Cincinnati Reds Could Fill Two Needs With One Trade

The Reds should give the Marlins a call this trade deadline.

Jun 21, 2024; Miami, Florida, USA; Miami Marlins left fielder Bryan De La Cruz (14) reacts after hitting a single against the Seattle Mariners during the ninth inning at loanDepot Park. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports / Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports

The Cincinnati Reds are not that far out of a playoff spot and making a trade could help them close the gap. They could call on an old trade partner in the Miami Marlins to check two boxes with one trade.

The Reds could trade for outfielder Bryan De La Cruz and relief pitcher Tanner Scott.

They desperately need outfield help and can use another good arm in the bullpen. The Marlins have a few players that would fill that need. If the Reds can’t get a deal done with the A’s for outfielder Brent Rooker, they could fill the need with this deal.

De La Cruz has had a solid season of power and has an amazing arm in the corner outfield. He has 15 homers and has an expected-slugging percentage of .477. He doesn’t walk a ton, so his on-base percentage is very dependent on his hitting and some of his defensive statistics are limited by his poor range. Good news is, you don’t need a ton of range at Great American Ballpark.

Scott on the other hand has a pristine ERA, but you must look past that to see why he may be available. His numbers have declined since last year. He sports a walk rate that is in the bottom 2% of the league while his strikeout rate has dropped six points since last year.

While his ability to cause swings and misses has declined a bit, his ability to miss barrels remains elite. No one has a better average exit velocity against them than Scott. He also keeps the ball on the ground just under 52% of the time.

To get the two players, the Reds may have to give up one top prospect an one middle of the road prospect. There may also need to be a project player involved to sweeten the deal.

I could see a package of Sal Stewart, Lyon Richardson, and maybe Austin Hendrick getting this deal done. Different teams have different scouts which lead to different valuations, so this could be very different, but something like this would most likely work.

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