GOODYEAR, Ariz. — There’s a small room off to the side of the media workroom at the Reds’ Spring Training Complex here in Arizona that is used for some press conferences. It’s where Amir Garrett stood after he was traded early in camp. It’s where Jesse Winker and Eugenio Suárez spoke in front of a black backdrop to the media covering the Cincinnati Reds after their surprising departures.
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It’s the same place where Reds general manager Nick Krall explains the team’s moves, as he did after the exits of Garrett, Suárez and Winker. Sunday, Krall was there in his press conference sweater once again, this time saying that Shogo Akiyama, signed to a celebrated three-year deal before the 2020 season, had been told he did not make the Reds’ Opening Day roster for 2022.
Akiyama’s contract stipulates that he can refuse an assignment to the minor leagues, a clause he invoked at the end of the 2021 season. It seems likely that the Reds will pay Akiyama $8 million in 2022 and he won’t play in a single game for the franchise.
While the groups around Suárez, Garrett and Winker had been easily contained in that small side room, Akiyama’s departure press conference demanded a bigger setting, and had to be moved to the larger media workroom to accommodate the Japanese press.
While Suárez and Winker combined for 1,187 more games, 1,135 more hits, 693 more RBI and 255 more home runs over their Reds tenure, Akiyama arrived in Cincinnati with greater expectations than either. The first Japanese player in Reds franchise history, Akiyama’s opening press conference was bigger than those of any of the other free-agent signees of the celebrated 2019-20 offseason, including Nick Castellanos, Mike Moustakas and Wade Miley.
Much of that was due to the fact that he arrived with the attention and expectations of another country, a baseball-loving land that stations reporters across the United States to cover the biggest names from Japan. While Akiyama was never held in the same regard as Shohei Ohtani or Yu Darvish, he was a celebrated player in his home nation. He played for Japan’s national team, set the single-season hit record in Nippon Professional Baseball and was a five-time All-Star with NPB’s Seibu Lions.
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That introductory press conference on Jan. 8, 2020, was broadcast not just in Cincinnati, but also just after midnight in Japan. There were 21 Japanese reporters from 11 different outlets on that day. It would be, in the end, one of just two memories that Akiyama mentioned Sunday when he was asked about highlights of his two seasons in Cincinnati.
The other was Opening Day of 2020, when he came off the bench to lace an RBI single in his first MLB plate appearance. He later made a leaping catch, showcasing the defense that would make him a Gold Glove finalist in his rookie year.
“That first at-bat, I know there were no fans there, but getting that first hit, that first RBI. All my teammates, I felt like I was welcome in that dugout and I felt like I was part of that team family,” Akiyama said Sunday, according to interpreter Luke Shinoda. “Also that presser, when I joined the team. I do remember that. It’s just unfortunate how I don’t have that many memorable moments.”
Signed to a three-year, $21 million contract, Akiyama was expected to hit atop the Reds’ lineup, get on base for Joey Votto and the rest of the team’s boppers and play solid defense.
Still, it always seemed like an odd fit, with Castellanos (who signed after Akiyama), Nick Senzel and Jesse Winker entrenched in the outfield. There was some relief in 2020 because the designated hitter was implemented for the 60-game season and Akiyama appeared in 54 of the team’s 60 games, starting 30 in left and 17 in center.
After an abbreviated spring training due to the pandemic and then a revised training camp that featured mostly intrasquad games, Akiyama got off to a slow start aside from his Opening Day heroics, but seemed to find his rhythm halfway through the season. In 2020, he hit .183/.264/.232 in his first 27 games and then .315/.415/.370 over his final 27 games.
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That Akiyama was the player the Reds had invested in. He was a good fielder and got on base, the main thing they’d hoped he’d do.
That Akiyama was in the team’s plans for 2021, but an injury in spring training delayed his season. That’s when Tyler Naquin, a non-roster invitee, took over his spot. Naquin provided power that Akiyama didn’t have and when Akiyama returned, he was a part-time player and never looked up to speed.
This spring, he struggled in his playing time and was behind not just Naquin, but also Jake Fraley, acquired in the Jesse Winker deal. Fraley had a .352 on-base percentage last season and like Akiyama, can play all three outfield spots.
“We felt we had better options in the outfield,” Krall said Sunday. “We like the guys that have played out there with Fraley, Naquin and just felt that another left-handed batter was redundant.”
Even TJ Friedl, who is starting the season in Triple A, does the same things the 33-year-old Akiyama promised, but is younger, faster and, unlike Akiyama, has a big-league home run. Friedl’s presence, both on the 40-man and in Louisville, would make it such that Akiyama could be redundant in Louisville, as well. He refused an assignment last season and with no clear path to the big leagues with the Reds, his best opportunity may come elsewhere. If he does depart, the Reds will still pay the $8 million owed to him while he plays for another organization.
The Reds will probably never see the potential they saw in Akiyama play out in a Reds uniform. And at this point, his future seems in limbo. The season has already begun in Japan and going back to NPB this season doesn’t seem probable. The question remains if Akiyama, who turns 34 later this month, is a big-league player.
“I don’t know what the actual true self with me is,” Akiyama said, according to Shinoda. “With two years, that’s the results that are out there. But realistically, I still can play. I can play hard. I know I can play. So I just have to move forward with this situation.”
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Akiyama has not formally been designated for assignment, but will be when final roster decisions are officially made. His spot on the 40-man roster is important as the team is full and needs spots for, at the very least, Aramis Garcia, who looks to be the winner of the competition for the backup catcher role. Andrew Knapp was reassigned on Sunday and he has an opt-out clause in his contract that can be exercised Monday. Reliever Trey Wingenter was also reassigned, but he is dealing with an elbow injury and has informed the team that he will not exercise his opt-out, instead staying in Goodyear to continue his rehab.
While Akiyama had just four hits (all singles) in 22 spring at-bats, Garcia hit .375/.412/1.313 in his 16 at-bats, with five of his six hits going for home runs. Knapp was hitless in eight at-bats.
“(Garcia) just won the job,” Krall said.
The Reds could also use 40-man spots for reliever Buck Farmer, who has allowed just one hit and no runs in his four innings with eight strikeouts, and Brandon Drury, who is the team’s only backup shortstop at this point. And then there’s Nick Lodolo, who started Sunday’s game against Arizona and is on schedule to start the Reds’ April 12 game against Cleveland at Great American Ball Park.
Pitcher Justin Dunn, acquired in the trade with Seattle, will likely go on the 60-day disabled list, clearing one spot. After that, there would still need to be two more spots if Farmer, Drury and Lodolo are on the Opening Day roster.
Regardless, the last decisions are being made and will need to be finalized by Thursday when the 2022 season begins.
(Top photo: Michael B. Thomas / Getty Images)
