Reds Raid Waiver Wire for Bullpen Help as Blake Dunn Heads to IL

The Reds claimed right-handers Ron Marinaccio and Chase Solesky off waivers Thursday, acquiring the Pirates' and Rays' cast-offs in a move that underscores Cincinnati's mid-August scramble for bullpen reinforcement. To clear 40-man roster space for both arms, the Reds transferred outfielder Blake Dunn to the 60-day injured list, effectively removing him from consideration for the remainder of the regular season.

Marinaccio has bounced between organization depth charts since 2021, a career path littered with DFA notices and minor-league shuttle assignments. Solesky, similarly, has struggled to stick with a major-league roster, cycling through waiver claims and relegation to Triple-A. Neither pitcher carries the pedigree of a difference-maker—these are lottery tickets on gas-and-stuff profiles that might play in a bullpen emergency. The fact that both cleared waivers before landing in Cincinnati suggests no other contending team viewed them as rotation insurance, which sets the realistic ceiling: spot reliever work, likely in low-leverage spots, with upside only if the Reds' regular rotation deteriorates further.

Dunn's transfer to the 60-day IL, however, carries more strategic weight. Moving a depth outfielder to long-term absence doesn't solve an immediate positional crisis—it's a roster-math housekeeping move that signals the Reds have made their decision on him for 2026. By August, that decision is already baked into win probability; the impact on Cincinnati's late-season competitiveness is minimal. What matters is whether Marinaccio and Solesky can limit damage in bullpen situations where regular options are exhausted or overworked.

From a betting lens, waiver-wire pickups this late in August rarely move the needle on team-total overs. Cincinnati's win curve is already largely determined by the strength of its core rotation and regular bullpen, not by a September cameo from a pitcher who couldn't stick elsewhere. Oddsmakers price team totals on the assumption that teams mine the waiver wire—it's built into their models. What's NOT priced in is whether these arms perform above replacement level in actual games, which is a variance play, not an edge. Over the next week, look for Cincinnati's bullpen ERA to stabilize slightly if Marinaccio or Solesky see significant work and don't immediately get shelled; that would show up as marginal improvement to team total momentum, but the odds have already accounted for replacement-level relief contributions. The real tell comes in game-to-game samples where one of these pitchers enters a close game—if either yields back-to-back profitable bullpen overs for the Reds, that's when you reassess. For now, treat this as noise adjustment rather than edge creation.