1B/3B Neftali Soto sent outright to Triple-A Louisville by #reds http://t.co/CkWrzXRGi5 — Mark Sheldon (@m_sheldon) October 29, 2014 On it’s own, that move isn’t one that is questionable. Soto has really struggled in his time in the big leagues. While he hasn’t exactly been given much of a chance, doing a whole lot of sitting on the bench for long periods of time, when he did get a chance to swing the bat things did not go well. In two seasons he is a career .071/.091/.095 hitter with 14 strikeouts and no walks in 44 plate appearances. His being removed isn’t a big shock, especially after the Reds chose to not call him up in September of 2014. That is where things get strange. Neftali Soto hasn’t played since they chose to not call him up. The Reds could have outrighted him then and called up someone with the roster spot that would have been opened. Rey Navarro would have been a prime candidate given how his season played out and the absolute need for a player with a very similar skillset to the one he showed in Double and Triple-A. Perhaps another move could have been made, but no matter what it was, with how this played out it just seems like a complete lack of foresight on the Reds part with this move.
