Santiago Espinal is fresh off a -1.4 bWAR season that saw him hit .243/.292/.282 overall in 328 PA with the Cincinnati Reds. Garrett Hampson, meanwhile, went just 3 for 19 in his short stint with Cincinnati last season as part of a three-franchise year where he hit .143/.250/.169 overall. Then, there’s Michael Chavis, who hasn’t had a single PA in Major League Baseball since 2023, and he hit just .242/.281/.341 with the Washington Nationals back then.
Espinal, who elected free agency after being outrighted at season’s end, was the primary utility infielder for the Reds in 2025. While Elly De La Cruz played just about every single inning at shortstop, Espinal got some time there (as well as at 2B when Matt McLain slid over to play short). So, that’s what’s gone from last season. Hampson played exactly one game at shortstop in his short stint with the Reds despite not having started a game at that position since his 2023 season with Miami, while Chavis – who spent 2025 in Japan with the Chunichi Dragons – has never played an inning of short at the big league level at any point.
That’s where the state of Cincinnati’s middle-infield depth sits right now, both in terms of what’s absent from last year and what’s been added to the fold since – a pair of 31 year olds who, truly, don’t have any business playing shortstop ever, and whose overall value defensively has never been jaw-dropping at the less important infield roles. Add in that none of them have ever really hit, and you begin to wonder what the hell the Reds are doing here.
We know the Reds want to get Elly a bit more rest in 2026, be it time off during day games or through rotating him at DH. The plan, I suppose, is to let McLain play short on those days, though that a) discounts that McLain looked like he needed plenty of days off last year and b) opens a hole at 2B that doesn’t have an obvious replacement (unless Sal Stewart suddenly becomes more capable defensively).
That sure doesn’t seem to vibe with the emphasis on defense the front office has espoused since acquiring glove-only 3B Ke’Bryan Hayes (and his long-term contract) last summer. It seems obvious, then, that there’s a pretty decent need for a glove-y guy who can add value defensively up the middle, and it’s always a boon to the roster construction when that player can also switch-hit.
And, since you know where I’m going with this, there’s Edwin Arroyo right there on the 40-man roster who literally does all of that.
He’s right there! On the roster!
He’s also fresh off a short stint with the Cangrejeros de Santurce in Puerto Rican Winter League play where he went 22 for 62 in 16 games (.355/.429/.468). That’s after he hit .284/.345/.371 on the whole with AA Chattanooga last year after losing 2024 to shoulder surgery, though he hit .296/.356/.402 from June 11th (the day he finally socked his first homer) through the end of the year – doing so with a minuscule 13.0% K-rate.
Arroyo is about as known a quantity defensively as it gets, a guy whose overall talent landed him on Top 100 prospect lists for three consecutive years before his shoulder injury and lost 2024. His glove was tabbed as the best in the 2024 edition of Arizona Fall League play by MLB Pipeline’s Sam Dykstra as he emerged from his otherwise lost year. There’s a reason why, at the time, there was question whether it was Arroyo or Noelvi Marte who was actually the prize in the deal that sent Luis Castillo to the Seattle Mariners years ago.
He lacks any time at AAA, which is likely something working against him in this Reds organization. Plenty of other teams – particularly Atlanta and Arroyo’s old club in Seattle – have made habits of promoting players to the majors directly from AA, though that’s not typically Cincinnati’s style. Still, he’s a year older right now than Elly was when he debuted and four months older than Sal – with over 250 more professional PA than Sal right now – so it’s not as if he’s too young and lacking any experience.
There’s a good argument to be made that sending him to AAA to begin 2026 is the prudent move, a move that continues to get him plenty of PA every single day as he continues to shake any and all rust off the totally lost 2024 season. I get that, and I know it’s what’s almost certain to happen. Still, we aren’t too far removed from the Reds suddenly deciding to get aggressive with Jonathan India for an Opening Day, and while everyday PA seem unlikely right now, it’s pretty clear that there’s a role available right now on the 26-man roster where Edwin profiles almost perfectly even if he never shows the world he’s any better – and, if he does, that’s another weapon the Reds have at their disposal from the first game of the season onwards.
Barring another move to cement the roster with an established utility infielder, it sure looks as if Arroyo will head to camp in Goodyear in two weeks with a chance to really show the club that he’s ready. And if he does, there’s no one more well suited than him who’ll be there to challenge for a spot on the Opening Day roster.
Jalen Smith
Immanuel Quickley
LaMelo Ball
