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The Cincinnati Reds thought they had their rotation figured out, but after the last few weeks, it’s obvious that’s far from the case.
Hunter Greene, Nick Lodolo and Andrew Abbott have all been spectacular as young pitchers, but the rest of the rotation has sputtered a bit.
Frankie Montas has flashed brilliance — see his start against the Rockies — but he failed to get out of the second inning in his last appearance and has continually run his pitch count up. Nick Martinez has been much better as a reliever than a starter, leaving him in the bullpen.
Graham Ashcraft has always flashed potential, but his recent struggles resulted in a demotion to Triple-A. Brandon Williamson was expected to take his place, but he’s since been injured.
So, what better way to combat all these struggles than to go acquire a young, controllable potential ace?
The Marlins are almost guaranteed to find a deal to send their ace, Jesus Luzardo, to another team before the trade deadline. He’s one of the players that will almost certainly see himself moved.
And he would fit everything that Cincinnati needs to make a huge deal like this without the risk of him being a rental. He’s young, has shown ace potential and he’s under team control until 2027.
Cincinnati would be dealing their fifth-ranked prospect, Connor Phillips and their 16th ranked prospect, Rece Hinds, as well as the aforementioned Graham Ashcraft.
Ashcraft has struggled this year, at times, but he’s shown the ability to be a quality starter in the big leagues. While he’s never posted an ERA+ above 100, he’s still controllable and only 26 years old. If the Marlins can help his bolster his arsenal, which already features a 98 MPH cutter, he could be more than just an innings eater.
Connor Phillips has one of the highest ceilings in the Cincinnati system, but also one of the lowest floors. His floor can be seen on full display right now, as he struggles in the minor leagues. But the Marlins would be buying him and his electric arm at his lowest value ever. If they can turn him around and get him in the zone consistently, he is a true weapon.
Rece Hinds is an MLB ready outfielder that has true power potential in his bat. He’s a big bodied right-handed swinger that punishes the ball routinely. He’s slugged eight homers in Triple-A this year.
For the Marlins, they would be getting a few prospects that have crazy high potential that they could turn around in their organization. They would also be adding a proven MLB arm in Graham Ashcraft with the ability to make him even better as he gets feedback from a new organization.
For Cincinnati, they need to take a risk to push themselves up further in the National League standings this season. They’ve already turned their season around, but with only three consistent starters at the moment, they could hit a cold spell at any moment. Jesus Luzardo would pair well with their young pitching core for years to come.