Allan

Cerda

Cerda spent last year in the Reds and Giants organizations, batting .189/.289/.434 with seven homers and one steal across 121 plate appearances between High-A and Double-A. The 25-year-old outfielder was a notable prospect for the Reds a couple years ago, but has pretty much fallen off the map completely.

Cerda was cut loose earlier this month by the Reds and has yet to reach the majors. The 24-year-old will presumably head to Double-A Richmond as extra organizational depth.

Cerda spent the last seven years in Cincinnati’s system, but never wound up making it past the Double-A level. It’s possible another organizational will roll the dice, but he was batting just .181 through 23 games this season as a 24-year-old in Double-A.

The 23-year-old outfielder played at four different minor league stops for the Reds during the 2023 season, though the bulk of his action came at Double-A Chattanooga. All told, he slashed .187/.357/.379 with 10 homers, 34 RBI and six stolen bases (in 12 attempts) over 272 plate appearances in his 68 games. He’ll continue to function as minor league outfield depth for the Reds.

Lively and Busenitz were battling for a spot in the Reds’ season-opening pitching plans. The latest Reds’ moves trim their camp roster to 61 players.

Cerda was non-tendered by the Reds last week, but has elected to return to the organization on a new deal. The 22-year-old was one of the more promising prospects in Cincinnati’s minor league system just a few years ago, but stalled out in the upper minors this past year, hitting just .208/.360/.444 with 24 homers between High-A Dayton and Double-A Chattanooga.

The 22-year-old was once considered a top-20 prospect in the Reds organization, but he had a disappointing season in 2022 -- slashing .208/.360/.444 with 24 homers, 56 RBI and a 168/84 K/BB ratio over 506 plate appearances between High-A Dayton and Double-A Chattanooga. Given his power potential, there will be other teams willing to take him on as a reclamation project.

Cerda also drew a walk, and he drove in five runs for the Dragons. The pair of homers brings his season total to 12, and ups his slugging percentage to .529 with a .388 on-base percentage and .238 average. The 22-year-old has above-average power potential in his right-handed bat, the type you often see in hitters who put up 25-plus homer seasons. He has improved his approach at the plate -- he’s drawn 36 walks in 53 games compared to 41 in 87 last year -- but he has significant contact issues, and is unlikely to be much of a threat on the bases. Still, Cerda’s power is impressive, and if he maxes out he could be a middle-of-the-order hitter in a few years.

No surprises among this round of Thursday morning cuts from Reds camp. Cerda, 22, posted an encouraging .884 OPS with 17 home runs in 87 games last summer between Low-A and High-A ball, but he’s probably at least a year away from arriving in Cincinnati.

Cerda, who turns 22 next week, posted a .884 OPS with 17 homers between Low- and High-A this season. He’s ranked by MLB.com as the team’s No. 17 prospect.