Austin Hays shares thoughts after $5,000,000 Cincinnati Reds move

On Wednesday, news of the Cincinnati Reds' acquisition of outfielder Austin Hays emerged. Per numerous sources, the Reds have agreed to bring in Hays for a one-year, $5 million contract.

Shortly after the move, Austin Hays took to Instagram to post the announcement, expressing his excitement as he prepares to start a new chapter.

"Excited to become a part of Reds country!" Austin Hays captioned his Instagram post

With the Reds finishing the 2024 season placed fourth in the NL Central, with a 77-85 win/loss record, qualification for the postseason was out of the question. Heading into the offseason, it was clear that the Reds needed to overhaul their squad if they had any aspirations of improving in 2025.

With the acquisition of Hays, it appears the Reds may be on the right track. Along with Hays, the Reds have also brought in two-time World Series winner Gavin Lux.

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Snubbing Luis Robert Jr. to bring in Austin Hays instead may prove to be a shrewd piece of business by the Reds

With the new season inching ever closer, almost all thirty major league franchises are currently scrambling to attempt to add the finishing touches to their rosters, before Spring Training.

As the Reds continued to attempt to improve their team, numerous reports linking them to Chicago White Sox center fielder Luis Robert Jr. emerged. However, negotiations eventually came to a standstill, and the Reds' front office opted to bring in Austin Hays instead.

As news of the decision broke, numerous Reds fans on social media appeared frustrated with their team's decision, feeling like they had made the wrong choice of it. On the face of it, it appears there is plenty of substance to that argument, as Luis Robert Jr. is currently 27 and hit fourteen home runs in a struggling White Sox outfit in the 2024 season, whereas Hays is 29, and hit only five home runs in 2024, a notable gap in offensive production.

However, Hays' stats in 2024 are heavily influenced by the numerous injury issues that caused him to miss plenty of games. When fit, Hays is a great right-handed bat and as reliable as anyone in the outfield.

Most importantly, Hays joins as a free agent and is cheaper than Luis Robert Jr., who is under contract with the White Sox until 2027, and will probably prove costly for any team that eventually brings him in.