I think Phillips is the odd man out in all of this and not doing himself any favors with his piss poor performance in Louisville this year. The need for him this year will be even less whenever Williamson comes back. They have enough depth to pull off a much better trade than a Brent Rooker. That is a typical Reds move by the FO to say they did something to 'satisfy' the fan base, but he doesn't move the needle. Every team gets an All-Star. He just happened to be the one that sucked the least on a 112 loss Oakland team with his measly .246 batting average. A 'Boom or Bust' power hitter. Lets see how long that .294 average lasts. If Oakland wants to include the super utility infielder Abraham Toro and the enticing young closer who can start, Mason Miller. Then I might be interested in that deal with Rooker.I don't look for Lowder to debut until about the time of season Abbott did mid-way through next year so long as he finishes the year out on a strong run and get off to a hot start in Louisville. The initial jump to AA Chattanooga should have people pumping the brakes who think he needs to be the next Paul Skeens.
The first start against the Smokies was fair, 5 innings with 3 runs. He got rocked in Birmingham for 7 runs in 4 2/3 innings, 9 hits off of him. 5 runs tonight vs Mississippi so he is definitely a work in progress. People need to be patient with him instead of rushing it with the decent pitching the Reds have had this year. Some articles out there would lead you to believe he'll be in Cincinnati this year no matter what. Back to the Abbott reference, will say he did not look sharp the year he was in the Futures Game in 2022, blew threw the minors last year, got called up and you know the rest.
I doubt we've seen the last of Connor Phillips getting a shot at the rotation. He will have to get it turned around though or get passed up. 36 ER in 38 IP!! There is still Lyon Richardson in Louisville that I think would be a good middle reliever to eat innings here in Cincinnati. Also, if Chase Petty can get his season on track and to Louisville before the end of the year. He will factor into the equation.
Read an interesting trade proposal the other day that would send Blake Dunn & Lyon Richardson to Oakland to get their All-Star outfielder with some power, Brent Rooker. Doubt Krall has the gumption to pull the trigger on the trade but I wouldn't expect him to land anyone better than Rooker. Skeptical of his ability to impact a team given how awful Oakland was last year and this Reds lineup is trash. This would have to be a secondary move and move some IF prospects to make a bigger splash. We can only dream though given this cheap skate front office.