Rays Starting Pitcher Shares Emotional Thoughts on Trade to Reds

The Reds are trading for Tampa Bay Rays starting pitcher Zack Littell according to ESPN's Jeff Passan.

Littell, 29, has started 50 games over the past two seasons. He has a 3.72 ERA in 128 1/3 innings this season. He's scheduled to become a free agent at the end of the year.

After his start on Wednesday, Littell was told he'd been traded pending medicals and he had an emotional response.

"It is something that can obviously sneak up on you," an emotional Littell said. "I think there are some moving parts still going on. It's just part of the game."

The right-hander found out the news after the game. He had nothing, but fantastic things to say about his time in Tampa Bay.

"It's hard to put into words," Littell said. "I was a fringe reliever to the opportunity I got here, truly has and will continue to change my life. I am extremely thankful."

The trade is for Triple-A pitcher Brian Van Belle and High-A pitcher Adam Serwinowski to the Rays in the deal, according to Gordon Wittenmyer. Serwinowski is the Reds' 10th ranked prospect.

You can watch the video below:

Here’s #Rays right-handed starter Zack Littell, in his own words, on learning he’d been traded to the #Reds, via our @FanDuelSN_Rays postgame show. pic.twitter.com/jjVz8LSna5
— Ryan Bass (@Ry_Bass) July 31, 2025