The Jonathan India, Brady Singer Trade is a Rare Win-Win
One thing that stands out about the Royals and Reds swap of Jonathan India and Brady Singer is that it's a clear win-win trade.
The Cincinnati Reds and Kansas City Royals got your weekend started with a swap of two former college teammates as Jonathan India (and Joey Wiemer) for Brady Singer. Few things are better than a pre-Thanksgiving trade. Now you have something different to argue with your uncle and cousin about over turkey that’s a bit too dry.
As most do, you likely saw the trade and immediately tried to decipher who gave up too much or who won the trade. A little more difficult than usual, right? You likely heard people debating why the Royals won or why the Reds won, but, what if both won? A middle ground a lot of fans struggle to settle on.
The win-win trade will almost always be a major leaguer-for-major leaguer swap where both teams trade from a strength to address a weakness. Well, the way I see it, that is exactly what we have here. So, let’s dig in.
The Cincinnati Reds Side
India became a polarizing player amongst your average Reds faithful. A first-round draft pick and Rookie of the Year whose signature hair, infectious smile, and leadership quickly made him a fan favorite, to an extent.
His mostly poor defense and up and downs at the plate combined with the Reds infield depth also made a faction of the fanbase include him in every mock trade since Biden took office.
To me, India is a very solid player witch established deficiencies. Deficiencies, average bat and poor defense, that the Reds already had too much of. With Matt McLain back from injury, Santiago Espinal signed for another year and Edwin Arroyo one year closer, Cincinnati could afford to move on.
Attracting pitchers to Great American Ballpark has always been a struggle. A hitter friendly park is not where many free agents want to sign, unless it is an overpay. Add a relatively cheap ownership group to that and you can see where getting starters is difficult.
The Reds rotation of Hunter Greene, Nick Lodolo, Rhett Lowder, Nick Martinez, and Andrew Abbott looks good on paper, but injury history shows why another starter was needed, especially with Brandon Williamson and Julian Aguiar shelfed and Graham Ashcraft possibly moving to the bullpen.
Singer is not the world’s best pitcher. However, a starting pitcher with a career 4.28 ERA and 3.97 FIP is effective and not exactly cheap on the free agent market. Just last year the Reds paid Frankie Montas, also a career 3.97 FIP coming off injury and a risky profile, to a $14 million deal.
For the Reds, finding and paying for a pitcher of Singer’s caliber is much more difficult and more expensive than finding a solid, league average second baseman. You can convince a bat to come to Cincinnati, and pay them less, and get about the same production that you got out of India.
The Kansas City Royals Side
The Royals deserve a ton of praise for the work they have done to build their rotation. Singer was once in the group of Daniel Lynch, Jackson Kowar, and Kris Bubic who were thought to be the future of the Royals.
We all know how that played out.
But the Royals made a savvy move to acquire Cole Ragans and sign both Michael Wacha and Seth Lugo, giving them a strong starting rotation.
Kansas City’s issue this season was offense. Particularly in the leadoff spot where their .228/.270/.334 production was by far the worst out of any spot in the order. Insert India, the leadoff hitter who has slashed .257/.360/.416 in his career in the one-hole. While his power will not look the same moving to a larger ballpark in Kansas City, his approach and ability to draw a walk will not diminish.
The addition of India is also great insurance for Michael Massey. While Massey has continued to improve and should be a big part of the Royals going forward, India as injury insurance or a day off replacement is an upgrade from previous options.
Let’s not forget the third piece in this trade, Joey Wiemer. Wiemer, acquired by Cincinnati in a 2024 deadline deal with Milwaukee, is not just a long shot throw-in. He brings plus speed and defense and has the tools to potentially carve out a role as a platoon hitter. His bat is iffy, but maybe the Royals can tap into something more. We’ll see how he stacks up with other depth options like Tyler Gentry, Drew Waters, and Nelson Velazquez.
Conclusion
This is the exact type of trade that fans likely struggle with. You are excited that a legit major leaguer is joining your favorite team, but it also stings knowing a solid player is leaving. I think both fan bases have felt this feeling.
Each team added an upgrade at a position of need while moving on from an area of depth. Considering both teams will have Playoffs in mind for 2025, I’m sure we see more movement from each side throughout the winter. It’s far from set.
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