Looking to improve an offense that rated as one of the league’s worst in the final two months of last season, the Cincinnati Reds signed outfielder Wil Myers to a one-year contract with a mutual option for 2024, the club announced Thursday.
Myers is guaranteed to receive $7.5 million during the 2023 season, which could rise to $9.5 million through incentives (worth $1.5 million) and an assignment bonus if he's traded ($500,000), a source confirmed to The Enquirer. The Reds' 40-man roster is now full.
Myers, a 32-year-old right-handed hitter, spent the last eight years with the San Diego Padres, the longest-tenured player on their roster, though injuries limited him to fewer than 85 games in 2022 and 2018. He missed two months this year with a right knee inflammation and a thumb injury, but batted .261 in 77 games with 15 doubles, seven homers and 41 RBI.
Primarily a right fielder and first baseman, Myers will look to reestablish his value in a hitter-friendly ballpark. He hit much better against lefthanded pitching in 2022, but he's likely in line for everyday playing time in Cincinnati. His defensive range in right field rated at two outs above average, according to Statcast.
Myers fits at least two areas for a rebuilding Reds team. He’s a proven outfielder on a club that lacks many proven options, and he can play first base if Joey Votto isn’t ready for the start of the season after he underwent surgery on his left rotator cuff and left bicep in August.
Myers, a 10-year veteran, was the American League Rookie of the Year in 2013 with Tampa Bay and an All-Star in 2016 with San Diego. This winter was his first trip through free agency after signing six-year, $83 million extension with the Padres in 2017. San Diego declined a $20 million club option in November.
He’s no longer viewed as the potential star like the beginning of his career, but he’s hit slightly above a league-average level throughout his career. He was frequently subject to trade rumors over the last few years as the Padres looked to shed his salary to avoid paying higher luxury taxes.
"To go through eight years with a team – see a team be somewhat irrelevant and turn into a team that gets national attention, making the playoffs," Myers told MLB.com after the Padres were eliminated in the postseason this year, "it was really cool to see that evolution and to see everything happening in San Diego, to see the city transform."
Despite Myers' injury history, he's an upgrade for a Reds outfield group that is low on experience. Jake Fraley figures to start in one of the corner outfield spots, especially against right-handed pitching, and Nick Senzel is penciled as the starting center fielder if he recovers from toe surgery in time for the start of the season. TJ Friedl, Stuart Fairchild and Nick Solak are the other top options. Most of the Reds’ top prospects in the upper levels of the minor leagues are infielders.
There are some parallels between the Reds signing Myers and Tommy Pham last spring. The two teammates knew they were entering a rebuilding situation in Cincinnati on a one-year deal. If Myers stays healthy and hits at his normal level, he likely becomes a midseason trade candidate.
Myers had an .831 OPS (on-base plus slugging percentage) with six homers in the second half of last season compared to a .583 OPS with one homer in the first half.
"Ideally you're not trading the players at the deadline," Reds General Manager Nick Krall said during the winter meetings. "You're looking for opportunity. We want to do the best we can this offseason to put the best team on the field to start the season and, ideally, you're looking to sustain something and maybe you'll continue to get younger and see how it takes you throughout the course of the year."
In an offseason that has seen record levels of free agent spending in some corners, the Reds had signed only backup catcher Luke Maile prior to Myers.
Neither signing is a move that significantly changes the outlook for a team coming off a 100-loss season, but it's two veterans with playoff experience that should represent an upgrade at their positions.
Source link
