The Cincinnati Reds have announced their acquisition of Ty France and cash from the Seattle Mariners in exchange for minor league catcher Andrew Salcedo. France was designated for assignment last week by Seattle and will now join the struggling Reds lineup. Cincinnati has placed starter Graham Ashcraft on the 60-day injured list to clear a spot on the 40-man roster for France.
Fit For The Reds
Coming into the season, the Reds had a plethora of options at first base, with Christian Encarnacion-Strand, Spencer Steer, and Jeimer Candelario all standing as suitors at the position. However, with Encarnacion-Strand’s wrist surgery and team injuries shifting Steer to the outfield, Candelario now stands as the everyday first baseman. Candelario handled most of his workload at third base early on in the year but has shifted to first after Noelvi Marte‘s return from an 80-game PED suspension.
France will likely start at first base against left-handers and shift Candelario to DH during those games as he has fared well against lefties. In 90 plate appearances versus LHP this year, France slashed .237/.356/.395 for a .750 OPS and 123 wRC+, as well as an impressive 12.2 BB%.
Expectations For France
The Reds are in desperate need of offense and bringing France could be a positive boost. Simply moving away from the cavernous pitcher friendly T-Mobile park to the hitter friendly confines of Great American Ballpark will bring an extra jolt to his power numbers. If France can take advantage of the platoon opportunities and return to his 2020 to 2022 form where he posted a combined .285/.355/.443 slash line with 42 home runs, it would be a huge upgrade for the stifling Reds offense.
The Reds offense from the first base position has been awful, to say the least, as their combined .215/.266/.363 slash line will be an easy one to best, seeing as France has a decent career track record offensively.
France and the Reds’ Future
If things go right, the addition of Ty France will benefit the Reds a ton, especially as they didn’t give up much for his services. He has one more year of arbitration left and will be a free agent after the 2025 season. He is making $6.775 million this year and due to his 2023 and 2024 struggles, the 2025 number should settle south of $10 million, an affordable price for the small market Reds.
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