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The 2025 Cincinnati Reds Opening Day Roster Is Set!

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Drew Crabtree | Last updated Mar 26, 2025 2:02 PM ET

The quest to return to the postseason begins on Thursday and the final domino to fall this offseason was to trim the roster. With Brandon Williamson (out for the season), Julian Aguiar (out for the season), Andrew Abbott, Tyler Stephenson, and Alexis Diaz already expected to hit the Injured List, the team added Austin Hays after a surprising calf injury popped up in the waning days of Spring Training. Stuart Fairchild was considered a good bet to make the roster but the team elected to DFA him.

The Cincinnati Reds haven't made the playoffs in a non-COVID season since 2013 and haven't advanced since 1995. This year, the team isn't expected by the experts to get back to the playoffs unless it wins the division and yet, Cincinnati hasn't been quite this electric in a long time.

This year, five players on the Opening Day roster will be making their Reds debut as new additions.

Catchers (2)

Infielders (6)

Outfielders (5)

Starting Pitchers (5)

Relief Pitchers (8)

Despite being led by superstars De La Cruz and Greene, expectations from the experts are tempered. Most outlets have the Reds missing the playoffs and only marginally improving year over year.

The team did not end up signing or trading for that home-run-hitting outfielder but all signs are indicating Hays could regain his 2023 self. If memory serves, Hays was an All-Star for the Orioles. He struggled last year but it was discovered that he was dealing with a kidney infection that altered something in his brain. Teammates asserted that he wasn't himself and even completely changed personalities. Now that he's healthy, he may be that solid addition Reds fans have been clamoring for.

The rotation is solid and looks to be much more "robust" from top to bottom. Locked on Reds went through the top 10 pitchers who could make up the rotation either on Opening Day or through injuries and the Reds could be 10 deep.

This is going to be an exciting baseball season in Cincinnati. Think about this: during the David Bell era, the Reds were awful in the first month or two of the season. Too often, they put themselves behind the eight ball and dug themselves into a hole they were never going to overcome. If Terry Francona can get the team together and they can start off better than the 25-32 mark they ended May with (9-18 in May), the Reds could remain competitive for much longer. April, June, July, and September were winning months. May and August were atrocious.

Assuming McLain and Encarnacion-Strand can get back to what they were in 2023, the Reds will be just fine.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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