Nick Krall Has Done A Poor Job Assembling Major And Minor League Talent

[OldXOhio]

I'm just glad we got that "getting to below .500 thingy" out of the way so this front office can now concentrate on what matters ....... the future.

Correct. It is now 2015 after all.

[Ron Madden]

Per Lance McAlister
Reds have just eight winning seasons over the last 26 seasons.

The Cincinnati Reds have not finished better than 3rd place in the NL Central for 13 consecutive seasons:

3rd-4th-3rd-4th-3rd-3rd-4th-5th-5th-5th-5th-4th-3rd.

They have finished better than 3rd place just three times over the last 26 seasons: 1st 2012, 1st 2010, 2nd 2000.

NL Central division finishes since 2000:
1st place: 2
2nd place: 1
3rd place: 8
4th place: 8
5th place: 7

They have gone 12 consecutive seasons without winning more than 83 games.

They have just eight winning seasons over the last 26 seasons.

Forget winning a World Series, title, forget winning a playoff series, forget a winning season, forget making the playoffs....the Reds can't even compete in their own division. A division with markets like Pittsburgh, St. Louis and Milwaukee.

Latest TV market size:
24 St. Louis
28 Pittsburgh
38 Cincinnati
39 Milwaukee

[Larry Schuler]

They’re a small market team. 3rd place is their ceiling and they’ve been doing great.

[GAC]

So far, the month of June, the Reds are 1-7. Looking at the schedule (competition) going into the All-Star break, I expect this team to confirm all our fears and dig themselves a deep hole they can't dig out of it. Way too much crap going on with this '26 squad.

[Kc61]

I’m not as harshly critical of Krall as some. But the argument against this FO’s performance is this list. These are the highest paid Reds for 2026, including Candy whose 2026 salary is covered by the club.

1. Suarez $15M
2. Candelario $15M
3. Singer $13M
4. Pagan $10M
5. Greene $8.8M
6. Hayes $8.75M
7. Stephenson $7M

Well more than half the Reds payroll spent on seven players who have provided precious little this year due to performance or injury.

For a team with such a tight budget, this is hard to take. The Brewers and Cardinals do not have this kind of thing.

[shaggy]

I’m not as harshly critical of Krall as some. But the argument against this FO’s performance is this list. These are the highest paid Reds for 2026, including Candy whose 2026 salary is covered by the club.

1. Suarez $15M
2. Candelario $15M
3. Singer $13M
4. Pagan $10M
5. Greene $8.8M
6. Hayes $8.75M
7. Stephenson $7M

Well more than half the Reds payroll spent on seven players who have provided precious little this year due to performance or injury.

For a team with such a tight budget, this is hard to take. The Brewers and Cardinals do not have this kind of thing.

Pretty impressive to spend $38.75M on third basemen and still not have one that can hit.

[Kc61]

Pretty impressive to spend $38.75M on third basemen and still not have one that can hit.

The list helps explain why Brewers and Cards do better. Reds are a small market, not a big payroll, but too much money being gambled on $13-15 million players. More discipline is needed.

Would you rather spend $15 million on Suarez or a combined circa $3.5 million total on Bleday and Lowe?

[shaggy]

The list helps explain why Brewers and Cards do better. Reds are a small market, not a big payroll, but too much money being gambled on $13-15 million players. More discipline is needed.

Would you rather spend $15 million on Suarez or a combined circa $3.5 million total on Bleday and Lowe?

I am convinced that the $15M spent on Suarez was a PR move and nothing else. They would have been better off spending $15M on Ryan O'Hearn who was available and filled a position of need (OF) instead of grabbing another 3B/1B/DH.

I also like some others on here over the winter would have liked to have seen them go after Brandon Lowe who the Pirates got with Jake Magnum and a decent reliever for a pitcher who currently has a 5.77 era in 13 starts.

[RedTeamGo!]

I am convinced that the $15M spent on Suarez was a PR move and nothing else. They would have been better off spending $15M on Ryan O'Hearn who was available and filled a position of need (OF) instead of grabbing another 3B/1B/DH.

I also like some others on here over the winter would have liked to have seen them go after Brandon Lowe who the Pirates got with Jake Magnum and a decent reliever for a pitcher who currently has a 5.77 era in 13 starts.

I mean, this is all kinds of hindsight being 20/20. It is easy to pile on the Reds and Krall right now, I know, but come on na.

Geno last year had 3.6 bWAR with 49 homers and 126 OPS+

O'Hearn was a solid player as well, same OPS+ at 126, but 32 less home runs

Brandon Lowe was also a solid player last year, someone I would have liked as well. However, saying Suarez was PR and nothing else is just silly. He was the middle of the order bat the Reds desperately needed. He was a baseball move. The PR was just icing on cake.

