You Be the GM: Salary Neutral Edition

[Bourgeois Zee]

The Reds are currently at an estimated $112M, according to Cots. Castellini has ordered you to stay there, but compete as much as possible given those salary constraints. His plan (such as it is) is to stay around $115 million for the foreseeable future in order to line his own pockets (and those of his uber-rich compatriots in the owners' box) rather than pay for a competitive club. So you're limited in using backloaded contracts.

Trades have to work for both sides.

Be specific-- no "prospects for Means" deal. Instead, tell which prospects. (That may prove challenging.)

Go.

[MoneyInTheBank]

The Reds are currently at an estimated $112M, according to Cots. Castellini has ordered you to stay there, but compete as much as possible given those salary constraints. His plan (such as it is) is to stay around $115 million for the foreseeable future in order to line his own pockets (and those of his uber-rich compatriots in the owners' box) rather than pay for a competitive club. So you're limited in using backloaded contracts.

Trades have to work for both sides.

Be specific-- no "prospects for Means" deal. Instead, tell which prospects. (That may prove challenging.)

Go.

Gray to LAA for Adell, Suarez and Mayers (Saves ~$8M)
Sign Mark Melancon for 2 years/$14M (Spend $6M first year)
Non-Tender Amir Garrett, Jeff Hoffman and Tyler Naquin (Saves ~$6.5M)
Sign Michael Pineda for 1 year/$6.5M
Leaves $2M to sign a non-roster bullpen arm lottery ticket

Lineup:
India
Winker
Stephenson
Votto
Moose (assuming DH)
Barrero
Suarez
Adell
Senzel

Bench:
Farmer
Koz
Shogo
Friedl

Rotation:
Castillo
Mahle
Pineda
Suarez (Until Greene/Lodolo are ready)
Sanmartin (Greene/Lodolo)

Bullpen:
Melancon
Mayers
Sims
Cessa
Wilson
Moreta
Santillan
Gutierrez

[herbdizzle]

Gray and Shogo to White Sox for Craig Kimbrel and a lottery ticket.

Moose to Yankeez for Aaron Hicks.

Senzel, Gutierrez and Hinds to Orioles for John Means.

[Bourgeois Zee]

Mine:

- Reds trade Luis Castillo, Shogo Akiyama, and Tyler Naquin to San Diego for Mackenzie Gore, Ryan Weathers, Adrian Morejon, and Wil Myers.
The Pads gets quality OF depth and an ace in a deal that actually saves them $3.5M. It does cost prospect capital, but that's a small price to pay for a controllable #1 starter.
The Reds add a couple of starters with relatively bright futures. Gore's been a prospect forever, but is still just 23. He needs a change of scenery-- this does it. Weathers profiles as a solid BOR guy with upside. He's already thrown one season in the majors, so he doesn't need to be broken in-- he's ready now. Myers becomes the starting RF and cleanup hitter. With a smaller RF, he should be pretty solid defensively-- certainly better than Castellanos. Perhaps the smaller dimensions will unlock some of his prodigious power as well. Morejon had Tommy John surgery in April, so he's not going to be ready until mis-season at the earliest. He's the reason you make the deal. This is a play for the future, obviously, as it stocks up on pitching that's ready now-- or nearly so.

- Reds trade Tyler Mahle to the Los Angeles Angels for Jo Adell and Janson Junk.
Reds give up their second above average major league starter in Mahle to grab a young power-hitting OF in Adell. Angels are relatively deep in OFs-- they can spare Adell, especially considering his mercurial development. Adell's still only 22 and has tasted major league success. The move to a smaller ballpark should unlock some of that 70 grade power. So should the move home. (He played at Ballard High School, in Louisville, KY.) For the Angels, Junk's also an afterthought, at this point, but he'll take up a spot in the rotation or the bullpen in Cincinnati. This deal saves the Reds around $5M in arbitration money, so they now have about $1.5M to spend.

- Reds trade Sonny Gray, Mike Moustakas (with $12M of his salary paid off), and Amir Garrett to Seattle for Evan White, Cal Raleigh, and Jared Kelenic.
Reds deal salary for salary, as White's creative rookie deal looks like a serious weight at the moment. The Mariners owe him nearly $20M, and he hasn't done much to inspire that amount of cash. They also have a massive hole at 3B that Moustakas might be able to fill with league average-ish offense and solid defense. (In other words, while Moustakas is more expensive, there's a spot wherein he can help, while White, at this point, looks superfluous.) The extra cash helps make the deal. Garrett and Gray are known arms who may well blossom in Seattle's cavernous park.
White becomes a CF/ 1B backup and a RH bench bat. He can also become a defensive caddy late in games for Votto, if need be, and can provide Votto more of a chance to DH if his legs get tired. Too, Raleigh becomes the backup catcher (or at least one of them). He's a switch-hitter who had some tasty numbers offensively until last season's major league disaster. Kellenic, though, is the erstwhile jewell of the deal. He's a 22-year-old CF with tons of talent. He struggled last year, but should be a good one for years to come. The deal also saves the Reds roughly $18M this season and roughly that same amount in 2023 (though it will cost $15M later on, in White).

