Julian

Aguiar

Aguiar returns to the minors after being called up for Friday’s game against the Cubs. He allowed two runs over three innings during his season debut.

One Julian replaces another as Julian Garcia heads to the injured list. Aguiar holds a cringe-inducing 6.27 ERA in 12 starts for Triple-A Louisville this season, having walked 31 in 58 innings after missing 2025 to Tommy John surgery. However, he was already on the 40-man roster, so here he is, likely to handle low-leverage work in the bigs.

Rodríguez is the notable name here for fantasy managers, especially in dynasty formats after slashing .283/.336/.450 with 19 homers and 15 steals across 135 games between two levels to finish last year at Triple-A. The 21-year-old will require some additional seasoning on the doorstep of the majors but he’s a power/speed combo talent worth watching throughout the season. Arroyo is one of Cincinnati’s top prospects entering the year after batting .284/.345/.371 with three homers and 12 steals in 120 games last season for Double-A Chattanooga.

The Reds needed to clear space on the 40-man roster for newly-signed Scott Barlow, and so Aguiar was moved to the 60-day IL to make that space. The 23-year-old underwent Tommy John surgery in October and will miss the entire 2025 season.

The move was reported earlier this week and is now official. Barlow will join Taylor Rogers as reinforcements at the back end of the Reds’ bullpen and could be an option for saves if Alexis Diaz struggles with his command again in 2025. Julian Aguiar was placed on the 60-day IL to make room on the 40-man roster.

MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon corrected his previous item. Aguiar finished his season on the IL with what was described as a shoulder sprain.

Aguiar was diagnosed with a shoulder strain back in September, but clearly there was more to the injury than first believed — or at least first described. The surgery will keep him from being able to pitch in 2025, and he’ll battle for a roster spot in 2026 if all goes well.

Aguiar had been expected to start Wednesday’s game. No word yet on how the Reds will fill that slot. The 23-year-old Aguiar came up from Triple-A in August to go 2-1 with a 6.25 ERA in seven starts for the Reds. He might have a shot at competing for a rotation spot next spring, but some more minor league time would be for the best.

Aguiar gave up two homers, the seventh and eighth he’s allowed in 31 2/3 innings this season. Somewhat incredibly, this is the Reds’ first loss in seven games with Aguiar on the mound; they had been 6-0 in spite of his 4.88 ERA. Aguiar should get one more start against the Guardians next week.

Aguiar allowed three hits, walked two and struck out four. He’s failed to complete five innings in four of his six big-league starts, but the Reds have managed to go 6-0 with him on the mound. The win tonight moved him to 2-0 with a 4.88 ERA. He still seems like a weak play with the Braves next on the schedule.