If you’re diving into the Wayback Machine, you might remember that Cincinnati Reds reliever Fernando Cruz was once a pitching prospect for the Cubs. He reached Triple-A Iowa in 2015 at age 25, but that was no longer as high as his rise and the Cubs let him go. From there he did the Indyball thing, the international thing and eventually had some success in Mexico. The Reds brought him back to the States, where he reached the major leagues for the first time as a 32-year-old in 2022, and he has put together some good performances for the Reds in recent years.

Whatever the case, the Reds took advantage of this development and also depth catcher Alex Jackson in a trade for New York Yankees catcher Jose Trevino. Trevino is now 32 years old and in his final year before free agency. He’s a hard-hitting catcher with elite defense who will likely help the Reds’ pitching staff. This is a pretty good move for the Reds, especially considering how they got Cruz in the first place.

All in all, despite his age, Cruz is still pre-arbitration and also has minor league options remaining. He has a lot of value and potential — the Yankees basically just replaced new Cubs pitcher Cody Poteet — so the Reds might look back in a year and regret giving up on him.

However, I don’t think this deal made the Reds any better for 2025, especially with a younger pitching staff.