- Reds sign FA SP Dylan Bundy to a three-year, $40M contract.
Cincinnati needs veteran arms on which to lean-- and upside in the rotation. Enter Bundy, a top-10 Cy Young starter in 2020 who fell on some seriously hard times in 2021. I suspect Reds' pitching coach Derek Johnson can unlock some of that upside. Since he struggled mightily in 2021, I'm looking for some value here-- and this contract provides some-- $12M this season, $13M in 2023, and $15M in 2024.

- Reds sign FA SP Chris Archer to a one-year, $8M contract
There's not much budget left, so the pitching options are going to be slim. Archer is likely to be affordable, and I'm guessing he jumps at the promised rotation spot and chance to work with Derek Johnson. He's got a ton of talent (and his peripherals look pretty promising in Tampa), but his hip and lack of success over the past few years really limit his market. If he fails, the Reds have a ton of option behind him. Archer is a chit that keeps Cincinnati from throwing their rookies to the wolves. If he pitches well, he's trade bait. If not, they can turn to Gore, Sanmartin, Lodolo,

Offense
Batting Order
2B Jonathan India
CF Jared Kelenic
1B Jesse Winker
RF Wil Myers
DH Joey Votto
3B Eugenio Suarez
LF Jo Adell
C Tyler Stephenson
SS Jose Barrero

Bench
1B/CF Evan White
C/SS Kyle Farmer
C Cal Raleigh (platoon w/ Stephenson)
OF/IF Nick Senzel (platoon w/ Kelenic)
OF/IF Max Schrock

Pitching
Starting Rotation
Rich Hill
Chris Archer
Hunter Greene
Ryan Weathers
Vlad Gutierrez/ Reiver Sanmartin

Bullpen
Tony Santillan
Art Warren
Lucas Sims
Mackenzie Gore
Adrian Morejon
Luis Cessa
Justin Wilson
Jeff Hoffman

[Krusty]

Just for starters.

1. Sign Avisail Garcia to a three year deal to replace Castellanos. He would earn 12 million in 2022 which is 2 million saved to what the Reds paid Castellanos in 2021.

2. Trade Mike Moustakas to the Brewers for outfielder Jackie Bradley. Reds get a center fielder at 9.5 million for 2022 and can pay the 8 million buyout for 2023. Brewers get a first baseman but would be on the hook for 34 million remaining on the two years. The Reds might need to sweeten the pot by including Nick Senzel in the deal.

3. Finally, the slobber knocker trade. Reds trade Castillo to the Angels for LHP Reid Detmers and OF Brandon Marsh. Reds save 7.5 million trading Castillo and get a highly touted left handed pitcher and a left handed OF Marsh to play LF and shift Winkler to DH (assuming the DH is coming to the NL).

[Strikes Out Looking]

Mine:

- Reds trade Luis Castillo, Shogo Akiyama, and Tyler Naquin to San Diego for Mackenzie Gore, Ryan Weathers, Adrian Morejon, and Wil Myers.
The Pads gets quality OF depth and an ace in a deal that actually saves them $3.5M. It does cost prospect capital, but that's a small price to pay for a controllable #1 starter.
The Reds add a couple of starters with relatively bright futures. Gore's been a prospect forever, but is still just 23. He needs a change of scenery-- this does it. Weathers profiles as a solid BOR guy with upside. He's already thrown one season in the majors, so he doesn't need to be broken in-- he's ready now. Myers becomes the starting RF and cleanup hitter. With a smaller RF, he should be pretty solid defensively-- certainly better than Castellanos. Perhaps the smaller dimensions will unlock some of his prodigious power as well. Morejon had Tommy John surgery in April, so he's not going to be ready until mis-season at the earliest. He's the reason you make the deal. This is a play for the future, obviously, as it stocks up on pitching that's ready now-- or nearly so.

- Reds trade Tyler Mahle to the Los Angeles Angels for Jo Adell and Janson Junk.
Reds give up their second above average major league starter in Mahle to grab a young power-hitting OF in Adell. Angels are relatively deep in OFs-- they can spare Adell, especially considering his mercurial development. Adell's still only 22 and has tasted major league success. The move to a smaller ballpark should unlock some of that 70 grade power. So should the move home. (He played at Ballard High School, in Louisville, KY.) For the Angels, Junk's also an afterthought, at this point, but he'll take up a spot in the rotation or the bullpen in Cincinnati. This deal saves the Reds around $5M in arbitration money, so they now have about $1.5M to spend.

