Cincinnati Reds Promote Top 30 Prospect to Double-A Chattanooga

Cincinnati Reds 25th-ranked prospect Leo Balcazar is being promoted to Double-A Chattanooga, according to the Reds minor league transaction log.

The 21-year-old has had a nice season with Dayton, slashing .262/.333/.413 with 27 extra-base hits and four stolen bases in 75 games.

"Signed in January 2021 for $100,000, Balcazar started making a real name for himself when he came to the United States in 2022 and slashed .322/.411/.476 in the Arizona Complex League, finishing in the top 10 in average, on-base percentage and OPS," MLB Pipeline wrote.

"He was off to a similar start in his full-season debut in 2023, but a torn ACL ended his year after 18 games. The Reds felt confident enough in his abilities to move him up to High-A Dayton in 2024 despite the layoff, and he shook off a rough start to finish well, highlighted by a .900 OPS in August."

With Edwin Arroyo, the Reds 7th-ranked prospect, also in Double-A Chattanooga, it will be interesting to see if the Reds elect to promote him to Triple-A Louisville or have Balcazar play a different position when the two share the field together.

You can see the minor league transaction log here.