The Reds officially began the rebuild a few years ago in 2014-15 to form a new successful team for the future. Johnny Cueto, Todd Frazier and Jay Bruce were all sent away (among others). All these players were cornerstones to the Reds’ success in the early part of the decade. Fans met these trades with a lot of criticism and anger. However, the 2010-13 Reds had their chances to win it all. After the 2013 Wild Card bounce to the Pirates, it was time to start over.

Obviously, the Reds traded these guys to save money by shedding their payroll. However, it also opened up roster spots for young prospects to begin playing for the future. It took some time, but that is happening now and we can see the young players developing. Aside from Tyler Mahle and Amir Garrett (even after the debacle against Cleveland), the young pitchers still have to step up their game. However, some of the Reds’ young players on offense offer hope for the future.

Jose Peraza

Jose Peraza was acquired (along with Scott Schebler and Brandon Dixon) from the Dodgers in the Todd Frazier trade. Peraza, only 24 years old, appears to be coming into his own this season. After struggling in 2017, he has increased his batting average from .259 to .275 so far. He’s also increased his OBP by .25 points as well. In 353 at-bats this year, Peraza has already surpassed his amount of walks from 2017. He had 20 walks last season and already has 22 this season.

Aside from hitting better and developing more patience, Peraza is also stealing bases more efficiently as well. The speedster has 17 stolen bases in 19 attempts, good for an 89% success rate. Compare this to last season where he had 23 steals in 31 attempts for only a 74% success rate.

Not that Peraza will ever be a power hitter, but he’s hit five home runs so far, which is what he hit all of last season. It took him 134 fewer at-bats to match his home run total from last season, so it seems as if his power may be developing. Contrary to many fans, I believe Peraza is a cornerstone piece of this team moving forward. Remember, he is only 24 and should only get better as time goes on, and he’s already pretty good now.

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