Siri, Long, 4 Others added to Reds Roster
Dayton, Ohio-The Cincinnati Reds added six players to their 40-man roster on Monday night, protecting them from being selected by another team in the December Rule 5 draft. All six players added to the Reds roster are former Dragons.Former Dragons added to the roster included outfielder Jose Siri (2016-17 Dragons);
Dayton, Ohio-The Cincinnati Reds added six players to their 40-man roster on Monday night, protecting them from being selected by another team in the December Rule 5 draft. All six players added to the Reds roster are former Dragons.
Former Dragons added to the roster included outfielder
Players who have spent at least four years in professional baseball (or at least five years if they were signed to their first professional contract at age 18 or younger) must be added to the 40-man roster or they become eligible to be selected by another club in the Rule 5 draft. The deadline for adding players was Monday.
Siri, 22, enjoyed one of the finest seasons in Dragons history in 2017. His year in Dayton was highlighted by a 39-game hitting streak that broke a 40-year-old Midwest League record, but his entire season was notable. Siri led the league in hits, runs, total bases, extra base hits, slugging percentage, and stolen bases while finishing second in home runs, fourth in runs batted in, and fifth in batting average. He became the first Midwest League player since 1982 to produce at least 20 home runs and at least 40 stolen bases, and he was also selected as the league's "Best Defensive Outfielder" in a poll of league managers by Baseball America. He finished the regular season with the Dragons batting .294 with 24 home runs and 76 runs batted in. Siri also spent part of the 2016 season with the Dragons.
Long, 22, played in 136 games for the Dragons over the 2015-16 seasons. He split the 2017 season between Advanced-A Daytona and Double-A Pensacola, batting a combined .281 with 16 home runs and 50 RBI in 104 games. In his two years with the Dragons, Long batted .281 with 17 home runs and 61 RBI.
Blandino, 25, was one of two Reds first round draft picks in 2014. The product of Stanford University joined the Dragons later that summer and appeared in 34 games, batting .261 with four homers and 16 RBI. Blandino split the 2017 season between Double-A Pensacola and Triple-A Louisville, batting a combined .265 with 12 home runs and 51 RBI in 125 games. Blandino saw extensive time at both second base and third base and also played some shortstop.
Lopez, 24, enjoyed a breakthrough season in 2017, two years removed from his comeback from Tommy John reconstructive elbow surgery. He split the year between Daytona and Pensacola and made 24 starts, going 9-6 with a 2.57 ERA that ranked third best in the Reds farm system. Lopez spent most of the 2016 season with the Dragons and made 21 starts, going 6-9 with a 3.97 ERA. Lopez missed the entire 2014 season due to elbow surgery and saw limited time on the mound in 2015.
Reyes, 24, also spit the 2017 season between Daytona and Pensacola. He made 25 starts, posting a record of 8-9 with a 3.60 ERA. Reyes spent most of the 2016 season with the Dragons, appearing in 30 games (10 starts) with a 5-5 record and a 2.40 ERA.
Weiss, 25, returned to action in 2017 after missing the entire 2016 season with an arm injury. He split the year between Daytona and Pensacola, working in 34 games and notching 10 saves with a record of 4-5 and a 2.63 ERA. Weiss had a strong season with the Dragons in 2014, posting a 2.42 ERA in 34 games with 80 strikeouts in 63 innings.
The Reds 40-man roster now includes 22 former Dragons. In addition to the six added today, the others are pitchers
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