Johnny Cueto was a once-in-a-generation pitcher for the Cincinnati Reds. The Reds decided his rare talent wasn’t worth the steep asking price.
Now that Cueto is the starting pitcher for the NL in the All-Star game, the Reds and their dwindling fan base will be reminded of what was had and lost.
Since 2010, Cueto’s 2.83 ERA is the second-lowest among pitchers with at least 500 innings pitched. His ERA is better than Felix Hernandez or Chris Sale, better than Madison Bumgarner or Adam Wainwright. It’s better than everyone else not named Clayton Kershaw.
Cueto cashed in during the offseason with a six-year, $130-million deal. His new team, the San Francisco Giants, have the best record in baseball. Cueto is a big reason why with a 13-1 record and a 2.47 ERA.
The small-market Reds had little chance to sign Cueto long-term or most of their other star players. The team’s window of small-market success lasted from 2010 through 2013 and included three postseason appearances.
There’s no telling how long it will take before the Reds can attain that type of success again. Given the disparity of payroll between teams, it could be a decade or maybe even a quarter of a century.
The Reds hoped to fill Cueto’s void with a trio of left-handed starting pitchers from the Kansas City Royals. So far it looks like one Cueto in hand is better than the three lefties the Reds received.
Even with small-market limitations, the Reds could have signed Cueto to a long-term deal instead of Homer Bailey. The two are the same age. But their success has been very different. Bailey commanded a six-year, $105-million deal from the Reds.
Cueto notched a 3.21 ERA in 213 career starts with the Reds. Bailey has two no-hitters to his credit but a pedestrian 4.19 ERA in 168 career starts with the Reds.
The choice of Bailey over Cueto by the Reds looks like a bad one now. It will look even worse if the Reds can’t find a way to rise sooner rather than later from their organizational collapse.
Robb Hoff writes about the Cincinnati Reds for OutsidePitch MLB. You can follow him on Twitter and Facebook.
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