The Cincinnati Reds demoted a player during his fourth big-league season.
The Cincinnati Reds decided to make a roster change on Tuesday, demoting outfielder Noelvi Marte for the second time this season.
"The Reds today recalled from Triple-A Louisville C Will Banfield and optioned to Louisville OF Noelvi Marte," the team wrote on X.
Marte was previously optioned back in early April before being recalled in early June. The Reds demoted him for multiple reasons, but the primary one is straightforward. He has simply not performed up to expectations.
Across 190 at-bats this year, Marte has posted a .189 batting average, .229 on-base percentage and .550 OPS with six home runs and 15 RBIs. The month of August has been especially challenging for the 24-year-old as he has collected just four hits in 30 at-bats with 10 strikeouts. He has not recorded an extra-base hit either.
He has been completely lost at the plate and has not come close to providing the right-handed bat against left-handed pitching that the Reds were counting on when they recalled him in June.
This year has followed what is becoming a troubling pattern for Marte, alternating between strong and poor seasons. His debut in 2023 was exceptional in a short sample of 35 games.
Then 2024 was awful across 66 games. Last year, despite battling injuries, he posted a solid slash line across 90 games.
Yet that production has not carried over into 2026, and now in his fourth big-league season it remains genuinely unclear whether he will get another meaningful opportunity at this level. Marte is still just 24 years old, but the Reds will undoubtedly bolster this roster for next season.
The corresponding move to bring up Will Banfield makes sense for the Reds on multiple levels. Cincinnati now has a third-string catcher on the roster, giving them added flexibility behind the plate in case backup catcher Jose Trevino is unavailable.
Banfield should also see opportunities as a pinch hitter given his offensive profile. At Triple-A Louisville this season he has posted a .262 batting average, .306 on-base percentage and .731 OPS with 11 home runs and 46 RBIs.
Those numbers do not jump off the page, but they are solid production for a catcher and represent a meaningful upgrade over what Marte has provided.
With the Reds sitting well out of the National League playoff picture right now, it makes sense to test out all available options and hope this group can play their way back into the race before September arrives.
