The Cincinnati Reds traded their top rated prospect for an ace, and he aced. They had already made under the radar moves to land two other ace-caliber aces, both of whom largely aced, too. They spent up to $149 million on free agent bats. They even swung a deadline deal for perhaps the best relief arm on the market, all for a 2020 season that had been earmarked for years.
It did not work. It did not work in epic fashion, really, as the Reds crashed out of the playoffs in immediate and historic fashion, failing to score even a single run in 22 excruciating postseason innings.