There is always a risk signing older players. Seems like Geno might be cooked, but dude was really good last year and was exactly what the Reds needed going into this season.

There is no doubt the Pirates org is running circles around the Reds org right now, though, and that is a really bad sign.

[CaiGuy]

The list helps explain why Brewers and Cards do better. Reds are a small market, not a big payroll, but too much money being gambled on $13-15 million players. More discipline is needed.

Would you rather spend $15 million on Suarez or a combined circa $3.5 million total on Bleday and Lowe?

The Brewers would have almost certainly churned Singer and Stephenson during the offseason, probably Lodolo as well for a higher price, and they would have let Pagan walk after a career year. (They would have definitely been looking for deals like those for Bleday and Lowe, though, for one similarity.)

This constant churning, along with the ability to identify and develop the right guys, means they have a constant flow of replacements to their outgoing MLB guys.

And it's not just veteran guys on expiring deals...they had churned their closer into Caleb Durbin, who put up a ~3-win rookie year (would have been the 2nd best player on the Reds last year) and then promptly flipped him in an apparent effort to sell high. One of the guys they got back has a 2.72 ERA in 12 starts, better than the ace that they also flipped during the offseason (Peralta).

The closer that they flipped (Devin Williams)? He has a 4.99 ERA since leaving. They not only didn't get squirrely and try to sign him to a market-rate extension, but they churned him into controllable talent. They also didn't just let him walk into FA without getting something back first.

[shaggy]

I mean, this is all kinds of hindsight being 20/20. It is easy to pile on the Reds and Krall right now, I know, but come on na.

Geno last year had 3.6 bWAR with 49 homers and 126 OPS+

O'Hearn was a solid player as well, same OPS+ at 126, but 32 less home runs

Brandon Lowe was also a solid player last year, someone I would have liked as well. However, saying Suarez was PR and nothing else is just silly. He was the middle of the order bat the Reds desperately needed. He was a baseball move. The PR was just icing on cake.

There is always a risk signing older players. Seems like Geno might be cooked, but dude was really good last year and was exactly what the Reds needed going into this season.

There is no doubt the Pirates org is running circles around the Reds org right now, though, and that is a really bad sign.

They were never in on Suarez until the last minute, they had been getting killed in the national media and locally for not adding any power and the only team that was mentioned to be making an offer to Suarez was the Pirates.

They were done and said they were out of money to spend and then at the last minute Krall asked for money and they said sure go get Geno for 1 year at $15M. That was a PR move. I am not saying you don't take the chance and bring him in but the motivation was for good PR in my opinion.

[LiferJim]

They were never in on Suarez until the last minute, they had been getting killed in the national media and locally for not adding any power and the only team that was mentioned to be making an offer to Suarez was the Pirates.

They were done and said they were out of money to spend and then at the last minute Krall asked for money and they said sure go get Geno for 1 year at $15M. That was a PR move. I am not saying you don't take the chance and bring him in but the motivation was for good PR in my opinion.

I agree, they thought Geno would sell tickets. The Pirates were able to add Ohearn, partially with the money the Reds saved them by taking Hayes contract. Look at his numbers compared to Genos. I’m sure the Pirates are still laughing, as they have the same guy I had hoped we would have gotten.


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[mth123]

O'Hearn was the guy I wanted most (knowing that bigger dollar guys like Schwarber just weren't going to happen). I was happy they got Suarez (and I still think he'll come around - one hot streak and he'll be in demand in July), but he's not an outfielder. Outfield was where the urgent need was and IMO still is.

[JCM11]

Geno was a reasonable risk at 1/15 for a guy who hit 49 bombs last year. It hasn't worked out, but it was a move that made sense. Krall has made enough horrible moves that you don't have to complain about one that made sense to take him to task. He should be fired for the Candy contract, and Hayes trade alone.

[Kc61]

Geno was a reasonable risk at 1/15 for a guy who hit 49 bombs last year. It hasn't worked out, but it was a move that made sense. Krall has made enough horrible moves that you don't have to complain about one that made sense to take him to task. He should be fired for the Candy contract, and Hayes trade alone.

I was a fan of the Suarez signing. But I wonder if the Brewers would have done it, even if they needed the power hitting.

The real difference between Reds and Brewers, Rays, current Cards, and others is spending discipline.

By definition none of these teams can afford the really major players like Juan Soto. Is it worth ever spending $15 million on the second tier?

If for every available $15 million the Reds got 2 or 3 solid players rather than one borderline star - which will bring the better outcome? Aren’t they all gambles?

I look at the value Reds got from Bleday and Lowe and Ferguson and Burke and compare it to the value from higher paid Suarez and Singer and Candelario. And I start to see how the Brewers system makes some sense.