Cincinnati Reds Press Clippings July 31, 2018 THIS DAY IN REDS HISTORY 1935-The Reds oversell the night game and jam 30,000 fans into the stands. Kitty Burke, a fan, slides under the rope and grabs a bat. St. Louis pitcher Paul Dean lobs a pitch to her and she grounds out. Cardinals manager, Frankie Frisch, demands it count as an at-bat MLB.COM Reds acquire 3 players from Braves for Duvall Right-handers Sims, Wisler and OF Tucker headed to Cincinnati By Mark Sheldon MLB.com @m_sheldon 12:22 AM EDT DETROIT -- The Reds traded Adam Duvall to the Braves on Monday night for right-handed pitchers Lucas Sims and Matt Wisler and outfielder Preston Tucker. Tucker will join the Reds on Tuesday before they open a two-game series vs. the Tigers at Comerica Park. It has yet to be determined in the short term whether Sims or Wisler will pitch in the big leagues or Triple-A. Reds president of baseball operations Dick Williams said that Braves general manager Alex Anthopoulos first approached him about Duvall when their teams played in late June at Atlanta. "So we had it on our board for a while as a team that was interested in him," Williams said. "The team has been playing very well. We're pleased with the performance we're seeing in the middle of the summer. We've been trying to keep an eye on next year, but also this year is important. "The winning vibe and winning culture [that] have been present recently is something we've been looking for, for a little while. And we're pleased to have found it. We don't want to do anything to disrupt it. At the same time, it's very important to continue to have a focus on the future." Monday's trade came less than 24 hours away from today's 4 p.m. ET non-waiver Trade Deadline. While the Reds remain in fifth place in the National League Central, they have a 45-43 record since interim manager Jim Riggleman replaced Bryan Price on April 19. That has them more likely to be partial sellers. Starting pitcher Matt Harvey, a free agent after the season, could also be on the move before the Deadline. Sims, 24, was a first-round pick of the Braves in the 2012 MLB Draft. After he debuted last season in the big leagues, he has posted a 5.96 ERA in 20 games, including 10 starts for Atlanta as well as six relief appearances this season. There has been more success at Triple-A for Sims, who is 4-3 with a 2.84 ERA in 15 games (14 starts) at that level. The Reds project Sims to be a big league starter and have some flexibility since he has a Minor League option remaining after this year. "Sims is really the one that we viewed as the centerpiece of the deal," Williams said. "We watched him for a while. We've played against him. We've got good grades on him. He's had a lot of success the last couple of years in Triple-A. He's been up to the big leagues but hasn't had a lot of opportunity up there. We still think there's some pretty good upside." Wisler, 25, has spent most of this season at Triple-A, where he is 4-4 with a 4.37 ERA in 13 starts. He's pitched in seven games with the Braves this year, including three starts, and has a 5.40 ERA. He could end up as either a starter or reliever for Cincinnati, but he is out of options after 2018. "Not quite as much flexibility with him, but we'll get a good chance to evaluate him this year and see where he fits going forward," Williams said. The 28-year-old Tucker was traded to from the Astros to the Braves in December 2017 in exchange for cash and has spent most of this season in the Majors with Atlanta. He was hitting .256/.307/.444 with four home runs and 22 RBIs in 62 games. Duvall came to the Reds in the July 2015 trade that sent pitcher Mike Leake to the Giants. He hit more than 30 homers in both 2016 and '17 and was a National League All-Star in '16. This season, his production struggled as he batted .205/.286/.399, but he's still hit 15 homers and 61 RBIs in his 105 games for Cincinnati. One motivating factor for moving Duvall was the fact that he will become arbitration eligible this winter and get a big raise from the $645,000 he's currently making. The Reds are trying to free up resources to make more upgrades this winter. Also, the Reds have determined that their corner outfielders of the future are Scott Schebler and Jesse Winker. "Big time contributor, good guy in the clubhouse. Definitely a great find by our scouts in the Leake trade that brought him over," Williams said. "This is one of those that was a tough decision, but it was definitely made with an eye on the future. It's an opportunity to get some arms that might help us and free up some opportunity for some other guys." Inbox: Are Reds open to offers on Iglesias? Beat reporter Mark Sheldon answers questions from fans By Mark Sheldon MLB.com @m_sheldon Jul. 30th, 2018 How likely are the Reds to move Raisel Iglesias? Are any teams willing to pay the price? -- @DannyMcBrideNM, on Twitter Because Iglesias is signed to a club-friendly contract ($11.4 million owed over 2019-20) and under control through 2021, the Reds are not shopping him hard -- but they're definitely listening. Zach Britton and Kelvin Herrera are two closers who have already been traded, so Iglesias seems like he would be even more in demand. I know the Astros have been one club with interest, but I can imagine there are others. If Cincinnati is blown away by an offer, president of baseball operations Dick Williams might make a deal. But I also know the Reds want the club to be contending sooner than later. Having Iglesias anchor the bullpen as Cincinnati's closer in '19 would be an important part to reaching that goal. Why aren't the Reds more active at the non-waiver Trade Deadline? And why do they seldom try to upgrade the rotation via free agency? Is it just about money? -- Dale Pearl, via Facebook On the first question, the Reds have historically made some moves at the Deadline, but lately they've been sellers -- such as the trades that sent Jay Bruce to the Mets in 2016 and Mike Leake to the Giants and Johnny Cueto to the Royals in '15. As a non- contender this season, it'd be hard for Cincinnati to give up talent to be a buyer before this year's Deadline. And because of the improvement since April, the Reds appeared to have to modified how much they are willing to sell. As for free-agent starters, the market for top-of-the-rotation guys has been cost prohibitive to the point that it seemed more prudent to try to use either homegrown talent or young arms acquired via trades. Great American Ball Park -- a place notorious for home runs -- is also usually not a desired destination for elite starters looking take their career to the next level. Looking ahead to 2019 and beyond, and with the number of infielder options, what are the chances of moving Jose Peraza to center field? Billy Hamilton made the switch from shortstop to center, and he is one of the best defensive center fielders the Reds have had, but moving Peraza there would give Nick Senzel an open spot in the infield. And Peraza has turned into a much better offensive threat than Hamilton. -- Carey Keen, via Facebook I don't think it's going to happen. Peraza has started to show improvement and more comfort playing every day at shortstop, and his bat has improved even more. The Reds tried Senzel at shortstop in Spring Training, and they weren't satisfied enough to believe his future was there. What I wouldn't rule out in 2019 is Cincinnati giving Senzel a look in either left field or center field. He's certainly athletic enough to make the change, even though he's never played either position. Have any teams expressed interest in acquiring Homer Bailey? He was impressive in his last start. -- @mikenelson1964, on Twitter Not that I know of. It would take more than one start for clubs to be convinced because of Bailey's injury history and performance. Of course, there is also the roughly $35 million he is owed through 2019 that makes him nearly impossible to deal, unless the Reds were willing to assume much or most of that money. I expect the Reds to trade Matt Harvey and think they should, but have you heard anything about them possibly keeping him around? -- @Nick_Howell2, on Twitter I imagine if the Reds' front office was dissatisfied with the Harvey offers, it could keep him for the rest of the season. But the odds of re-signing him as a free agent seem pretty low, so it only makes sense for Cincinnati to take whatever it can get for him now. What is the feel of the pitchers for Jim Riggelman's managing style? He seems to value his bullpen over his starting pitching.