Reds Farm Report

The Bats’ lineup was loaded to start the 2023 season, as evidenced by the number of players brought up to the majors that became staples of the Reds lineup. Matt McLain, Elly De La Cruz, Christian Encarnacion-Strand and Noelvi Marte all saw time at Louisville (with Marte starting in Double-A) before their big league callup. Jose Barrero was a run-producing machine for the Bats, particularly in the season’s second half when he hit 18 home runs with 54 RBIs. Outfielder TJ Hopkins was Louisville’s most consistent hitter, finishing the year with a .308 average and .411 OBP in 94 games. Barrero and Hopkins both saw time in a Reds uniform as well in 2023.

The Reds relied on a number of arms from their Triple-A affiliate this year. One of those was Daniel Duarte, who was a standout in his 32 games with the Bats. Duarte was 4-0 with a 3.34 ERA, including 39 K’s in 35 innings. His success translated to the next level as well with Duarte serving a big role in the second half of the year to the tune of a 3.69 ERA in 31 games for the Reds. One of 2023’s brightest moments was the return of Tejay Antone. Having been through two Tommy John surgeries and not stepping foot on a major league mound in over two years, Antone completed his comeback. The final step of that long-awaited journey to pitch again at Great American Ball Park was a stint in Louisville where in 12 games, Antone showed his dominance of old with a 3.00 ERA and 11 strikeouts.

The Lookouts also had a Futures Game representative. No. 1 prospect Rhett Lowder tossed one inning, in which he recorded a strikeout, for the National League. In July, the right hander recorded 17 strikeouts in 20 1/3 innings pitched across four starts for the Lookouts.

Sam Benschoter had a breakout month in July. The right hander had four shutout appearances in his seven games -- a mix of starts, short relief and long relief. He led Chattanooga with 21 strikeouts in July.

Chattanooga’s offense was led by Francisco Urbaez, who went 14-for-62 (.226) with four doubles and six RBIs. The infielder is 63-for-225 (.265) with five home runs and 34 RBIs in 2024.

The Dragons found themselves on a hot streak to start the second half. They complied a 13- 9 record that includes series wins against the Cubs and the TinCaps to remain in second place in the Midwest League East. No. 12 prospect Hector Rodriguez once again led the Dragons at the plate. In July, he went 19-for-81 (.235) with two doubles, two home runs and 13 RBIs in 21 games.

Dayton also had a Futures Game nominee during the All-Star break. No. 3 prospect Cam Collier earned the Larry Doby Award as the game’s MVP. The 19-year-old outfielder knocked a 409-foot home run to help the National League to a healthy lead and a 6-1 victory.

Right-hander Ryan Cardona continued his impressive 2024 campaign with a 3-0 performance in July. He collected the most strikeouts for Dayton with 20 in 20 2/3 innings over four starts. Cardona registered an impressive 0.58 WHIP in July. He had two shutout starts lasting five or more innings.

Reds No. 14 prospect Sammy Stafura and Yerlin Confidan helped Daytona to a 12-10 record in July. The pop in the pair’s bats helped them each record 22 hits, which tied them with Jupiter’s Kemp Alderman and Tampa’s Roderick Arias for the third-most hits in the Florida State League in July. Confidan also had the second-most doubles in the league (10). Stafura tied for the fourth-most RBIs (15) in the league as well.

On the mound, the Tortugas were unstoppable. Nick Sando finished July with a 3-0 record and 21 strikeouts in 17 2/3 innings. The 23-year-old southpaw had two scoreless appearances, one starting and one in relief. His lone start of the month on July 30 was Sando’s first start since June 16. The Tortugas’ innings leader, Nestor Lorant, allowed just three runs through 18 2/3 innings in five games, including four starts. Lorant is tied with No. 29 prospect Adan Serwinowski for the most Tortuga strikeouts in 2024 at 83 each.

