The Reds are signing utilityman Chad Pinder to a minor league deal, reports Robert Murray of FanSided. The Ballengee Group consumer will likely be in huge league camp as a non-roster invitee as soon as the deal is finalized, tweets Mark Sheldon of MLB.com.
Pinder, 31 in March, joins the Reds after components of seven seasons with the Athletics. A Aggressive Stability Spherical B draftee in 2013, the Virginia Tech product bought to the massive leagues for the primary time three years later. Pinder’s first couple seasons had been productive, as he hit .248/.313/.447 with 28 house runs in 193 video games as a part-time participant between 2017-18.
The 2019 season noticed him join on 13 extra homers in 370 journeys to the plate, however his on-base share fell to .290. It has hovered in that vary for the previous few years, with the right-handed hitter solely reaching the .300 OBP mark as soon as prior to now 4 seasons (precisely .300 in 2021). In somewhat greater than 1000 plate appearances since 2019 started, he’s compiled a .239/.283/.402 line — offense that checks in 10 share factors beneath league common by wRC+ after accounting for Oakland’s cavernous park.
Pinder narrowly set a profession excessive in plate appearances final season, attending to the plate 379 instances. He struggled to a .235/.269/.385 clip, hanging out a career-worst 31.1% of the time whereas strolling in solely 3.7% of his journeys. Whereas he managed one other 12 homers, he had the seventh-worst OBP among the many 246 hitters with 350+ plate appearances.
It actually wasn’t the sort of platform 12 months Pinder was envisioning. However, he’ll add some defensive flexibility and a possible platoon bat to David Bell’s bench in Cincinnati if he can crack the MLB roster. Pinder spent most of his 2022 innings within the nook outfield, however he has a good bit of expertise at every of second base, third base and shortstop. Public defensive metrics haven’t rated his infield work extremely, although he’s gotten robust critiques for his nook outfield play.
He additionally has a stable offensive observe report when holding the platoon benefit. Pinder has hit 31 homers in 756 profession plate appearances in opposition to left-handed pitching, compiling a .264/.322/.456 line in opposition to southpaws general. At the same time as his manufacturing has dipped over the previous few years, he’s remained a stable energy menace in opposition to left-handed arms. That may possible be magnified in Cincinnati’s Nice American Ball Park, one of many sport’s most favorable venues for hitters.
With a profession .225/.272/.388 mark in a bit lower than 1000 plate appearances in opposition to righty pitching, Pinder is finest deployed in a matchup capability. He’d make for a possible platoon associate for lefty swingers like TJ Friedl, Jake Fraley and Joey Votto within the nook outfield/first base combine if he can attain the MLB roster. Cincinnati introduced in Wil Myers by way of free company and Nick Solak by commerce to doubtlessly play into that group as properly. Catcher Tyler Stephenson appears prone to shoulder loads of the designated hitter reps, with Pinder maybe additionally providing some cowl on the left aspect of the infield for presumptive starters Kevin Newman and Spencer Steer.
