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Hunter Renfroe Officially Released as Cincinnati Reds' Playoff Hopes Hang on By Thread

Three days after designating him for assignment, the Cincinnati Reds have officially parted ways with veteran outfielder Hunter Renfroe.
Sam Connon|
Hunter Renfroe Officially Released as Cincinnati Reds' Playoff Hopes Hang on By Thread
Hunter Renfroe Officially Released as Cincinnati Reds' Playoff Hopes Hang on By Thread

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Cincinnati Reds

The Cincinnati Reds have officially released outfielder Hunter Renfroe, the team announced Thursday afternoon.

The Reds claimed Renfroe off waivers on Aug. 31, just two days after the Los Angeles Angels let him go. To that point, Renfroe was batting .242 with 19 home runs, 56 RBI and a .737 OPS on the season.

Renfroe failed to match that production since arriving in Cincinnati. In 14 appearances with the Reds, Renfroe was hitting .128 with one home run, four RBI and a .432 OPS.

Cincinnati designated Renfroe for assignment on Monday.

Renfroe first broke into the big leagues with the San Diego Padres in 2016, three years after the club took him in the first round of the MLB Draft. After four years with the Padres, Renfroe bounced around from the Tampa Bay Rays to the Boston Red Sox to the Milwaukee Brewers, hitting homers all along the way.

Excluding the COVID-shortened 2020 campaign, Renfroe is averaging 28 home runs a year in his six full seasons of MLB action. The 31-year-old outfielder ranks No. 22 in home runs in all of baseball dating back to the start of 2017.

Renfroe has appeared in 23 playoff games across seven series so far in his career, but he will not get any postseason action in 2023. In those games, Renfroe hit two home runs with eight RBI while batting .186 with a .623 OPS.

The Reds are hoping to earn a postseason bid without Renfroe, instead leaning on Spencer Steer, TJ Friedl and Will Benson to start in the outfield with Jake Fraley slotting in as designated hitter.

Cincinnati is currently sitting at 79-75, which puts them 1.0 game back of the Chicago Cubs for the third and final NL Wild Card spot. FanGraphs gives the Reds a 20.8% of making the playoffs.

The Reds have Thursday off, but open a series with the Pittsburgh Pirates on Friday. First pitch is scheduled for 6:40 p.m. ET.

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Sam Connon
SAM CONNON

Sam Connon is a staff writer covering baseball for “Fastball on SI.’’ He previously covered UCLA Athletics for On SI’s All Bruins site, and is a UCLA graduate, with his work there as a sports columnist receiving awards from the College Media Association and Society of Professional Journalists. Connon also wrote for On SI’s New England Patriots site, Patriots Country, and he was on the Patriots and Boston Red Sox beats at Prime Time Sports Talk. Sam lives in Boston.

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