The Toronto Blue Jays traded former All-Star infielder Santiago Espinal to the Cincinnati Reds on Wednesday night.
In exchange, they acquired pitcher Chris McElvain.
The Reds made the announcement on social media:
The #Reds have acquired IF Santiago Espinal from the Blue Jays in exchange for RHP Chris McElvain.
This move means a few different things for both franchises.
1) The acquisition could mean that the Reds are in for a lengthy absence with regards to infielder Matt McLain. The breakout infielder from 2023 could require surgery to fix his ailing shoulder, although that isn’t known for sure. But with the team already missing Noelvi Marte (PED suspension), they clearly felt they needed insurance in the infield. Perhaps McLain’s absence won’t be a quick one.
2) Espinal clearly wasn’t in the Jays plans for this year. He was battling for an infield spot with Cavan Biggio, Davis Schneider and Eduardo Escobar, so this helps break up the logjam in the organization. This could signal that Isiah Kiner-Falefa will be the team’s third baseman, with Biggio or Schneider possibly getting the nod at second base.
Espinal made the American League All-Star team in 2022 when he hit .267 for the year with seven homers and 51 RBI. He had a more modest role in 2023, hitting .248 over just 93 games. He had just two home runs and 25 RBI.
As for McElvain, he was an eighth-round pick of the Reds in the 2022 MLB Draft. A Vanderbilt University product, he is 5-5 lifetime in the minors with a 3.75 ERA. He’s struck out 87 batters in 96.0 innings.