Eddy Demurias did in June what every pitcher strives for, but few accomplish. The right-handed reliever made 11 appearances on the mound and didn’t allow a single run. In those 12 innings pitched, he struck out 14 batters and gave up just eights hits. In late June, the Reds also promoted pitcher Brandon Williamson to Louisville. The Reds’ No. 4 prospect according to MLB Pipeline, Williamson continues his ascent toward the majors.

A second-round draft pick by the Reds in 2017, outfield Stuart Fairchild returned to the organization after being claimed off waivers on June 11. It didn’t take long for him to get settled in with Louisville as Fairchild hit safely in nine of his 12 games in June, slashing .302/.333/.721. In that stretch, he led the team in home runs (5), RBIs (9) and runs scored (10) while matching the team lead in hits (13).

Reds No. 2 prospect and infielder Noelvi Marte continued bolstering his resume, finishing the first half of the season with a .281 average and .356 on-base percentage to help the Lookouts capture the first half title in the Southern League’s North Division, solidifying their postseason spot. Marte compiled eight home runs, 10 doubles, 10 steals and 22 walks in his 50 games, earning a selection to the 2023 SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game and a promotion to Triple-A Louisville on June 27. Outfielder Rece Hinds brought the lumber last month, hitting .364 with eight deep flies and a whopping 28 RBIs in just 22 games. The organization’s No. 16 prospect tied the 2023 Minor League Baseball record with six consecutive games hitting at least one home run (June 11-17). Through the first half of the season, Hinds ranked second in the Southern League with 13 homers, 52 RBIs and a .521 slugging percentage.

Connor Phillips continued his 2023 coming out party, going 1-0 with a 2.59 ERA in five starts while striking out 40 batters in only 24.1 innings pitched in June. By the time the Reds’ No. 10 prospect was promoted to Triple-A on June 28, he led the entire minor leagues with 111 strikeouts. Fellow starter and strikeout extraordinaire Christian Roa also earned a uniform change for the second half of the season, joining Phillips in Louisville. In four starts last month, Roa went 3-1 with a 2.31 ERA for Chattanooga, and finished his first half at Double-A with 87 K’s in 59 innings, which ranked third in the Southern League.

Edwin Arroyo showed why the Reds placed so much value on him when they made the shortstop one of the centerpieces of their trade with Seattle a year ago. The team’s No. 3 prospect hit .337 with a .403 on-base percentage in June. In those 22 games, the 19-year-old hit three home runs, six doubles, two triples and drove in 14 runs while going 6-for-6 in stolen base attempts. Arroyo’s offensive output was matched by several Dragons last month, including Austin Callahan. The third baseman led the team with four homers, nine doubles and 18 RBIs.

Dragons starters had a great month to close out the first half of the season, with Julian Aguiar, Jose Acuna and Chase Petty leading the way. Aguiar posted a 2.70 ERA in four starts covering 20 innings while Acuna recorded a 2.37 ERA in four games including three starts that spanned 19 innings. Petty, the Reds’ No. 7 prospect, started three games as well, boasting a 2.25 ERA in his 12 innings of action. Owen Holt and Jake Gozzo did their part out of the ‘pen, each surrendering just one earned one in 12.1 and 11.1 innings respectively.

Hector Rodriguez kept up his season-long assault on Single-A pitching by hitting .333 in June, and we’re not talking just singles as evidenced by his 1.007 OPS. Nearly half of his 29 hits went for extra bases: five home runs, six doubles and three triples. No. 8 prospect Sal Stewart helped give Dayton a true one-two punch, as the third baseman hit .317 last month with a .380 on-base percentage. He added six doubles of his own, along with four homers and 19 RBIs.

It was a dominant month for 23-year-old Easton Sikorski. The righty made five appearances out of the bullpen, yielding a single run in 10 innings pitched with 15 strikeouts. Fellow right-handers Kevin Abel and Kenya Huggins had similar success while balancing starting and relief duties. Each pitcher tossed 11 innings and turned in a 2.45 ERA.

