Lyon Richardson Elects Free Agency

Right-hander Lyon Richardson elected free agency after being outrighted by the Brewers, according to the MLB.com transaction log. Milwaukee designated him for assignment last Friday.

Richardson got a couple brief big league stints this season. He made two appearances for the Reds in the first half and tossed 1 2/3 scoreless innings for Milwaukee on August 10. The Brewers waived him, re-signed him to a minor league deal, then called him back up a week ago. He was on the MLB roster for two days but didn’t get into a game and got squeezed back out when Bryse Wilson returned from injury.

The 26-year-old Richardson is out of options and needs to be designated for assignment every time he’s taken off the big league roster. He opts for a head start on his offseason rather than accepting a minor league assignment, as it’s highly unlikely he’d have gotten consideration for the playoff roster. Richardson has pitched parts of four big league seasons and owns a 6.48 ERA through 58 1/3 innings. The majority of that work came with the 2025 Reds.

A former second-round pick, Richardson worked as a starter in the minors until last year. He pitched in long relief between the Triple-A affiliates of Cincinnati and Milwaukee, working 75 frames of 4.44 ERA ball. He fanned nearly a quarter of opponents against a lofty 12.1% walk percentage. He’ll be looking for minor league offers this winter.