GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- Reds second baseman Scooter Gennett prevailed in his arbitration case and will earn $5.7 million in 2018. The Reds had proposed $5.1 million.
"It's nice to win in whatever you do," Gennett said. "Win or lose, it's still a good experience. I learned some stuff that I never would have learned if I hadn't gone through the arbitration process. Even if I would have lost, I still would have been thankful for going through this experience."
Gennett, 27, is entering his sixth season in the big leagues -- and his second with the Reds. After being claimed off of waivers from the Brewers at the end of Spring Training last year, he enjoyed a breakout season, batting .295/.342/.531 with 27 homers and 97 RBIs in 141 games. Gennett was initially a utility player before he became the regular second baseman in July.
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After he earned $2.525 million last season, this was Gennett's second year of arbitration eligibility -- and he's under team control through 2019. He would be open to a multi-year deal with Cincinnati, but also sensed he would be a free agent in two years.
"There are some guys that, in my position now ... [signing] might not be the smartest thing for me to do," Gennett said. "I've worked so hard to get here, to put up the numbers I have and to perform. Then, to just sign whatever, wouldn't sit right with me."
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Unlike pitcher Marcus Stroman, who lost his arbitration case vs. the Blue Jays this week and took out his frustrations via Twitter, Gennett had no hard feelings with the Reds. He and general manager Dick Williams even discussed that a couple of days ago.
"[The Reds'] job is to win their case and ours is to try to win ours. They definitely didn't disrespect me in any way -- personally or anything like that," Gennett said. "It was very professional. I'd be lying if I said that I agreed with everything that they said. But what they said wasn't out of context or wasn't disrespectful to me in any way."
The Reds won their arbitration case against third baseman Eugenio Suarez earlier this month. Before that, the previous time a hearing was needed was with J.J. Hoover, who won in 2016.
Reed standing out
It's too early to begin saying someone has surpassed another in the competition for spots. But it hasn't been too early in camp for manager Bryan Price to be impressed by what he's seen -- especially from one particular left-hander.
"Most all of them showed that their arms are ready for camp," Price said on Saturday. "I would say, from where he finished last year to where he is now ... Cody Reed has been above and beyond where he finished the season last year."

Price noted that Reed -- who is vying for a spot in the bullpen -- wasn't just doing well from the mound, but also in fielding drills and bunting.
"It's unusual to say that after three days of workouts," Price said. "Every facet of his game really looks like it's [been] enhanced over the last four or five months."
Fourth option
The Reds have exhausted three Minor League options on pitcher Amir Garrett, which is normally the limit. But during the offseason, the club was able to gain a fourth option on the lefty for 2018. That means Garrett would not be exposed to waivers before being sent down, should he not make the team.

A fourth option was possible because of a lack of service time in the Minors. During the days while he still played college basketball, Garrett was under contract but not available to pitch. He was Drafted in 2011, but didn't play professional baseball full time until '14.
Up next
Reds position players report to camp on Sunday and will take their physicals. The team's first full-squad workout is scheduled for Monday.