MIAMI – Cincinnati Reds general manager Nick Krall called leftfielder Tommy Pham one of the hardest workers he has faced at the clubhouse. But with the Reds rebuilding, Krall traded Pham to the Boston Red Sox on Monday night for a player to be named later.
Pham was scraped from the Reds lineup minutes before the first pitch Monday in Miami and he was told he had been traded. He is eligible to become a free agent at the end of the season, and the Red Sox will receive his remaining salary, approximately $2.1 million, and a $500,000 bonus for trade assignments.
“He was really good, very prepared, took his craft very seriously and worked his way through the seams,” Krall said. “We really enjoyed having him in the clubhouse. With where we are now, we can play one of the younger guys. It gives him a chance to reach the play-offs.”
As a rule, the player named later, which is usually a potential lower-tier player, cannot be someone on a club’s 40-man roster or someone who was picked in last month’s draft.
It is the third trade for the rebuilding Reds since Thursday, with outfielder Tyler Naquin being sent to the New York Mets and Luis Castillo to the Seattle Mariners for young prospects.
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After swapping Naquin and Pham, the Reds’ outfield consists of Nick Senzel, Jake Fraley and Albert Almora. Krall said Aristides Aquino will be activated on Tuesday from his rehab assignment, and Aquino was the only player Krall named when asked about the team’s starting left fielder for the remainder of the season.
“We want to make sure that we give our boys enough at bats at the big league level to gain experience here, to get better and keep improving,” said Krall.
The Reds still have a few trade candidates before Tuesday’s deadline. Infielders Brandon Drury and Donovan Solano are eligible to become free agents at the end of the season. Right-handed Tyler Mahle is arguably the best pitcher in the trade after Oakland shipped Frankie Montas to the New York Yankees. Mike Minor and Hunter Strickland are options for playoff contestants looking for pitching depth.
Krall said of transactions on the horizon, “We’re still figuring out how to make ourselves better.”
Pham hit .238 with 11 doubles, 11 homeruns, 39 RBI and 57 runs in 91 games this season. He dropped in what he called the worst month of his career in July, hitting a .204 batting average, two doubles, a triple, no home runs and an on-base percentage of .255.
He had one of baseball’s most memorable moments of the season when he punched San Francisco Giants outfielder Joc Pederson before a game in May and was suspended for three games. He said he was ready to fight San Diego’s Luke Voit after a slide at the plate, which he thought was a foul play, left catcher Tyler Stephenson with a concussion.
At the clubhouse, Pham was a respected veteran known for his consistent approach and his ruthlessness on base. He stole seven bases in nine attempts.
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It was the third time in his nine-year career that 34-year-old Pham had been traded. The Reds signed him as a free agent after they traded Jesse Winker, along with Eugenio Suarez, to the Mariners in March.
He signed a $7.5 million one-year deal with the Reds during spring practice, which included a $6 million mutual option for the 2023 season and a $1.5 million buyout. He has received an additional $200,000 through incentives and can earn an additional $800,000 if he exceeds 600 plate appearances.
Pham became an obvious trade candidate after the Reds started with a 3-22 record as a pending free agent. Still, he praised the coaching staff and the talent of the team throughout the year.
“We were six position players behind and we didn’t have Castillo and Minor,” Pham said of the Reds’ three wins in April. “This team is close. I said it already. This is a good team. Bad things happened to us at the beginning of the year and we threw ourselves in a big hole.”