- Reds trade Sonny Gray, Mike Moustakas (with $12M of his salary paid off), and Amir Garrett to Seattle for Evan White, Cal Raleigh, and Jared Kelenic.
Reds deal salary for salary, as White's creative rookie deal looks like a serious weight at the moment. The Mariners owe him nearly $20M, and he hasn't done much to inspire that amount of cash. They also have a massive hole at 3B that Moustakas might be able to fill with league average-ish offense and solid defense. (In other words, while Moustakas is more expensive, there's a spot wherein he can help, while White, at this point, looks superfluous.) The extra cash helps make the deal. Garrett and Gray are known arms who may well blossom in Seattle's cavernous park.
White becomes a CF/ 1B backup and a RH bench bat. He can also become a defensive caddy late in games for Votto, if need be, and can provide Votto more of a chance to DH if his legs get tired. Too, Raleigh becomes the backup catcher (or at least one of them). He's a switch-hitter who had some tasty numbers offensively until last season's major league disaster. Kellenic, though, is the erstwhile jewell of the deal. He's a 22-year-old CF with tons of talent. He struggled last year, but should be a good one for years to come. The deal also saves the Reds roughly $18M this season and roughly that same amount in 2023 (though it will cost $15M later on, in White).

- Reds sign FA SP Dylan Bundy to a three-year, $40M contract.
Cincinnati needs veteran arms on which to lean-- and upside in the rotation. Enter Bundy, a top-10 Cy Young starter in 2020 who fell on some seriously hard times in 2021. I suspect Reds' pitching coach Derek Johnson can unlock some of that upside. Since he struggled mightily in 2021, I'm looking for some value here-- and this contract provides some-- $12M this season, $13M in 2023, and $15M in 2024.

- Reds sign FA SP Chris Archer to a one-year, $8M contract
There's not much budget left, so the pitching options are going to be slim. Archer is likely to be affordable, and I'm guessing he jumps at the promised rotation spot and chance to work with Derek Johnson. He's got a ton of talent (and his peripherals look pretty promising in Tampa), but his hip and lack of success over the past few years really limit his market. If he fails, the Reds have a ton of option behind him. Archer is a chit that keeps Cincinnati from throwing their rookies to the wolves. If he pitches well, he's trade bait. If not, they can turn to Gore, Sanmartin, Lodolo,

Offense
Batting Order
2B Jonathan India
CF Jared Kelenic
1B Jesse Winker
RF Wil Myers
DH Joey Votto
3B Eugenio Suarez
LF Jo Adell
C Tyler Stephenson
SS Jose Barrero

Bench
1B/CF Evan White
C/SS Kyle Farmer
C Cal Raleigh (platoon w/ Stephenson)
OF/IF Nick Senzel (platoon w/ Kelenic)
OF/IF Max Schrock

Pitching
Starting Rotation
Rich Hill
Chris Archer
Hunter Greene
Ryan Weathers
Vlad Gutierrez/ Reiver Sanmartin

Bullpen
Tony Santillan
Art Warren
Lucas Sims
Mackenzie Gore
Adrian Morejon
Luis Cessa
Justin Wilson
Jeff Hoffman

I give you an A for effort but that starting rotation will get you about 600 innings in 2022.

[M2]

Mine:

- Reds trade Luis Castillo, Shogo Akiyama, and Tyler Naquin to San Diego for Mackenzie Gore, Ryan Weathers, Adrian Morejon, and Wil Myers.
The Pads gets quality OF depth and an ace in a deal that actually saves them $3.5M. It does cost prospect capital, but that's a small price to pay for a controllable #1 starter.
The Reds add a couple of starters with relatively bright futures. Gore's been a prospect forever, but is still just 23. He needs a change of scenery-- this does it. Weathers profiles as a solid BOR guy with upside. He's already thrown one season in the majors, so he doesn't need to be broken in-- he's ready now. Myers becomes the starting RF and cleanup hitter. With a smaller RF, he should be pretty solid defensively-- certainly better than Castellanos. Perhaps the smaller dimensions will unlock some of his prodigious power as well. Morejon had Tommy John surgery in April, so he's not going to be ready until mis-season at the earliest. He's the reason you make the deal. This is a play for the future, obviously, as it stocks up on pitching that's ready now-- or nearly so.

- Reds trade Tyler Mahle to the Los Angeles Angels for Jo Adell and Janson Junk.
Reds give up their second above average major league starter in Mahle to grab a young power-hitting OF in Adell. Angels are relatively deep in OFs-- they can spare Adell, especially considering his mercurial development. Adell's still only 22 and has tasted major league success. The move to a smaller ballpark should unlock some of that 70 grade power. So should the move home. (He played at Ballard High School, in Louisville, KY.) For the Angels, Junk's also an afterthought, at this point, but he'll take up a spot in the rotation or the bullpen in Cincinnati. This deal saves the Reds around $5M in arbitration money, so they now have about $1.5M to spend.

