Nothing may signify the disappointment of the Cincinnati Reds’ 2026 season more than the fact that with roughly a month left, the team’s biggest offseason signing and its Opening Day leadoff man were not only placed on waivers, but also went unclaimed.

Designated hitter Eugenio Suárez and center fielder TJ Friedl were put on waivers earlier this week before clearing waivers Thursday. This is a sign that the Reds are already looking to move on from a failed 2026 campaign and save money heading into the offseason filled with uncertainty around the expiration of the collective bargaining agreement between Major League Baseball and the Major League Baseball Players’ Association, which will likely lead to a lockout.

The Reds are the type of franchise the impending lockout is supposedly trying to help. Still, even if you take the rosiest outlooks presented by the owners, who are expected to lock players out in December, it’s almost impossible to plan for a season post-lockout; whether it starts in February, when players traditionally report for spring training; in March, when the last lockout ended; or even following a potential cancellation of the 2027 season.

Basically, every possible look beyond the 2026 season for the Reds or any other team comes with one giant asterisk. With that asterisk duly noted, here’s a look at where Cincinnati’s 40-man roster stands as the team enters its final month of games before a winter of complete uncertainty. Instead of littering the list with asterisks, consider this the disclaimer that all assumptions about contracts and team control are under the rules of the current CBA that expires in December.

TJ Friedl cleared waivers this week after a difficult season. (Dylan Buell / Getty Images)

Free agents: LHP Brock Burke, C Tyler Stephenson, RHP Brady Singer

Ahead of the trade deadline, Nick Krall, the team’s president of baseball operations, said the team would consider extending Singer a qualifying offer. Because the qualifying offer process takes place before the end of this CBA, it’ll be under the current rules. A qualifying offer is a one-year deal worth the mean of MLB’s top 125 salaries, expected to be around $23 million this offseason.

Since the trade deadline, Hunter Greene had his second Tommy John surgery, increasing the likelihood of a qualifying offer to Singer, who has made 26 starts this season and is on track to pitch more than 150 innings for the sixth consecutive season.

The Reds have been on both sides of the qualifying offer since the end of the 2021 season, with outfielder Nick Castellanos declining the offer and right-hander Nick Martinez accepting it following the 2024 season.

Because Castellanos went on to sign a deal worth more than $50 million (a five-year, $100-million deal with the Philadelphia Phillies), the Reds received a compensatory draft pick, which they used to select Sal Stewart, one of the favorites to win the 2026 National League Rookie of the Year award.

Martinez accepted the offer, which under the current rules can only be offered once in a player’s career. He was a valuable member of the team’s rotation and bullpen in its run to the 2025 wild-card series before signing a one-year deal with the Tampa Bay Rays this past offseason.

A qualifying offer for Stephenson or Burke is less likely. Either player could be re-signed.

Options: RHP Pierce Johnson, RHP Emilio Pagán, DH Eugenio Suárez

The move to put Suárez on waivers is a giant, blinking sign that the team is not expected to pick up his mutual option.

Johnson, 35, also has a mutual option for $8 million with a $1 million buyout. He has appeared in 44 games this season and is 2-1 with a 4.46 ERA. It’s unlikely the Reds pick up his option.

Pagán has a mutual option for $10 million, and he will likely exercise that option after missing a significant portion of the season with an injury.

Non-tender candidates: INF Juan Brito, OF TJ Friedl, 1B/OF Michael Toglia

Under the current system, teams control players until they reach free agency. The team can simply non-tender a player who is not in its plans for the future. A non-tender is more likely once a player reaches arbitration.

Friedl signed a one-year deal to avoid arbitration this past offseason but has had a brutal season at the plate, even getting optioned to the minors.

Toglia spent most of the season in the minors and has not accumulated enough service time on the 40-man roster to reach free agency. Toglia’s status for next season is uncertain due to the torn labrum he suffered last week, making him a non-tender candidate.

Brito was signed off waivers from the Cleveland Guardians at the trade deadline as minor-league depth for the Triple-A team. Brito, 24, had a .745 OPS with Cleveland’s Triple-A affiliate before he was designated for assignment, and in 18 games for the Reds, he’s put up a .611 OPS.

Under contract (through): RHP Chase Burns (2033), RHP Hunter Greene (2029), 3B Ke’Bryan Hayes (2030), C Jose Trevino (2028)

These players will be with the Reds, even if Greene will likely miss all of 2027 after his second Tommy John surgery. The Reds put Friedl and Suárez on waivers to see if anyone would claim them — they didn’t bother with Hayes, who is owed $29 million beyond this year.

Third-year arbitration eligible: RHP Tejay Antone, LHP Nick Lodolo, LHP Sam Moll

Second-year arbitration eligible: RHP Graham Ashcraft, OF JJ Bleday, OF TJ Friedl, INF Matt McLain, RHP Tony Santillan, INF/OF Spencer Steer, LHP Brandon Williamson

First-year arbitration eligible: LHP Andrew Abbott, SS Elly De La Cruz, INF/OF Dane Myers

Players don’t take pay cuts in arbitration, so it’s possible someone on this list could be non-tendered in addition to Friedl.

Right-hander Antone is in his final year of arbitration after returning from his third elbow surgery, has posted a career high in innings and worked his way to the back of the bullpen. Because of his injury history, he’s likely to earn somewhere in the $1.5 million range, which is not that expensive for the type of production he’s given the team this year.

Pre-arbitration: RHP Julian Aguiar, INF Edwin Arroyo, INF Leo Balcazar, C Will Banfield, INF Juan Brito, OF Blake Dunn, RHP Jose Franco, RHP Julian Garcia, INF Ivan Johnson, RHP Rhett Lowder, OF Noelvi Marte, RHP Zach Maxwell, RHP Zach McCambley, RHP Luis Mey, RHP Chase Petty, RHP Connor Phillips, OF Héctor Rodríguez, INF Sal Stewart, RHP Chase Solesky, 1B/OF Michael Toglia

Relievers — especially those without options — and injured players have to worry the most about their spots on the roster this offseason.

Marte is probably the most interesting case, but because he is not eligible yet for arbitration and has a minor-league option remaining, his talent is too great to cut him for nothing.