Red Reposter - Edwin Arroyo set for Arizona Fall League play post injury

Monday links!

The 2023 season saw the Cincinnati Reds promote a wave of rookie talent the likes of which we’ve not seen around these parts in quite some time. Each of Elly De La Cruz, Matt McLain, Noelvi Marte, Christian Encarnacion-Strand, Brandon Williamson, Andrew Abbott, and Will Benson (by some metrics) played as rookies last season, and all of those listed performed at or above the expectations placed upon them.

Because of said wave, there was never supposed to be another wave in 2024 - those youngsters paired with fellow pre-arb guys like TJ Friedl, Spencer Steer, Nick Lodolo, Hunter Greene, & Co. were supposed to form the backbone of the team and take the next step forward. That happened for Elly and Greene, but not so much for the rest of the club as injuries and underperformance have haunted them all year.

When those big league injuries struck, there were perilously few minor league options to turn to. One name that was supposed to be close enough to factor into that equation was shortstop Edwin Arroyo, who was slated to begin the year with AA Chattanooga and presumably be a guy who could get brought up into the infield mix if, say, McLain and CES got injured and Noelvi Marte was dinged for a PED suspension and played terribly.

You know how that went, unfortunately.

Edwin tore a labrum in his shoulder in spring camp when diving back into a base, and the subsequent surgery he needed cost him the entire minor league season. Instead of a full slate beginning at AA that would have put him potentially in the mix for a September call-up at the latest, he’s instead been rehabbing and enters this offseason still having zero tangible game experience above High-A Dayton.

The good news of this ramble is here, though. Mark Sheldon of MLB.com relayed that Arroyo is slated to begin ramping up in Arizona soon and will participate in the spotlit Arizona Fall League later this autumn. That’s huge, as the AFL will not only let him get PA against some of the most talented pitching prospects from all the minor leagues, but also get some decent quantity heading into 2025 - for instance, McLain logged almost 100 PA across 23 games played for the Glendale Desert Dogs when he participated in the AFL back in 2022.

Though there have been a couple of bright spots down on the Cincinnati farm this season, most have been at levels low enough where I don’t expect to see those guys promoted any time before 2026 (Cam Collier & Sal Stewart, in particular). So, it’s refreshing to see that Arroyo, a consensus Top 100 guy, is on track to finish 2024 on a positive note (even if his performance in the AFL isn’t statistically off the charts).

In other news, Gordon Wittenmeyer of The Enquirer finally asked publicly one of the most pending questions surrounding the Reds during this moribund season. These Reds have been bad...where are they gonna go now? His idea about moving Elly off SS seems misguided, but much of the rest of it states the oh-so-obvious: this team, for as much young talent as it has, is flawed and underperforming. That’s gotta either get fixed by augmentation, or by having different voices do the talking to them each day.

Finally, Doug Gray at Reds Minor Leagues noted that hot-hitting Reds prospect Cam Collier reached a rarely-achieved milestone over the weekend, and it’s one of those ‘good’ milestones we’ve not seen enough of up and down this organization all year. Collier’s going to be a very, very special hitter, y’all.