The Reds Caravan has been a long-beloved tradition for fans across the vast lands of Reds Country. It allows for all the current and former Reds and broadcast to interact with their devoted fanbase. Normally, it has at least a few current stars and also players that will eventually become stars, or at least everyone hopes they will. The past few years have seen players like Amir Garrett, Jesse Winker and Phillip Ervin making the rounds. Now the 2020 Caravan was released and there are a couple of names one would think that would be on there, that aren’t.
The major names include Mike Moustakas, Hunter Greene, Sonny Gray, Jesse Winker, Aristedes Aquino, Amir Garrett, Josh VanMeter and Jonathan India. This alone signifies that the Reds are expecting these players, of note, Greene, Winker, Aquino, VanMeter and India to play a role for the team. Whatever that role may be, they wouldn’t have these players on the tour if they were at risk of being pulled off of it any time soon.
That calls into question, where is Phillip Ervin and more importantly Nick Senzel? While not every player is going to go on these tours, both of these players should be playing a significant role on the team next season. The reason why this might be significant is that the Reds have been in potential talks for a shortstop, namely Francisco Lindor for the past few weeks. It is known that the Indians would want outfield help as theirs has been below average for the last two years and it has been rumored that their starting ask includes Senzel as the headliner.
With that, many wondered what about the other outfielders and other prospects? Well if the Caravan indicates anything in terms of PR and team plans, the players noted above namely, Winker and Aquino are still there. Pair this with the recent signing of Shogo Akiyama and the Reds outfield is looking pretty full.
One instance that could lead to this speculation was the trade that brought Luis Castillo to Cincinnati. Dan Straily had just revived his career and was looking like a lock for the next season as potentially even one of their top pitchers. He was featured during Redsfest but was noticeably absent from the Caravan when it was announced. Then nine days later he was on his way to Miami.
While this may mean nothing, it is worth watching. The Reds use the caravan as PR. It is a way to thank their fans by showing them the players they need to pay attention to. If Senzel specifically is not there and has been rumored to be in trades, then it could mean he is at least part of discussions. Remeber, Senzel was, like Straily, featured at Redsfest. Does this mean he is being traded for sure or soon? No. Again he could have just decided not to go on the caravan this year. But, if years past have told Reds fans anything, his time with the team could be coming to a close.
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