The Cincinnati Reds have a lot of big league pitching, but not a lot of big league hitting. Cincinnati is led by the trio of Hunter Greene, Nick Lodolo, and Brady Singer at the top of its pitching staff. Andrew Abbott and Nick Martinez follow up this trio.
The Reds also have pitchers like Carson Spiers, Chase Petty, and Chase Burns knocking on the door of the big leagues. Rhett Lowder is set to return from injury in the near future, too.
With all this in mind, it wouldn’t be shocking to see the Reds trade away the only expiring contract out of this starting pitching room: Martinez.
ESPN’s David Schoenfield recently predicted the Reds would trade away Martinez this season.
“Martinez is a useful swingman, but he’s making $21 million, so that’s about $7 million for two months, a steep price for a pitcher who isn’t a lock for a playoff rotation,” Schoenfield wrote.
The perfect trade suitor for Martinez is the Los Angeles Dodgers, and they have plenty of prospect capital to land the righty.
The Dodgers’ starting rotation is loaded with talent, but they’re dealing with a lot of injuries again this season. Los Angeles could use a reliable righty like Martinez, especially since he could double as a bullpen arm down the stretch.
In return, the Reds could land an impact outfield prospect like James Outman or Dalton Rushing. Landing either of these two outfielders would be a huge win for Cincinnati, considering the lack of big league talent it has in the outfield.
