Two received in Cueto trade headed to Bats

Newly acquired Cincinnati Reds pitcher Brandon Finnegan on Monday received a warm welcome to the club's Triple-A franchise, chatting upon arrival with legends Barry Larkin and Eric Davis in the Louisville Slugger Field dugout.

Louisville Bats manager Delino DeShields said John Lamb, the other lefty headed to town as a result of the Reds-Royals trade involving Johnny Cueto, was also on his way ahead of a 7:05 p.m. first pitch against the Charlotte Knights.

"I've been traded before, so I know what that's like," DeShields said. "I'm pretty sure with a guy like Finnegan, this was something out of the blue for him. He pitched in the World Series for them last year -- had a big year. So I'm just going to let these guys settle in. I'm not here to evaluate them just yet. I don't think that would be fair to those guys."

The Reds made a corresponding move to replace Cueto on Monday, promoting catcher Kyle Skipworth from Pensacola. It's expected pitcher Tony Cingrani will then head to Cincinnati after his start Monday for the Bats. Cody Reed, the final piece of the Cueto trade, went to Double-A Pensacola.

Other pitchers the Reds may deal include starter Mike Leake and closer Aroldis Chapman, the former a foregone conclusions to move before Friday's 4 p.m. deadline.

Reds general manager Walt Jocketty emphasized Sunday, hours after Cueto went eight shutout innings in his final Reds start, that this was the "best value we could get" in return.

"We got three left-handed pitchers -- quality left-handed pitchers -- that we think very highly of," Jocketty said. "It was tough for Kansas City to give all three up, but we were finally, in the end, able to do that."

In Finnegan, the Reds received a player who last year threw in both the college and major-league World Series for TCU and the Royals, respectively. He has bounced around the Royals' system in 2015, recording better numbers as a reliever with the big club (3-0, 2.96 ERA) than while stretching out as a starter at Triple-A Omaha (0-2, 7.07 ERA).

Still, Jocketty said "we see (Finnegan) as a starter" who will continue in that role with the Louisville Bats.

Lamb, a former top 100 prospect, required elbow surgery in 2011 that forced him to also miss much of 2012. This has been his rebound year, with his fast ball back and with it, big numbers. He went 9-1 with a 2.67 ERA at Triple-A Omaha, allowing just 28 earned runs in 94.1 innings. He also struck out 96.