The Cincinnati Reds cleared some space on the 40-man roster.

Monday afternoon, the Cincinnati Reds took care of some housekeeping. One former first-round draft pick was among the five players the organization outright sent to Triple-A.

After clearing waivers, Brett Kennedy, Connor Overton, Alan Busenitz, Justin Dunn, and Vladimir Gutierrez will be allowed to evaluate the free agency this winter.

The only one who comes as a surprise is Gutierrez. In 2022, Gutierrez, a former starter, had Tommy John surgery. Despite his best efforts, the right-hander Gutierrez was shut down earlier this year after suffering a setback that prevented him from playing in the major leagues.

Five Reds players were declared out, including Justin Dunn, a former first-round selection.During his rookie campaign, Vladimir Gutierrez displayed glimpses of promise and appeared to be a future starter for the Cincinnati Reds. However, the second season wasn’t kind to Gutierrez; after returning to the minor levels and changing roles, the 28-year-old sustained an injury that ended his season.

Cincinnati acquired Justin Dunn in 2022, a first-round selection of the New York Mets in 2016. Jake Fraley, Connor Phillips, Brandon Williamson, and Dunn were included in the transaction that sent Eugenio Suarez and Jesse Winker to the Seattle Mariners.

Prior to the deal, Dunn’s career had been severely limited by injury. In his two seasons with the Reds, Dunn has made just seven appearances overall. Both Dunn and Gutierrez were eligible for arbitration going into this summer.

Connor Overton, Brett Kennedy, and Alan Busenitz have all been outrighted in their professional careers and are about to become free agents. The Reds now have 38 players on their 40-man roster, but once the offseason starts, Nick Lodolo, Revier Sanmartin, and Graham Ashcraft will need to be activated.

These additions, together with the upcoming free agency of Harrison Bader, Buck Farmer, and Luke Maile, will be sufficient to improve Cincinnati’s squad. Curt Casali and Joey Votto both have unlikely-to-be-executed club options.