A Blind Comparison the Cincinnati Reds Can't Ignore

The Cincinnati Reds are in need of some lineup improvements, specifically in the middle of their lineup. There are elite players who may be priced out of the Reds market and there are some players coming off down years, for one reason or another, that have shown in the past they are capable bats. Let’s compare a few of these guys.

Player A will be 33 years old next year. He just put together the best season of his career smashing 56 homers and a MLB-leading 132 RBI. He his .240 with an OPS of .928. That is tied for his career-high in OPS with his 2021 season in which he played for two different teams, none of which were the team he played for in 2025. He also struck out 197 times for the second year in a row and played 154 of his 162 games at DH.

Player B will also be 33 years old during the 2026 season. He is coming off a few years in which his production was significantly less than the first six years of his career. He missed all of the 2023 season due to injury. Before his injury, he had a .242 career batting average with a .846 OPS. EVEN DEALING WITH INJURY, he still hit 38 home runs over the last two seasons. Player B mainly plays first base with some appearances as a DH.

I should also mention the projected market for Player A is around $30 million per year while the market for Player B is around $7 million. Player A will most definitely command a multi-year deal while Player B will most likely garner a one-year deal to “prove it.”

Player A is clearly better than Player B, but the gap isn’t a gulf. The Reds are far more likely to give the “prove it” deal to Player B than to outbid the masses for Player A.

Player A is Kyle Schwarber and Player B is Rhys Hoskins.