Cincinnati Reds Reportedly Targeting Intriguing Group of Players Ahead of Trade Deadline

One of them most prominent Cincinnati Reds beat reporters has released his list of the Reds top targets at the MLB Trade Deadline.

Mark Sheldon, from Reds.com, wrote about five players he is hearing the Reds are linked to. Arizona Diamondbacks third baseman Eugenio Suarez, Pittsburgh Pirates third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes, Colorado Rockies relief pitchers Jake Bird and Seth Halvorsen, and St Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Sony Gray.

Sheldon mentions the market for Suarez still being very busy and noted that when he heard the Reds were linked to Hayes from Pittsburgh, he was a bit surprised. If the Reds are unable to land Suarez, though, Hayes makes a lot of sense from a totally different perspective.

Suarez would be an elite bat to add to this lineup. His power is something the Reds dearly need. Hayes does not have that but what he does have is gold glove defense at third base. You would trade one elite upgrade for another, but the Reds have struggled with consistency at third base, defensively.

The pitching side is very interesting. As we noted yesterday, the Reds were in on Chris Paddack before the Tigers ultimately traded for him. Gray would represent a bigger upgrade than Paddack, obviously, but would carry the dubious notion of dealing with a division rival for a trade.

Gray is owed $26 million in 2026 with a $30 million club option for 2027.

Then on the bullpen side of things, Bird and Halvorsen are the more prominent Rockies being named in rumors. Sheldon reports Reds scouts have been “looking hard at the Rockies bullpen.” 

Bird is the better of the two. He has a 26.3% strikeout rate compared to a 9.7% walk rate. He also has a 48% ground ball rate. With a Fielding Independent Pitching (FIP) of 3.45, he is unlucky with his 4.72 ERA.

It is interesting that Suarez is really the only name that has been widely talk about by other reporters for the Reds. These other names shed light on just how busy Nick Krall and Brad Meador have been.

It will be interesting to see who they finalize a trade for.