The Cincinnati Reds struck gold with a pair of mid-30’s relievers around this time last year, signing both David Hernandez and Jared Hughes to a pair of reasonable two-year deals that have already more than paid off. Hughes posted a stellar 216 ERA+ in 78.2 groundball-heavy innings - good for 3.3 bWAR - while Hernandez’s 64 innings of 167 ERA+ ball was worth 1.8 bWAR and helped solidify what had otherwise been a lackluster unit for several years running.
The Reds, while trying in earnest to ‘get the pitching’ this offseason, have been primarily connected to starting options from both opposing teams and the pool of free agents.