Will

Benson

That the Reds considered JJ Bleday an apparent upgrade from Benson doesn’t like great news for the 27-year-old, and now they could now bypass both and play Spencer Steer in left field after signing Eugenio Suárez. Still, Benson might be the Reds’ best option in left against righties. Statcast thought he was pretty unlucky to finish at .226/.273/.435 last year, and along with his improved EV numbers, he did nice work to lower his strikeout rate last season.

Benson ended up at .226/.273/.435 in 253 plate appearances, but the drop in his strikeout rate from a career mark of 35.5% to 26.5% last season was encouraging, especially in combination with his career-best 54% hard-hit rate. The assumption is that the newly signed JJ Bleday will get the nod over Benson against right-handers initially, but the guess here is that Benson proves to be the better player of the two, potentially giving him some value in deeper formats.

There was no avenue for Myers to play regularly next season in Miami with Kyle Stowers and Jakob Marsee emerging as core building blocks and Griffin Conine coming back from shoulder surgery. The 29-year-old, who posted a pedestrian .617 OPS with six homers and 19 steals over 333 plate appearances across 106 games for the Marlins last season, provides the Reds with a decent insurance policy behind center fielder TJ Friedl. He’ll enter spring training in competition with Will Benson and JJ Bleday for a corner-outfield role, with a bench assignment the most probable outcome.

The deal is now official. Bleday heads to Cincinnati as a relatively low-risk reclamation project after being non-tendered by the Athletics last month with top prospects Denzel Clarke and Colby Thomas taking over in center field with Tyler Soderstrom and Lawrence Butler in the corners. The 28-year-old former top-five pick figures to compete with Will Benson in spring training for playing time in a platoon role for the Reds next season. At a bare minimum, he’ll occupy a bench role as an insurance policy behind TJ Friedl in center field. His fantasy appeal is strictly limited to NL-only formats based on his pedestrian plate skills and lack of stolen base upside. He’s an extremely streaky hot-and-cold power hitter that will have stretches of fantasy relevance, especially in Cincinnati’s favorable offensive environment.

Bleday was very good for the Athletics back 2024, hitting .243/.324/.437 as their primary center fielder, but that’s the only real success he’s enjoyed in four seasons as a major leaguer. Overall, the 28-year-old former top-five pick has come in at .215/.307/.394 in 1,527 plate appearances. He figures to compete with Will Benson for one spot on Cincinnati’s roster. In a best-case scenario, he could be a starter against righties, but he’d have to earn it and there isn’t much reason to think he will.

Hays has been sidelined since exiting Saturday’s game with back spasms. It’ll be Will Benson patrolling left field for the third consecutive contest in his ongoing absence.

Benson broke a scoreless tie with a one-out RBI double off of Colin Rea in the fourth inning. That would wind up being the only tally for either team in the ballgame. The 27-year-old outfielder has had a rough season offensively, slashing .229/.275/.453 with 12 homers and 40 RBI in 236 plate appearances.

Benson has three homers over 10 at-bats in the Reds’ last five games. He’s not truly a quality major league hitter, but he’s been known to resemble one for several weeks at a time. He might be an option this coming week for teams in big need of power; the Reds are one of the few teams with seven games and they’ll face righties in five of them.

McLain has returned to an everyday role in the Reds’ lineup in recent weeks, but he’ll get a breather in this one. Gavin Lux will cover second base in his place with TJ Friedl shifting to the designated hitter slot in the lineup and Will Benson drawing a start in center field.

It’s the second time in the Reds’ last three contests that the slumping Marte has found himself on the Reds’ bench. Will Benson will start in his place in right field and bat sixth for the Reds against J.T. Ginn and the Athletics on Friday evening in West Sacramento.