Cincinnati Reds nab first big-league free agent of winter, ink reliever Emilio Pagán
The first free agent splash of the offseason for the Cincinnati Reds landed Wednesday in the form of veteran reliever Emilio Pagán, who has agreed to a two-year, $16 million deal.
The right-hander’s deal is expected to be announced after a physical is completed.
Pagán, 32, spent the last two seasons with the Minnesota Twins, producing a 2.99 ERA in 66 appearances for the Twins’ American League Central winner in 2023.
The eighth-year veteran is a fastball-slider pitcher who has a mid-90s fastball that has ticked up in velocity slightly the past two seasons and a 10.3. career strikeout rate (per nine innings).
Pagán is 22-18 with a 3.71 ERA in 369 career appearances and has closing experience, including 20 saves for the Tampa Bay Rays in 2019 and 10 for the Twins over the past two seasons.
The Reds continue to look to bolster a bullpen that overachieved in 2023 and then lost workhorse Buck Farmer to free agency and Derek Law to a non-tender decision earlier this month.
Their top priority remains finding veteran pitching for the starting rotation as they head to the winter meetings next week.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Cincinnati Reds bolster bullpen with veteran reliever Emilio Pagán
