Things have changed a bit with the club’s catching situation since Redsfest because the Reds brought back free agent Curt Casali on a one-year, $3.25 million contract on Dec. 22. With Luke Maile already signed in November, the Reds now have three catchers on the 40-man roster.
Those signings give Stephenson and the Reds more protection. He can get more breaks from catching and potentially protect himself from injury. While keeping his legs fresher, he could also stay in the lineup almost daily if he’s used as either the designated hitter or at first base.
Over his 50 games last season, Stephenson batted .319 with an .854 OPS, six home runs and 35 RBIs.
According to FanGraphs’ Steamer Projections, Stephenson is targeted to bat .257 with a .737 OPS, 15 homers and 63 RBIs in 123 games in 2023. I don’t know if that projection came before or after the Reds added Casali and Maile, but it seems conservative. If he can avoid injury and play more, perhaps Stephenson could increase those numbers.
Stephenson first came up to the big leagues in 2020, appearing in eight games and spending most of the shortened season on the taxi squad behind Tucker Barnhart and Casali.
“I don’t think Tucker would be mad if I said this. He’s just a tremendous hitter. He’s so much better at hitting the ball than we are,” Casali said of Stephenson. “He’s got the big build. He’s got the tremendous approach at the plate. It seems like going to right field is natural for him.”
As for behind the plate, Stephenson has a chance to improve as well.
“Something Luke and I can help with is the thing that we have -- experience,” Casali said. “The only way you get experience is by catching. We can go over scouting, talk about pitchers, reading swings and everything. It’s stuff Tyler is already doing, and he’s doing a really good job of it.
“But hopefully we can help speed up the process for him and help any way we possibly can. He’s already got all the tools that anybody could ever want. I think it’s just important that we keep him on the field.”