12 Reds Prospects To Watch Beyond The Top 30

The Reds Top 30 prospects rankings are up now for Baseball America subscribers, with full scouting reports, BA grades and tools grade projections for all 30 players.

Through the process of narrowing the list down to a Top 30, there are other intriguing names who didn’t make the cut but are worth monitoring, with the potential to jump into the Top 30 in the future. Some of those are players who might be in the upper levels and could see big league time this year, though likely in a limited role, while others are lower-level players still in the complex leagues with more upside but plenty of risk.

Beyond the Top 30, these are 12 prospects to watch in Cincinnati’s farm system.

Rece Hinds, OF. Hinds has great power but even greater strikeout concerns. Hinds hits the ball exceptionally hard, but his 39% strikeout rate ranks among the worst in the minors. A hamate injury cost him significant time in 2022, following a knee injury that sidelined him in 2021. Hinds has the power to clear batting eyes with ease and has true all-fields home run power. He has plenty of bat speed, but he doesn’t make good swing decisions. He’s too aggressive and can be beaten in the zone because he gets fooled too often. He could benefit from focusing more on making contact, since his power is such that even a less than full-effort swing from Hinds can clear the fence. The Reds moved him to the outfield in 2022 to try to reduce the wear and tear on his knees. He has taken to the outfield and his plus-plus arm shuts down running games. He had nine assists in 2022. He is an average runner who can swipe a bag against a pitcher who is slow to the plate. 

Austin Hendrick, OF. Hendrick hit 21 home runs and swiped 15 bases in 2022. That’s the good news. The bad news? He is a career .214 hitter who struck out 37% of the time. His power and bat speed remain elite, but he has to make more contact.

Tyler Callihan, 2B/3B. Callihan has had little luck so far. He missed the second half of 2021 with Tommy John surgery and a thumb injury from a car accident forced him to miss time in 2022. He remains a promising hitter, but hasn’t gotten to show it in games.

Fernando Cruz, RHP. A 32-year-old revelation who originally signed with the Royals in 2007 as a hitter, Cruz moved to the mound, went to Mexico and found himself making his MLB debut in 2022, 16 seasons after he signed. He will compete for a spot in the Reds bullpen in 2023.

Javi Rivera, RHP. A 2021 20th-round pick out of Florida Atlantic, Rivera is a control specialist with enough stuff to keep hitters honest. He should be one of the aces of the High-A Dayton staff in 2023.

Andrew Moore, RHP. Moore looked to be a revelation for the Mariners in 2022, but when the Reds tried to stretch him out after acquiring him in the Luis Castillo trade, his control fell apart. He’ll head back to the bullpen as a power reliever for 2023.

Allan Cerda, OF. Cerda re-signed with the Reds as a MiLB free agent. He continues to be a powerful outfielder who struggles to hit for average.

Steven Hajjar, LHP. Hajjar would be a top 30 prospect if he was healthy, but a shoulder injury meant he made just two starts in 2022. The injury continues to cloud his status for 2023 as well.

Ivan Johnson, 2B. Johnson has long been viewed as one of the better pure hitters in the Reds’ system. But with the team’s newfound surplus of middle infield talent, he’s running out of time to have a breakout season.

Jared Solomon, RHP. Returning from Tommy John surgery, Solomon did make his MLB debut in 2022, but he was then designated for assignment and re-assigned to the minors. His stuff is MLB caliber, but his control needs a lot of work.

Trey Faltine, SS. The Reds are overflowing with shortstop prospects, but Faltine is one of the most athletic and best defenders of the group, something he showed during a solid career at Texas.

Daniel Vellojin, C. Vellojin has power potential and a strong arm, but his blocking needs plenty of work. In addition to allowing 13 passed balls in 61 games last year, he also gave up 61 wild pitches after allowing 102 wild pitches in 74 games in 2021.