3 Reds players who aren’t on the trade block, but should be

Reds reliever Buck Farmer should be dealt before the deadline

Cincinnati will likely be in the market for multiple relievers before the trade deadline. They need to fill multiple roles in their bullpen as well as upgrade on players like Fernando Cruz, Daniel Duarte and Buck Farmer.

Daniel Duarte and Fernando Cruz will likely be optioned back to Triple-A, but Buck Farmer doesn’t have that chance. Farmer is a free agent at the end of the season and would need to be traded if the Reds look to improve their bullpen too much.

And this makes the most sense for Cincinnati. Farmer is likely the third reliever that would be moved, following Duarte and Cruz. One of those last two will be replaced by Tejay Antone when he returns from Tommy John Surgery, which he should be doing soon. The other one will be replaced when the Reds acquire a left handed reliever in the bullpen.

That leaves Farmer as the last pitcher on the totem pole in the Reds bullpen. If Cincinnati is to make any moves after that, trading Farmer would make sense, because the other option is to DFA him and risk losing him for nothing. A team like the Dodgers would definitely take a risk on Farmer. While he’s been solid this year, if the Reds are serious about winning, they will make multiple trades to acquire relievers which could leave Farmer on the trade block.