- Reds trade Sonny Gray, Mike Moustakas (with $12M of his salary paid off), and Amir Garrett to Seattle for Evan White, Cal Raleigh, and Jared Kelenic.
Reds deal salary for salary, as White's creative rookie deal looks like a serious weight at the moment. The Mariners owe him nearly $20M, and he hasn't done much to inspire that amount of cash. They also have a massive hole at 3B that Moustakas might be able to fill with league average-ish offense and solid defense. (In other words, while Moustakas is more expensive, there's a spot wherein he can help, while White, at this point, looks superfluous.) The extra cash helps make the deal. Garrett and Gray are known arms who may well blossom in Seattle's cavernous park.
White becomes a CF/ 1B backup and a RH bench bat. He can also become a defensive caddy late in games for Votto, if need be, and can provide Votto more of a chance to DH if his legs get tired. Too, Raleigh becomes the backup catcher (or at least one of them). He's a switch-hitter who had some tasty numbers offensively until last season's major league disaster. Kellenic, though, is the erstwhile jewell of the deal. He's a 22-year-old CF with tons of talent. He struggled last year, but should be a good one for years to come. The deal also saves the Reds roughly $18M this season and roughly that same amount in 2023 (though it will cost $15M later on, in White).

- Reds sign FA SP Dylan Bundy to a three-year, $40M contract.
Cincinnati needs veteran arms on which to lean-- and upside in the rotation. Enter Bundy, a top-10 Cy Young starter in 2020 who fell on some seriously hard times in 2021. I suspect Reds' pitching coach Derek Johnson can unlock some of that upside. Since he struggled mightily in 2021, I'm looking for some value here-- and this contract provides some-- $12M this season, $13M in 2023, and $15M in 2024.

- Reds sign FA SP Chris Archer to a one-year, $8M contract
There's not much budget left, so the pitching options are going to be slim. Archer is likely to be affordable, and I'm guessing he jumps at the promised rotation spot and chance to work with Derek Johnson. He's got a ton of talent (and his peripherals look pretty promising in Tampa), but his hip and lack of success over the past few years really limit his market. If he fails, the Reds have a ton of option behind him. Archer is a chit that keeps Cincinnati from throwing their rookies to the wolves. If he pitches well, he's trade bait. If not, they can turn to Gore, Sanmartin, Lodolo,

Offense
Batting Order
2B Jonathan India
CF Jared Kelenic
1B Jesse Winker
RF Wil Myers
DH Joey Votto
3B Eugenio Suarez
LF Jo Adell
C Tyler Stephenson
SS Jose Barrero

Bench
1B/CF Evan White
C/SS Kyle Farmer
C Cal Raleigh (platoon w/ Stephenson)
OF/IF Nick Senzel (platoon w/ Kelenic)
OF/IF Max Schrock

Pitching
Starting Rotation
Rich Hill
Chris Archer
Hunter Greene
Ryan Weathers
Vlad Gutierrez/ Reiver Sanmartin

Bullpen
Tony Santillan
Art Warren
Lucas Sims
Mackenzie Gore
Adrian Morejon
Luis Cessa
Justin Wilson
Jeff Hoffman

I like that you're willing to move anyone and everyone, and that you'd like the Reds to poach some top, young talents. That said, I don't think Kelenic is gettable and he's certainly not going for Sonny Gray. I'd think best case would be more like one of the Mariner's three pitching prospects (whoever they like least) White and Dylan Moore in a Sonny Gray trade. Maybe the GAB unlocks those bats a bit.

I'd be surprised if the Angels moved Adell too, though they might be so desperate to achieve something while Trout is being awesome that they'd make an all-in trade. Yet I think it would need to be Castillo (more consistent record of success) if they're parting with Adell. The cost will be a perceived ace. FWIW, I liked the Castillo-to-the-Dodgers idea you came up with last month (for Tony Gonsolin, Andy Pages and Dustin May). If they're going to set the dynamite under the team, that's at least holds out some hope it won't be pure torment.

Nitpick: why is Joey Votto (a good 1B) the DH while Jesse Winker (easily injured, not good at any defensive position and with 0 innings of experience in the IF) is the 1B?

My main thought on who moves if they're looking to be salary neutral from here (and I feel like that's probably irrational optimism) is Geno might be the key for that. Just looking at the prices on the open market, I'm thinking Geno will look attractive to a few teams.

[Tony Cloninger]

Great ideas. Would Bob approve them?

[mth123]

Vlad, Shogo, Aquino and Rece Hinds for Andrew Bienitendi and Jake Brentz. Reds may need to throw in somebody better than Hinds to make that happen. Perhaps leaving Aquino and Brentz out of it might be more realistic.