Cincinnati Reds Now Officially Agree Deal Of $21 Million For Another Experienced Star Today
Today, the Cincinnati Reds formally agreed to a $21 million deal for another seasoned star.
On Monday afternoon, the Cincinnati Reds entered a territory often occupied by Major League Baseball’s most expensive clubs when they extended a qualifying offer (QO) of $21+ million to pitcher Nick Martinez, who had last week opted out of the $12 million that was previously on his deal.
According to Gordon Wittenmyer of The Enquirer, Nick now has 15 days to accept or reject the offer and, if he does not, will be subject to free agency.
Not because Martinez, who was excellent for the Reds in a diverse position in 2024, isn’t worth the money, but rather because the Reds entered the market typically occupied by the more expensive MLB teams. That type of money is exactly what he is worth as a pitcher, especially if he accepts a one-year contract. What I’m talking about here isn’t the money; rather, it’s the danger that he would take.
It goes without saying that the Reds often like to spread their risk across as many years as they can realistically in order to ensure that one player doesn’t consume an excessive amount of their yearly budget, even though issuing the QO makes it obvious that they want to have Martinez around. Though it goes without saying that in the contract negotiations Wittenmyer mentioned, they probably discussed annual figures lower than the $21 million Martinez would receive by accepting the QO, the front office would probably freely acknowledge that Martinez was correct to opt out of a deal that would pay him $12 million for 2025.
We will thus have to see if Martinez, who will turn 35 in August, is prepared to risk everything and turn down the offer. If he does, he will enter free agency with the QO penalty, which is a loss of draft pick, contingent on whether the signing team is a revenue-sharing contributor or recipient. If a team was ready to spend money on a contract that guaranteed Martinez more than $50 million, the Reds could be able to acquire a compensation pick after the first round of next summer’s draft (or get a pick after Competitive Balance Round B should he sign for less than that).
Despite his 2024 achievements, Martinez is one of the possible quarterbacks who is not certain to turn down the opportunity, which is the “risk” I refer to here. Since their market will be so strong that there won’t be any shame associated with losing a draft selection when they sign them, Juan Soto, Corbin Burnes, Pete Alonso, and company will all turn it down right away. However, Martinez’s age, lack of a “defined” job, and very brief success history make him difficult to evaluate, particularly given that some organizations may value his relief performance over that of a starter.
However, Martinez is a great match for this ballclub, which is the exact reason the Reds took that chance. Given their losses and injuries, they need starter innings from someplace, but they also need someone who won’t be a hindrance to a rotation position should any of the really bright young arms make enough progress between now and next summer to warrant starts. Martinez has demonstrated the readiness and capacity to go into a bulk-relief position at any time, and perform exceptionally well in it, even if Hunter Greene, Nick Lodolo, Andrew Abbott, Rhett Lowder, Graham Ashcraft, Chase Petty, Connor Phillips, and Chase Burns all reach their optimum health and performance.
For that same reason, I believe he will probably accept this QO from the Reds and make a comeback in 2025. In this case, the Reds may wind up paying a few million dollars more on him in 2025 than they would have preferred, but they obviously like him and are willing to take that chance.
