Reds continue to cut costs, decline Wade Miley's club option as Cubs claim him on waivers

Two years after the Cincinnati Reds made their largest splash in free agency in more than a decade, they’ve reversed course and signaled they are scaling down their payroll.

The Reds declined to pick up the $10 million club option in left-hander Wade Miley’s contract and watched him join the Chicago Cubs after he was claimed off waivers Friday. It was their first chance to show their hand for the offseason and they put Miley on waivers, which saved the club from paying a $1 million buyout when he was claimed.

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It’s the third departure from the Reds’ roster this week after they traded catcher Tucker Barnhart to the Detroit Tigers, in lieu of paying him a $7.5 million club option, and Nick Castellanos opted out of the final two years of his contract. The Reds will issue Castellanos a one-year, $18.4 million qualifying offer to ensure themselves of draft pick compensation if he signs elsewhere.

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General Manager Nick Krall said the Reds had shopped Miley throughout the last few weeks on the trade market, but “we didn’t have a buyer.” The Reds had to decide Miley’s club option before 5 p.m. Sunday, so they didn’t have much leverage.

“Like I said the other day, we’re aligning our payroll with our resources,” Krall said. “That’s where making this move today made sense for us.”

Miley had a 12-7 record and a 3.37 ERA in 28 starts last season, pitching 163 innings. A neck strain limited his effectiveness in September, but he was one of the league's better pitchers and beloved in the Reds' clubhouse.

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He tossed the 17th no-hitter in Reds history on May 7 in Cleveland. The Reds decided that was too much of a luxury for a $10 million salary – and a division rival pounced on the opportunity.

Was Krall surprised the Cubs claimed Miley?

“Yeah, I was a little surprised,” he said. “We talked to everybody before over the last probably month and they were not one of the teams that expressed interest. You’ll obviously have to get their reasons for claiming him, but looking at it, it did surprise us a little bit.”

The Reds are flashing a neon sign they are open for business this winter with some of their bigger contracts. Eugenio Suárez, Mike Moustakas and Shogo Akiyama probably have limited value after disappointing seasons, but Sonny Gray is entering the final guaranteed year in his contract with a club option for 2023. Luis Castillo, Tyler Mahle and Jesse Winker are two years from free agency.

They will not, however, trade top prospects to entice another team to trade for a pricier contract. The Reds traded prospects Jeter Downs and Josiah Gray when they dealt Homer Bailey to the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Dodgers flipped Downs to acquire Mookie Betts and sent Gray to the Nationals for Max Scherzer and Trea Turner.

“We didn’t have a ton available to us with this (Miley) transaction,” Krall said. “I think for us, what we don’t want to do is attach a prospect to get rid of money. We’ve done that in the past and it’s not a good strategy for success moving forward. Your prospects are going to be your next big leaguers and you’ve got to make sure that you’re maximizing those folks.”

The Reds shaved $33.5 million off their payroll for the upcoming season with their moves this week, but Krall said he wouldn’t classify their future as a rebuild.

“I don’t have any comments about our payroll, but that’s just where we are,” Krall said. “Obviously, losing some quality players off your club, we still got some good players. We’ve got some good young kids up to the club and hopefully they can be some difference makers next year.”

The Reds enter the offseason light on proven starting pitching depth. Gray, Castillo, Mahle and rookie Vladimir Gutierrez are the core of the rotation. Reiver Sanmartin and Riley O’Brien made spot starts in the final week of the season. Top prospects Hunter Greene and Nick Lodolo reached Triple-A this year.

Greene will be added to the 40-man roster later this month to protect him from the Rule 5 Draft.

“Sanmartin came up at the end of the year,” Krall said. “Hunter Greene, Nick Lodolo were in Triple-A to finish the year. They’re going to come into Spring Training and compete for a job on the big-league club and see where that goes.”

WILSON EXERCISES OPTION: Lefty reliever Justin Wilson exercised the $2.3 million player option in his contract, so he will remain in the organization. The Reds declined the conditional club option to extend Wilson’s contract to include the 2023 season for the league minimum, plus $500,000.

“We worked it out where if he picked the player option up, the club option for next year would go away,” Krall said. “It allowed us to get a guy back that was a quality reliever for us. For him to stay in the big leagues.”

BLANDINO OFF ROSTER: The Reds outrighted infielder Alex Blandino off their 40-man roster after he cleared waivers Thursday, which will soon make him a minor-league free agent. The Reds now have 35 players on their 40-man roster.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: MLB Free Agency: Reds' Wade Miley claimed off waivers by Cubs