brainer, especially if they can still add another hitter in free agency. I'm ecstatic wow https://t.co/3FekZs1ZtU
— Céspedes Family BBQ (@CespedesBBQ) March 14, 2022
The Cincinnati Reds are a disaster. https://t.co/vkG8PeZDqa
— Chad Dotson (@dotsonc) March 14, 2022
Fleeced. Well done, Jerry. https://t.co/syI7tf2sKH
— Ryan M. Spaeder (@theaceofspaeder) March 14, 2022
Williamson is the seventh-ranked prospect in the Mariners organization according to MLB.com, so it isn’t all bad for the Reds. But on paper, that return doesn’t seem to be nearly enough for someone of Winker’s caliber.
Winker had a great year for the Reds last season, putting up a career-high 24 home runs on the season with an exceptional .305 batting average and .394 on-base percentage.
The Reds seemingly made this trade to get rid of Suarez’s contract, which will save them over $35 million in salary.
Nick Krall had said he wouldn't repeat the team's mistake of discarding prospects to get rid of payroll (Downs and Gray to Dodgers). Instead, they move Winker to get rid of the $35 owed to Suárez
— C. Trent Rosecrans (@ctrent) March 14, 2022
Regardless, giving up a great player to get rid of what you think is a bad contract is a head-scratching move.
Suarez struggled mightily last season, but he has shown that he can be a very productive player before, making an All-Star appearance in 2018.
If the Mariners can revive Suarez’s career along with the production they should see from Winker next season, this could go down as an all-time fleecing for the Mariners. And that might bring them to the postseason for the first time since 2001.
