Krall assumes responsibility for disappointing season, discusses future with Reds

MILWAUKEE -- As the Reds head into the final two weeks of a 2026 season where they won't make the playoffs, president of baseball operations Nick Krall took responsibility for the club's disappointing year.

And when asked if he felt good about his status with Reds ownership, Krall expected to remain and lead the team's retooling for 2027.

“Yeah, I do. We’ve had some conversations," Krall responded.

The Reds’ 4-3 win over the Brewers on Sunday at American Family Field was the finish of a 1-5 road trip through Los Angeles and Milwaukee. They are 70-79 after winning 83 games and earning a National League Wild Card berth in 2025.

There was every expectation the playoff experience would help Cincinnati make forward progress.

“Look, at the end of the day, I oversee our baseball operations, so yeah, it’s on me," Krall said. “We need to figure out and build on some of the good things we’ve done. We need to figure out how to address and minimize the inconsistencies with where we are and what we’ve done. Obviously, it all comes back on me and we’ve got to make better decisions as an organization. And that's on me.”

In the six seasons since Krall replaced Dick Williams as head of Cincinnati's baseball operations following the 2020 season, the Reds have had three seasons with a winning record. But there's been only one playoff appearance, and a 100-loss season during the rebuilding year of 2022.

During the previous offseason, Krall and general manager Brad Meador made multiple roster upgrades. At the time, all were considered sound decisions -- including the Feb. 3 signing that brought back free agent Eugenio Suárez on a one-year, $15 million contract after he hit 49 home runs in 2025 for Arizona and Seattle.

However, many of the moves didn't pay off as expected. The offense is at or near the bottom of MLB in several categories, namely average (30th) and on-base percentage (30th). And that is despite the Rookie of the Year-worthy season Sal Stewart posted, along with a career-best year from shortstop Elly De La Cruz.

“I just don’t feel we were ever consistent all year long," Krall said.

The Reds also felt confident about the depth of their pitching, going into the season with seven viable starters and an upgraded bullpen that was already strong in 2025. Then, injuries derailed several starters and relievers. The team also rated below average on defense.

“You could make all the excuses you want but at the end of the day, we haven’t done what we’ve set out to do and we’ve got to figure out how to do a better job of going into next year," Krall said.

There isn't a big window left to contend with De La Cruz, who can be a free agent after 2029. For manager Terry Francona, 2027 will be the final guaranteed season of his three-year contract -- with a club option for 2028.

“He’s been really great to work with," Krall said. "We have tough conversations but we can openly and honestly have those conversations. I feel good about the conversations we have.”

Managers with one year left on their deal can often appear to be in a lame duck situation, but Krall didn't see it that way with Francona.

“I don’t think it’s a lame duck status for a guy like that," Krall said. "I also think we’ll sit down and have conversations about where he is, how he’s feeling and what he wants to do. I love working with the guy and I couldn’t see myself working with somebody else in that role.”

The feeling appeared mutual for Francona towards Krall and Meador.

“There’s a honeymoon period whenever you go somewhere, it’s always the case. It’s supposed to be," Francona said. "But when you feel stronger about people after you’ve been there for a while, and after things haven’t gone necessarily like you want them to, that’s -- to me -- the biggest compliment I can give them.

"I care about them. I respect them. They look out for me. If anything, I’d like to try and run through that wall for them. I see how much they care and how they treat people and I appreciate it.”

Krall usually gets the baseball operations budget for the following season from ownership in early November after a series of meetings and roster evaluations. How exactly the Reds go about retooling an underperforming roster with so many question marks looming remains a mystery.

The Reds will be seeking to build around their young stars in Stewart, De La Cruz and Chase Burns, the second-year starter who had a breakout season. Burns was signed to a seven-year, $105 million contract extension in July.

"We’ve got a good core group of players, but we’ve got to do a better job of figuring out how to make the rest of it work," Krall said. "We’ll sit down after the season and address that, and figure out where we need to go.”