After a quiet offseason following their early acquisition of Brady Singer from the Kansas City Royals, the Cincinnati Reds have picked up the pace over the last two days. On Wednesday, the team claimed reliever Roansy Contreras off waivers from the Texas Rangers. Now, according to Robert Murray of Fansided, they’ve signed veteran reliever to a minor league deal, which includes an invite to big league spring training.
Shaw has a history with new Reds manager Terry Francona, having pitched under him in Cleveland for seven seasons between 2013 and 2022, with a three-year gap spent in Colorado and Seattle.
During his prime from 2011 to 2017, Shaw was one of the league’s most reliable relievers, appearing in 475 games and recording a 3.13 ERA. He led the league in appearances three times during that span, but his performance began to decline after signing with the Colorado Rockies as a free agent in 2018. Over two seasons in Colorado, Shaw posted a 5.61 ERA before being released. His brief stint with Seattle in 2020 saw him allow 12 earned runs over just six innings.
Shaw found some success after rejoining Cleveland in 2021, where he posted a 3.49 ERA and again led the league in appearances (81). However, his performance over the last three seasons has been inconsistent, pitching to a 5.00 ERA across 103 games with Cleveland and the Chicago White Sox. In 2024, he made just four big-league appearances for Chicago, spending most of the year in Triple-A with Salt Lake, where he recorded a 4.14 ERA in 39 outings but struggled with control, walking nearly as many batters as he struck out (28 walks vs. 34 strikeouts in 41.1 innings).
The 37-year-old right-handed reliever has posted a 5.12 ERA during his 30s at the major league level. These days, he primarily relies on his cutter and slider, which accounted for 90% of his pitches in 2024. Occasionally, he’ll mix in a two-seamer, curveball, or changeup.
Earlier in his career, he was known for generating ground balls, but that wasn’t the case in 2023 when he pitched 45.2 innings in the majors. However, in 2024, while throwing 41.1 innings in Triple-A, he rediscovered his ground-ball tendencies, posting a 52.1% ground-ball rate (compared to the league average of about 42%).
The old adage that “you can never have too much pitching” feels more relevant than ever. Shaw provides depth as an insurance option in case injuries pile up, but based on his recent performance, Cincinnati likely isn’t counting on him to play a significant role at the major league level.
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