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Club must learn from 2015 deals

In an early blow, ace Johnny Cueto suffered an oblique strain after throwing just eight pitches in Game 1.  The Enquirer/Gary Landers
Reds-Giants.  Cincinnati Reds' pitcher Johnny Cueto bites his tongue as he leaves the field after an injury during the first inning of their first division series championship game against the San Francisco Giants at AT&T Park in San Francisco, California Saturday October 6, 2012. The Enquirer/Gary Landers

It was news that first showed up in Baseball America’s minor league transaction log: The Cincinnati Reds released Brandon Finnegan, the 28-year-old lefty who hasn’t pitched in the Majors since 2018.

Finnegan was the last player in the organization from the Johnny Cueto, Aroldis Chapman, Jay Bruce, Todd Frazier and Mike Leake trades. The returns from those deals serve as a cautionary tale as the Reds’ front office listens to trade offers for some of their best players, including Luis Castillo and Sonny Gray.

More:Where things stand with all 40 players on the Cincinnati Reds' 40-man roster

Prospects are called prospects for a reason. It’s extremely difficult to predict which ones will be successful at the Major League level. When the Reds began rebuilding after the 2014 season, they were counting on Finnegan, Cody Reed, Keury Mella, John Lamb, Rookie Davis, Jose Peraza, Dilson Herrera and Adam Duvall to become the next core of their roster.

That didn’t happen.

Failing to net more value from trading key players from their 2010-13 playoff runs was a big blow to their rebuilding efforts. They’re just beginning to see returns from their top picks at the top of the draft – Tyler Stephenson (2015, No. 11 overall), Nick Senzel (2016, No. 2), Hunter Greene (2017, No. 2), Jonathan India (2018, No. 5) and Nick Lodolo (2019, No. 7) – and now their own payroll limitations may affect their competitiveness.


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