The Cincinnati Reds and Chicago White Sox are engaged in trade talks around Chicago outfielder Luis Robert according to USA Today’s Bob Nightengale. Cincinnati has been rumored to be interested in Robert in the past but the deal never got done.
Back in 2021 Luis Robert had a breakout half-season where he hit .338/.378/.567 in 68 games for the White Sox . The next year his OPS dropped 200 points, but he was still good in his 98 games played. In 2023 he was able to play all season long and in 145 games he hit 38 home runs, stole 20 bases, and had a .264/.315/.542 line and made his first All-Star team.
Since then he’s fallen off a cliff in the production department. He’s played in 100 and 110 games in each of the last two seasons and he’s hit 14 home runs in each of those years. In both seasons he hit under .225, had an on-base percentage under .300, and a slugging percentage under .380. He has stolen 23 and 33 bases – both setting a new career high at the time. You can check out his career stats here.
Despite the big time struggles at the plate in the past two seasons, the White Sox picked up their $20,000,000 option on Robert following the year. Rather than pay him $2,000,000 for the buy out they seem to be hoping to find a trade partner that will offer them something of value worth more than that to bring in the outfielder.
With Robert you don’t have to squint hard to see the upside. He’s hit 38 home runs and stolen 33 bases in a single season over the last three years. He’s been a quality defender in center. But while you can squint and see it you also can’t ignore that he has flat out not hit for two straight seasons and is owed $22,000,000 (he has a $20,000,000 option for 2027 that includes a $2,000,000 buyout).
If Chicago takes on some of the money owed perhaps the Reds would be more willing to take a chance that they can “fix” Luis Robert and he can be a staple in their lineup. But they would also be risking adding another bat to their lineup with the potential to be an automatic out to a lineup that simply has had far too many of them.
