The Reds have released first baseman/outfielder Donald Lutz, the club announced. His 40-man spot was needed for the promotion of Ivan DeJesus Jr., who is filling in for the injured Marlon Byrd.
Lutz entered the year rated as Cincinnati’s 28th-best prospect, in the eyes of Baseball America, after reaching as high as 16th on that list in prior seasons. As C. Trent Rosecrans of the Cincinnati Enquirer notes on Twitter, Lutz underwent Tommy John surgery a month ago.
While he’s only seen 113 largely unsuccessful plate appearances in the big leagues, and was off to a rough start this year prior to his surgery, Lutz has generally put up appealing batting lines throughout his minor league career.