The Reds were the biggest losers at MLB’s Winter Meetings – Redleg Nation

ESPN’s Jeff Passan and Jesse Rogers both seemed to agree Thursday that the Cincinnati Reds were the biggest losers at the 2025 MLB Winter Meetings. And both agreed on the reason why: They failed to land Kyle Schwarber.

Rogers noted that while Schwarber is very important to the Philadelphia Phillies (who were able to bring him back on a five-year, $150,000,000 deal), “his impact in Cincinnati could have been even more meaningful.” But Passan really explained why he believed the Reds were the biggest loser at the meetings:

Free agents of Schwarber’s ilk rarely entertain the idea of going to small-market teams, but the Reds had a built-in advantage: he came from there. Given the scarcity of such options, the Reds — one big bat away from a real threat to win the NL Central — had to treat Schwarber’s potential arrival with urgency and embrace their inner prodigality. They had the money to make the biggest offer. They chose not to. And they missed, a real shame given the strength of their rotation and the likelihood that similar opportunities won’t find them again anytime soon.”

There could certainly be some assumptions going on. But it all reads quite true. If anything, Cincinnati talked about the fact that they really thought they could sign Kyle Schwarber. There are two different reports on what exactly the Reds offered. Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic and others reported that Cincinnati offered five years and $125,000,000 with a chance for more. The assumption there is that there were performance bonuses involved that could have pushed the deal higher. USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reported Wednesday that the Reds offered to match the Orioles on a five-year, $150,000,000 deal, but Schwarber simply wanted to stay in Philadelphia. All three could be true if the Reds’ offer were $125,000,000, with another $25,000,000 possibly included with the performance incentives.

For reasons we talked about earlier this week at Redleg Nation, the Reds’ front office seemed willing to actually make a big commitment to Kyle Schwarber that they don’t seem willing to make to anyone else. He fit perfectly with what the team desperately needs. They apparently thought they could pull it off in a way they almost never think to try, and still came up short. And not only did they come up short, but it seems that because they only seemed to have the idea figured out for this one and only player, that whatever else they choose to do this offseason won’t compare, the team will improve almost as much and will be a bitter pill to swallow for the team’s fans.