Cincinnati Reds Sign First Baseman

The Cincinnati Reds have signed Jake Bauers to a minor league contract. With that, the organization has given him an invitation to Spring Training. Due to the fact that this is considered a minor league deal, the Reds were allowed to sign him to it during the lockout. 

The 2021 campaign wasn't necessarily the strongest for Bauers, so he will be aiming to bounce back. In 115 games between the Cleveland Indians and Seattle Mariners, he had four home runs, 19 RBIs and a .209 batting average. He did not play during the 2020 season, so it is understandable that he was a little rusty. 

Even with all of this, there's no question that this signing is a bit of an interesting one. Not too long ago, Bauers was viewed as being among the top prospects in the sport. Furthermore, he hit 11 home runs with the Tampa Bay Rays in 2018 as a rookie. In 2019 with the Indians, he then followed that up with 12. The potential to be an effective power hitter there, especially when remembering that he's still just 26 years old. 

If Bauers can make his way to the major league roster, he wouldn't be a starter. This is due to the fact that the Reds have franchise figure Joey Votto manning the position. However, he could be a nice platoon player, as he also is capable of playing the outfield, too. 

In 328 career games, Bauers has 27 home runs, 110 RBIs and .213 batting average. It will be intriguing to see if he's able to build on these totals in 2022.

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