Cincinnati Reds Make Buzzer Beating Trades, Shipping off Nathaniel Lowe and Journeyman Reliever

When it seemed like Cincinnati Reds president of baseball operations Nick Krall would stand pat at the MLB trade deadline, he instead made a couple trades just a few minutes before the 6 p.m. cutoff, including one that sent Nathaniel Lowe to the Cleveland Guardians in exchange for Alejandro Rivera, according to Zack Meisel of The Athletic. 

Additionally, Charlie Goldsmith of Fox 19 reports that the Reds acquired minor leaguer Juan Brito in a separate move, who the Guardians designated for assignment.

Furthermore, the Reds are trading reliever Caleb Ferguson within the NL Central to the St. Louis Cardinals for $250,000 in international bonus space per ESPN's Jeff Passan.

The first move comes as the Reds rank last in the division while falling 16 games behind the first-place Milwaukee Brewers.

The 31-year-old designated hitter concluded his time as a Red batting .266 and recording a .820 OPS while hitting 12 home runs and knocking in 37 RBI. Lowe also logged a .341 on-base percentage through 83 games played this season.

Lowe would put on an impressive showing at the plate in Cincinnati's 10-2 blowout win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Sunday, going 3-for-4 at the plate while knocking in two RBI. 

Lowe also had a decent second half last season with the Boston Red Sox, batting .280 while recording a .370 on-base percentage, 28 hits, 16 RBI and 15 walks. 

Now, he heads to a Guardians team that is 57-56 overall while ranking second in the AL Central and sitting within three games of the first-place Chicago White Sox.

As for Rivera, the 19-year-old right hander from Caracas, Venezuela makes his way to the Reds from Cleveland's farm system, recording a 3.06 ERA and 70 strikeouts across 53 innings this season. 

Meanwhile, Ferguson bounced across MLB, spending stints with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Houston Astros, Pirates, Seattle Mariners before agreeing to a one-year, $4.5 million contract with Cincinnati in December 2025.

In his brief time with the club, Ferguson compiled a 4.01 ERA while recording one save,  22 punchouts and a 1.50 WHIP across 26 games this season. He will now look to have a resurgence with St. Louis who holds a 1.5-game advantage over the Reds.

While Cincinnati would not receive any prospects or MLB-ready contributors in return, the extra cash should help them when it is time for them to shore up their farm with potential diamonds in the rough from abroad.

With the deadline behind them, the Reds will turn their attention to a three-game homestand against the Athletics starting on Tuesday.