Which non-playoff teams can become contenders in 2020?
MLB Teams to Watch
Cincinnati Reds
The Reds finished with a 75-87 record in their first MLB season under manager David Bell. They finished 4th in the NL Central division, which is the first time in five years where they didn’t finish last. It has been a rough stretch for the Reds, who haven’t made the playoffs since 2013.
Thus, they have endured a complete rebuild. However, they have started to show signs of potential. Last offseason, the Reds made a series of aggressive moves to demonstrate that they were ready to move out of their rebuilding phase and compete. These moves included trading for Tanner Roark, Yasiel Puig, Matt Kemp, Alex Wood, and Sonny Gray.
The Reds stayed aggressive at the trade deadline, acquiring prized starting pitcher Trevor Bauer in a three-way trade with the Indians and Padres, which sent Puig to Cleveland and their top prospect, Taylor Trammel, to San Diego. They also traded away Roark and Scooter Gennett.
The Good
While their record didn’t scream success, the Reds have plenty of reasons to be excited about their 2019 season. Eugenio Suárez followed up his all-star 2018 with an even better 2019. The 27-year-old third baseman slugged 49 home runs, which was second in the league. His stellar September performance earned him NL player of the month honors. Sonny Gray bounced back after struggling with the Yankees, posting a career-high 205 strikeouts and 2.87 ERA, which was 7th-best in all of baseball. His performance earned him his second career all-star bid. Luis Castillo solidified himself as an ace, winning 15 games with a 3.40 ERA and 226 strikeouts on the year.
However, nobody stood out more than rookie sensation Aristides Aquino. The 25-year-old right fielder burst onto the scene with a tremendous display of power. He became the first player in MLB history to hit 11 home runs in his first 17 career games. In only 56 games, he finished with 19 home runs and 47 RBIs. He showed a lot of promise and will go into 2020 with high expectations.
Overall, they have a powerful lineup with plenty of young talent looking to contribute more in 2020. The front end of their pitching staff is very formidable, with the 1-2-3 punch of Castillo, Gray, and Bauer being one of the better top three in the league. The back-end of their bullpen is also solid, with Michael Lorenzen, Amir Garrett, Robert Stephenson, and closer Raisel Iglesias all having productive MLB seasons in 2019.
Where they need improvement
The Reds have a good foundation in Cincinnati, but they lack veteran depth. They could use a good defensive veteran middle infielder that can hit in the middle of the lineup. The Reds could re-sign Jose Iglesias, who had a moderately productive year at shortstop. However, they could elect to make a splash and sign someone like Didi Gregorius, who would be a significant upgrade offensively. If they choose to re-sign Iglesias, other cheap, veteran options include Brian Dozier, Brock Holt, Howie Kendrick, and others.
In fact, the Reds could look to stay rather quiet this offseason, and add low-cost veterans to improve their depth offensively, defensively, and on the mound.
The X-Factor
Speaking of veterans, first baseman Joey Votto had one of the worst seasons of his career. His offensive production fell off significantly. He posted a .261/.357/.411 slash line, which were all full-season career lows. While it was clear Votto lost some of his pop in 2018, he still managed to do what he does best: get on base. Votto has lead the league in on-base percentage seven times in his career but struggled in 2019. The Reds don’t need Votto to slug 25 home runs anymore; they have Suárez and Aquino to do that. All they need is their 35-year-old former MVP to become an on-base machine again.