The NL Central features a talented club taking a step back (Cubs), a division-winning club mostly standing pat (Cardinals), a playoff club turning over half the roster for less-expensive options (Brewers), and a club about to rebuild (Pirates).
Oh, and then there’s the 5th club, the Reds, aggressively making additions to try to compete at the top in 2020. In addition to being attached to a wide range of rumors, and having added pieces last year with this season in mind, the Reds have already signed Mike Moustakas and Wade Miley this offseason.
And now they are trying to go even bigger:
The Reds are the latest team to engage with the Indians about a potential Francisco Lindor trade, per source. It’s unclear if there’s any traction, but Reds have been aggressive on trade market before (Bauer, Puig) and have attractive trade chips (Senzel, India among them).
— Mark Feinsand (@Feinsand) December 19, 2019
I’ve gotta say, this makes perfect sense for the Reds. They have a pretty clear ability to improve at shortstop. They’ve got the farm system to get a deal done. They will want to max out the next couple years when they’ll get the best they can from guys like Joey Votto, Eugenio Suarez, and Moustakas, and they’ve also got most of their rotation in place for those two years, too. And Lindor would be an enormous boost to them for those two years.
If you’re a Cubs fans or other NL Central fan, this rumor is the kind that should make you nervous, because it is absolutely sensible and plausible. And obviously because Lindor is a transformative talent that would singlehandedly turn the Reds from “on-paper maybe contending” to “on-paper NL Central favorite.” Further, adding Lindor would probably push the Reds to push even harder at the margins of the roster, and at the Trade Deadline.
Having already worked together on the Trevor Bauer trade, the Reds and Indians likely know each others’ positions/systems reasonably well, which, as we’ve seen with the Cubs and Rangers, can help facilitate future trades. That doesn’t hurt here, when putting a trade of this scale together can otherwise be a very challenging thing.
In other words, this is a report that strikes me as more legit than just about the Indians trying to push some other trade partner around, or the Reds trying to put pressure on some free agent.
The Indians have signaled that they prefer to keep Lindor to open the 2020 season and see where things stand for them at the deadline, but if the Reds go ape nuts to put together an over-the-top trade package right now? It might be the best time for the Indians to pull the trigger, as scary as that is.