Brewers' division rival serious about signing top power bat on the market

As things currently stand in the National League Central, before the many offseason decisions to come play out, the Cincinnati Reds might just be the second-best team in the division. With the Chicago Cubs yet to find a replacement for Kyle Tucker, which may or may not end up being internal option Owen Caissie, who made his MLB debut last season, it's the Reds, who lost to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL Wild Card series this past year, who currently look like the biggest threat to the Milwaukee Brewers in the NL Central.

Cincinnati, after qualifying for the postseason in a full MLB season for the first time since 2013, had just four players hit free agency when the 2025 season came to an end. Pitchers Zack Littell, Nick Martinez, and Emilio Pagán, and midseason acquisition Miguel Andujar were the only players to become free agents immediately after the season ended, but Cincinnati added three more names to the free agent pool at the non-tender deadline when they released pitchers Carson Spiers and Roddery Muñoz and catcher Will Banfield. All in all, it's an easily replaceable group of departures, the most significant of which being Pagán, who became Cincinnati's closer down the stretch.

However, Cincinnati reportedly has their sights set higher than just replacing Pagán this offseason; they are looking to make a splash that would immediately solidify them as a contender to win the NL Central. Just this morning, reports surfaced that such a splash might be more likely to occur than initially believed.

According to MLB insider Ken Rosenthal, Cincinnati Reds are seriously interested in signing Kyle Schwarber this offseason

Any time a major free agent has an opportunity to return to their hometown or home state, the team that plays in that location immediately becomes a rumored destination regardless of how much sense a partnership actually makes. It's the reason that the Tampa Bay Rays have been cited as a possible landing spot for hometown star Kyle Tucker, despite Tampa Bay's largest free agent contract in franchise history being the three-year, $40 million deal they handed Zach Eflin back in 2023.

With Schwarber hailing from Middletown, Ohio, less than 40 miles from Great American Ball Park, the slugging DH was rumored to be a good fit for the Cincinnati Reds the second his free agency began.

Initially, the pairing seemed impossible, with the Reds claiming that they wanted to keep payroll consistent with its 2025 mark, giving them roughly $20 million to spend this offseason, which is far less than the yearly salary Schwarber is expected to bring in. However, on Wednesday morning, MLB insider Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reported that Cincinnati is "serious about signing" Schwarber, meaning they are likely to stretch their 2026 budget if that's what it takes to sign the top power bat on the market this offseason.

For the Brewers, Schwarber joining the Reds would make a fourth-consecutive NL Central title much more challenging. Cincinnati's addition wouldn't unseat the Brew Crew as the favorites to win the division in 2026, but paired with the Reds' talented young rotation, adding Schwarber to their lineup would certainly make them more of a threat than they have been in seasons past. Maybe the Pittsburgh Pirates, who surprisingly had reported interest in Schwarber earlier in the offseason, will swoop in and sign the former Philadelphia Phillie instead.