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Everyone knows that the Cincinnati Reds have put Brandon Phillips and Jay Bruce on the trading block. Each was part of an accepted deal twice during the offseason. Phillips blocked both of his deals, while Bruce blocked one and had another blown up due to a bad injury examination of another player involved. Now that the Reds have gotten off to a fast start, it appears that Bruce and Phillips are there to stay for now.
The Reds have five starting pitchers on the disabled list to start the 2016 season. Knowing that was about to happen, they signed former Red Alfredo Simon for the bargain price of $2 million for the 2016 season. That makes Simon a great trade piece as a starter or reliever later this season depending on how he performs.
Simon pitched for the Reds from 2012 to 2014 before being traded for Eugenio Suarez of the Detroit Tigers. During those three seasons, the first two were spent as a reliever and the last as a starter with a combined ERA of 3.16. As a starter in 2014, Simon made the All-Star team while posting a record of 15-10 over 32 starts for the Reds. Last year Simon took a step back for the Tigers with a 5.05 ERA dropping his record to 13-12.
This year Simon is back in Cincinnati, effectively as the No. 2 starter behind Raisel Iglesias. With Anthony DeSclafani out, the Reds are relying on Iglesias and Simon to have quality starts every time out to save the bullpen for the rest of the young rotation. In his first start Simon pitched five innings in a no-decision.
Even with a fast start, this is a “re-tooling” year in Cincinnati. Simon is looking to reset his value while leading a young staff. If he can show he still has the stuff from 2014, he’ll be on a contending team in no time, even if it isn’t the Reds.
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