A fifth-round selection by Cleveland in 2016, outfielder Conner Capel paced the Bats offense in April during his first season with the Reds organization. In 24 games, Capel hit seven home runs with 15 RBIs, seven doubles and 15 walks. He led or tied for the team lead in each of those categories while sporting a .390 on-base percentage. The Reds added Capel to the big league roster on Tuesday. Third baseman Levi Jordan was a hitting machine in the first month, logging a .404 average with a .483 OBP. He hit safely in 13 of his 15 April games, which included a 10-game hitting streak, and was only slowed down by a brief stint on the injured list.

Reds No. 14 prospect Lyon Richardson posted a 3.50 ERA in five April starts. He especially found his groove during the middle of the month, allowing only two earned runs in his final three April starts while striking out 20 batters. Tony Santillan has been a workhorse out of Bats’ bullpen, and an effective one at that. He didn’t surrender an earned run in 11 of his 12 April appearances and allowed a hit in just two of those games. Through the first week of May, Santillan led all International League pitchers with 15 games.

Second baseman Ivan Johnson has been the primary offensive threat for the Lookouts in the early going. The 25-year-old hit .269 with three doubles, two homers, six RBIs and a nearly .400 on-base percentage in April. Outfielder Jack Rogers matched Johnson with 14 hits and added a team-high 10 RBIs. Austin Hendrick’s 15 hits in April were tops among Chattanooga hitters and his five stolen bases only trailed the six by Tyler Callihan.

While it doesn’t show in the win column, pitcher Sam Benschoter was the Lookouts’ best starter In April. He had a 3.47 ERA in five starts along with 29 strikeouts, matching the Southern League lead in that category. Through the first week of May, reliever Zach Maxwell was still boasting a clean sheet for the season. The Reds’ No. 27 prospect was 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA in seven April games with 17 punchouts and added two more scoreless appearances to start off the new month.

It doesn’t take more than a quick glance at the Dragons' stat sheet for April to see where the bulk of the offense came from. No. 7 prospect Cam Collier hit just shy of .300 and mashed seven long balls with 25 RBIs, earning him Reds Minor League Player of the Month honors. But he received plenty of help with four of his teammates adding three homers of their own, giving Dayton the second-most home runs in the league for the first month. Outfielder Hector Rodriguez was one of those players, and the No. 13 prospect hit .325 with 16 RBIs. Third baseman Sal Stewart and outfielder Jay Allen II also reached the .300 plateau and both reached base at over a .420 clip.

Entering the season, all eyes were on the Reds’ top pick in the 2023 MLB Draft, Rhett Lowder. The pitcher was selected seventh overall and has not disappointed in his first professional season. Lowder made four starts in April and finished the month 1-0 with a 1.86 ERA and 20 K’s in 19.1 innings of work. He was promoted to Double-A on May 8. Ryan Cardona started two games and pitched out of the ‘pen twice, totaling a 3.06 ERA with 18 strikeouts. Cardona has recorded a sub-3.50 ERA in each of his first three professional seasons.

Outfielder Ariel Almonte has been a one-man wrecking crew for the Reds’ Single-A affiliate. Almonte blasted a Florida State League-high seven home runs in April and had raised that total to nine through the first weekend of May. No other player in the league had more than four homers in that span. Shortstop Dominic Pitelli had a strong start as well with a .333 average, .378 on-base percentage and 23 hits with seven doubles, all of which led the Dragons in April. Pitelli also added seven steals and 10 RBIs.

There was no shortage of sensational pitchers for Daytona in April. At just 19 years old, Adam Serwinowski made four starts (4 IP in each) and didn’t allow a single run in any of them. He was named the organization’s Minor League Pitcher of the Month. In five starts covering 22.2 IP, Brian Edgington recorded a 1.99 ERA with 27 strikeouts. Including his first start of May, Edgington allowed one earned run or fewer in five of his six starts. Another starter, Jose Franco, ended April with a 1.84 ERA and 22 strikeouts. From the bullpen, Nestor Lorant and Anyer Laureano combined to allow just two earned runs in 25.1 innings of relief.