The Amato Report: Reds
- Jim Santora
- 16 hours ago
- 3 min read
After back to back ass kickings by the Phillies, I decided this current group isn't winning anything and moved on from key pieces. Sure, regular season accolades are nice, but beating Sam in the playoffs is better. And simply put this team fell short of expectations AGAIN. How many times can I haul ass in the regular season just to be dismantled? So sick of it.
NOTABLE OFFSEASON TRANSACTIONS
Acquired: #2 and #8 overall, Brandon Nimmo, Kodai Senga, Marcell Ozuna, Edward Cabrera, Jordan Beck, Joey Ortiz
Departed: Hunter Greene, Mookie Betts, Christian Walker (😭), Blaze Alexander, Kyle Higashioka, Nick Martinez, Brendan Donovan, Zac Gallen
So basically a whole new team.
Strengths
Definitely our hitting. We are solid 1-8, with Ketel Marte looking to bounce back from a horrible year in SOM. Mainstay #4 hitter Christian Walker has moved on, so we are seeking a middle of the lineup bat at 1B...HMMMMMMMMMM. Our cleanup hitter could be Ramon Laureano as he put together a sneaky good card (.840+ OPS vs both sides). Mike Yastrzemski belted 2 homers the last day of the season to give himself an .807 OPS against righties, that was nice of him to do that for me. And my boy Geno Suarez has homers on a 4, 5, and half of 6...let's goooooo. Can't wait to NOT hit them lol
Robert Suarez and Trevor Megill come back as the main backend pieces in relief. Andy Ashby came back from injury in July and somehow put together 67 innings of solid relief. But that's pretty much all we have there.
Opportunities
Definitely pitching. We dealt our #1 pitcher in Hunter Greene. We got back Kodai Senga and Edward Cabrera in trades but let's be real they aren't Greene.
Defense to begin the game will be sus, but we have the offense to give us leads where we can put defense in later in the game.
Draft day strategy
We have #2 and #8 overall and #23 overall as our main picks. I could go in 100 different ways. It'll just depend on how the cookie crumbles, as they say. But we need some pitching while sprinkling in some hitting and relievers.
Projected lineup (as of now vs RHP)
C - Patrick Bailey
1B - Casey Schmitt
2B - Ketel Marte
3B - Geno Suarez
SS - Elly De La Cruz
LF - Brandon Nimmo
CF - Mike Yastrzemski
RF - Ramon Laureano
DH - Marcell Ozuna
Projected rotation
Michael Wacha
Merril Kelly
Edward Cabrera
Corbin Burnes
Kodai Senga
Keep an eye on these players in 2026 (in real life)
Marcell Ozuna - the big bear had a down year, but still has a usable card. Can he rebound and hit to an .850 OPS again? You probably don't think so, but I'm biased and saying YES.
Corbin Burnes - how will he come back from TJ after the break? I gave up a 1st rounder for you, so you better come back healthy!
Kodai Senga - taking a huge flyer on this guy but he's been injured the last 2 seasons on fluke injuries and said his goal for spring training is to not get hurt. Shit, sign me up homie. I'm sold.
2026 projection based on Ed's power rankings: 6th place (8.10 pts, .5 over the Pirates)
Man, I dunno. It could go either way. But I think if we can't address our needs in the draft, 6th place really does look like a reality. But I feel we could easily finish 3rd or 4th. I know this team well and what we need to do, so it's all about...executing.
IF we can get in, I know we can be dangerous. Just don't let me play Sammy ever again. That is all.
