Stop us if this sounds familiar — the Cincinnati Reds once again appear to be in an ideal position to acquire Luis Robert Jr. from the Chicago White Sox.
This potential deal was nearly finalized in the offseason, with the Reds reportedly close to landing Robert before talks ultimately collapsed. The opportunity resurfaced earlier this season when Robert was in the midst of the worst slump of his career.
Now, a fresh report suggests the White Sox may be ready to make a critical concession in order to move on from Robert, putting the Reds back in a prime spot to strike a deal.
The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon put out a new story (subscription required) that shined a new light on the White Sox’s trade deadline thinking, where they reported Chicago is willing to include cash in a trade for Robert or Andrew Benintendi to help offset the cost of their salaries. That update should be music to the Reds’ ears.
Newly-added wrinkle gives Reds the perfect reason to pull off Luis Robert Jr. trade with White Sox
While this is the final guaranteed year in the six-year, $50 million deal that Robert signed prior to making his MLB debut, he has $20 million club-options for the 2026 and 2027 seasons along with a $2 million buyout for 2026.
Two years ago, Robert’s club option seemed like a no-brainer considering he was in the midst of an All-Star season where he hit .264/.315/524 with 30 home runs and 84 RBI. That said, he’s only hit .211 in 168 games since and has a meager .188 batting average this season. He’s still been able to prove his worth on the basepaths this year (22-for-27 on steals) and in the field (86th percentile in outfield range).
While the presence of Robert’s club-option next year — allowing a team to pull the plug on the experiment after the 2025 season — makes a trade for him a no-brainer, it becomes even more palatable if the White Sox are willing to pay down some of the money he’s owed this year.
Robert would be the kind of player who could help turn things around. Outfielders like Rece Hinds and Will Benson are depth options regardless, so why not allow them provide depth behind a defensive wizard who has received All-Star votes in his career?
The Reds have proven they’ll be aggressive if they see an opportunity to strike, as evidenced by the impending promotion of Chase Burns, and the White Sox’s willingness to take on some of Robert’s salary is the baseball equivalent of flashing a neon sign that says “please trade with us.”
Cincinnati has come frustratingly close in past trade discussions with Chicago — seemingly reaching the one-yard line. But with this latest development, there’s little reason to believe they can’t finally punch it into the end zone and complete the deal.
Leave a Reply