Do the Reds need a lefty-masher? Yes, and they need a righty-masher

How can they get both into the 2025 outfield mix?

89 is a number objectively larger than 84. On that we can almost certainly agree, especially when it comes to wRC+ - Weighted Runs Created Plus, a metric that judges Runs Created by hitters in the context of home ballpark, era, and is adjusted to league average.

The number 27 is simply the number 27, though, particularly when 27th is the rank in a category among Major League Baseball’s 30 clubs. During the 2024 regular season, the Cincinnati Reds ranked 27th in wRC+ against both left-handed pitching (84) and against right-handed pitching (89). In other words, they hit slightly better against RHP than against LHP relative to league average, but still ranked as the fourth-worst club in both categories when judged relative to their peer performance.

As the Reds begin their search for upgrades offensively - and particularly in the outfield - it seems they’ve got some soul searching to do to figure out which aspect is the most upgradeable from within, and which will require some outside intervention.

Take Will Benson and Jake Fraley, for instance. The Reds depended upon that duo for 317 and 326 PA against RHP during the 2024 season, respectively, hoping the pair of lefty-swinging hitters could perform well enough to carry their side of platoons. That didn’t really pan out, though - Fraley’s 102 wRC+ against RHP was just barely above league-average (and the best among the outfielders) while Benson’s 81 mark slipped to a barely playable level. Meanwhile, righty-swinging Spencer Steer posted just an 88 wRC+ against LHP in 172 PA against southpaws last year, our 12% worse than league average.

Do the Reds have a righty-masher and lefty-masher among that trio even though none of them did so in 2024?

Can Steer, who owned LHP to the tune of a 142 wRC+ during the 2023 season, cement his status as a middle-of-the-order option against southpaws again? While Benson’s overall .391 BABIP in 2023 looks completely unsustainable, can he at least provide a modicum of the 146 wRC+ he put up against righties that year? Will Fraley, a career 113 wRC+ bat against RHP, have the chance to perform better in 2025 if he isn’t facing the brutall off-the-field issues he had to support in 2024?

Those are the first tough decisions Cincinnati’s front office must make. As a team that insists on competing on shoestring budgets, you can’t truly expect the Reds to pay for redundancy. And since the cheaper option to upgrading a position is getting more out of what you’re already paying for, you can rest assured they’re already considering this option.

The rub with Steer is that the club has also already moved on from Jonathan India, whose 126 wRC+ against LHP last year was the best on the club. With the infield mix thinned (particularly when trying to field a formidable lineup vs LHP), would Steer’s versatility make him a better option on the infield in said scenario? In that case, even betting on a Steer rebound vs LHP would require an addition to the outfield options vs southpaws.

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The Reds will carry 13 position players as part of their 26-man active roster, per the rules of the game. Given the current nature of the roster, I’d say 8 players have their roles already ‘established,’ barring injury:

Tyler Stephenson (C), Jeimer Candelario (IF), Elly De La Cruz (IF), Matt McLain (IF), Christian Encarnacion-Strand (IF), Santiago Espinal (IF), TJ Friedl (OF), Spencer Steer (IF/OF)

There will be a backup catcher added (9). Stuart Fairchild currently resides as the 5th OF, defensive replacement, speedy pinch-runner, and part-time lefty-masher, and the Reds will have to decide if they want to pay the price to upgrade from him, or not (10). Fraley (11) and Benson (12) would help round-out the LHH portion of the outfield if the team doesn’t spend to upgrade elsewhere, while the enigma that is Noelvi Marte (13) would probably, right now, get another shot on the active roster if the roster was frozen as-is right now.

Marte and Benson have options, however, and a team that’s hell-bent on making a postseason appearance in 2025 would almost certainly pencil at least one of them in to begin the season in AAA based on their 2024 performances. That means on outfield spot is clearly on the docket for an outside addition, while a bat who could conceivably play 1B and a corner OF spot - perhaps a left-handed complement to Steer - seemingly makes a ton of sense, too.

Jurickson Profar ticks a lot of those boxes, even if his recent infield playing time hasn’t exactly been plentiful. He got a pair of starts at 1B last year despite a crowded San Diego infield mix, but has over 450 career starts across all infield spots. On top of that, he’s a switch-hitter who posted respectible lines against both RHP (.823 OPS) and LHP (.885 OPS) just last year.

Profar’s versatility both with the glove and with the bat is a rare bird in this offseason’s shopping cart. IF/OF options get thin, quick, with the likes of soon-to-be 36 year old Mark Canha just about the only other current free agent who’s capably performed that way in his career. Anthony Santander and Carlos Santana headline the other switch-hitting options on the open market this winter, but the former is looking for a six-year contract well beyond Cincinnati’s willingness to spend and Santana is a 1B and 1B only these days (at age 38).

So, it’s unsurprising to hear that Nick Krall is “trying to make trades” to address this issue, especially since Profar has made it clear he’d prefer to stick in San Diego. Maybe the moribund Rockies would be willing to sell low on 1B/OF Nolan Jones for some of Cincinnati’s sweet, sweet pitching. Taylor Ward of the Angels has some pretty extensive experience as both a corner infielder and an outfielder - and is an Ohio native! If Krall is shopping for another switch-hitter via trade, though - good luck with that.

It’s a nebulous need in part because it’s really multiple needs. On top of that, it remains to be seen just how different new manager Terry Francona’s style will be than former skipper David Bell, who relied heavily on platoons and base-stealing acumen as his calling cards. Will any new addition be a guy who needs to run?

What’s clear is that the Reds are shopping, and shopping on a budget that will see them swing lower than the rung of available bats like Santander, Teoscar Hernandez, or Alex Bregman. That means they’re going to need to get creative in terms of not just how they acquire a guy, but in how they deploy him - and it’s clear that the more versatile that acquisiiton is, the better the Reds will get towards addressing more of their glaring needs.