CINCINNATI — The Cincinnati Reds’ front office has made some tough decisions over the last couple of days, and Wednesday showed they may need to make more.The Reds announced before Wednesday’s game they’d optioned TJ Friedl, the team’s leadoff man on Opening Day, to Triple A. That came the day after reliever Lyon Richardson, a second-round pick in 2018, was designated for assignment.There are more difficult decisions that loom for Matt McLain, who hit second in the lineup on Opening Day, and 2015 second-round pick Tony Santillan.McLain raised his average to .198 with a single in Wednesday’s 5-2 loss to the Kansas City Royals, but Santillan suffered his third loss of the season, allowing three runs in the ninth on a walk and three hits, including a home run — the ninth he’s allowed this season in 23 innings, which is two more than he allowed in 73 2/3 innings last year.“We’re at a point where we need some stability so much and he’s the guy — we need to figure that out,” Reds manager Terry Francona said. “Do we pick our spots a little bit? We tried to do that before, but with everybody going down, that’s been a little bit more difficult.”No reliever was more important to the Reds’ playoff run last season than Santillan, who appeared in 80 games. He started strong this season, but since closer Emilio Pagán suffered a hamstring injury May 4, Santillan has appeared in 11 games, going 0-2 with a 14.04 ERA. In that stretch, he’s pitched 8 1/3 innings, and of the 45 batters he’s faced, he has had as many home runs allowed as strikeouts (seven).Blake Dunn homered Wednesday, providing evidence that minor-league success can translate to the majors. (Albert Cesare / The Enquirer)“When I’m on the mound, I’m still (in) the same mindset that I’ve always had — just attack. Just stay aggressive, attack,” Santillan said. “Attack hitters, right? And then the results are the results. But as far as the mentality, obviously, this month, last month … has been not what I expected or what anyone has expected out of me.”Santillan wasn’t the only established Reds player in the ninth inning to cede a spot to a younger player. Right-hander Zach McCambley, making his big-league debut, replaced Santillan. McCambley struck out two of the four batters he faced to limit the damage in the ninth. In the bottom of the ninth, Edwin Arroyo pinch hit for Tyler Stephenson, who is hitting .187 this season. After Arroyo struck out for the sixth time in eight big-league plate appearances, Noelvi Marte, called up from Triple A earlier in the day, walked as a pinch hitter for McLain before Blake Dunn flied out to center for the final out.“Offense is harder for us than we want it to be sometimes,” Francona said.Shortstop Elly De La Cruz was put on the injured list with a right hamstring strain before Monday’s game, taking away the team’s most consistent hitter. De La Cruz’s injury meant the Reds couldn’t send McLain to the minors, needing him to man shortstop, which he’s done each of the last three games.Sixty-one games into the season, it’s no longer early, and the Reds can’t take sentiment and past performance into account with Friedl, nor can pure potential keep a roster spot in the case of Richardson.“I think we try to do things appropriately — we’ve talked about it for a little while,” Francona said. “With guys like Friedl — anybody, but guys like Friedl — you don’t want to jump the gun. You want to make sure you’re doing it for the right reasons and not reacting. … I think we felt like the time was right.”With the rise of Tuesday’s hero, Dunn, and JJ Bleday, named the National League Player of the Month for May on Wednesday, Friedl had been losing playing time and was informed he’d be headed back to the minors.Friedl was hitting .179/.259/.256 after Tuesday’s game and had gone from the team’s leadoff man and center fielder most days to an extra outfielder. If there was a bright, flashing neon sign that things weren’t getting better, it came in the 10th inning of Tuesday’s 4-3 victory when Friedl was put in as a pinch hitter for Stephenson to do the thing the 30-year-old has specialized in since college: bunt. Friedl made a bunt attempt on the first pitch he saw from Kansas City Royals reliever John Schreiber. He swung through the next pitch and ultimately struck out.Friedl’s five bunt hits were tied for the second most in baseball this year. Since 2023, he has 37 bunt hits, 16 more than the next player on the list, Jose Altuve of the Houston Astros. Friedl also has four sacrifice bunts this season (tied for sixth in baseball) and 18 since 2023, tied for ninth over that span. In the spot the Reds needed a bunt the most, Friedl wasn’t able to do the thing he does best.“He even owned up,” Francona said, recalling their discussion after Tuesday’s game. “(Friedl) said, ‘It’s hard for me to sit on the bench and find myself.’ I had told him the same thing and he said, ‘I’m agreeing with you.’ He wasn’t being an a–hole. He was as respectful and conscientious as you would expect him to be. There’ll be nobody rooting for him more than me. I guarantee you that. He’s one of our best kids, and we’d love to see him back to being Friedl.”Last year, Richardson, now 26, had a stretch from May to the last week of June where he had a 1.77 ERA in 18 appearances. The right-hander debuted as a starter in 2023 and moved to the bullpen the next year. Richardson was designated for assignment in December when the team traded for Dane Myers and signed Bleday. With no options remaining, Richardson cleared waivers and accepted an outright assignment to minor-league camp. On Wednesday, another reliever who was designated for assignment, Yunior Marte, elected free agency.While some players are performing in the minors, Rece Hinds’ and Arroyo’s results this season since being called up show there’s no guarantee that production from the minors carries over to the big league. The play of Dunn and Bleday, however, shows it can translate. At this point, it’s finding out just who can help the team win and who can’t.“I think we always try to keep in mind everything future and the present,” Francona said before Wednesday’s game, about the team’s difficult roster decisions. “It’ll never change. You try not to make mistakes in the moment and losing the big picture, but at the same time, every game we can win is so huge. So you try to balance that the best you can.”