The Cincinnati Reds snuck into the playoffs. A strong finish to the season earned them the third and final NL Wild Card spot.
With that came a quick exit, a two-game sweep at the hands of the much more powerful Los Angeles Dodgers.
And now have come the questions. How do the Reds improve this offseason?
One idea, thrown out by MLB.com's Mark Sheldon, seems quite drastic.
He speculates on whether the Reds could trade ace starting pitcher Hunter Greene.
"Greene, a 2024 All-Star and two-time Opening Day starter, is signed through ‘28," Sheldon writes. "The right-hander with triple-digit velocity has shown he can be a dominant force on the mound, but that ability has been stunted by extended stints on the IL in each of his four big league seasons. The injuries the past three seasons were considered relatively minor, including the Grade 1 right groin strain that cost him over two months this season. He's never pitched more than 150 1/3 innings or made more than 26 starts."
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Sheldon goes on to write that clearing Greene's salary could either allow room for a free agent bat, or bring back a quality hitter in return.
Not every Reds follower quite agrees with that thinking.
This post on X points out that Greene really isn't making that much money in the grand scheme of MLB salaries for star players:
Why did Mark Sheldon mention trading Hunter Greene by name in an article.
— Bryce Spalding (@bryce_spalding) October 10, 2025
Surely the #Reds wouldn’t trade one of the best pitchers in MLB on a 4 year, $61M deal essentially?
If they do, it better be extreme, extreme overpay with major contributors at the big league level.
President of baseball operations Nick Krall told Sheldon that he doesn't want to "speculate" on who will or won't be traded.
It feels like it'd be a drastic overcorrection to trade Greene. Sure, it might land a bat. But it also costs an ace. It feels like a net-zero move, at best.
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