After Austin Wynns passed waivers, the Reds announced that he had been assigned to Triple-A Louisville indefinitely. In response to signing Frankie Montas, Cincinnati designated him for assignment on Tuesday. In order to finalize the transaction that sent outfielder TJ Hopkins to San Francisco on December 19, the Reds also disclosed that they had received monetary considerations from the Giants.

Wynns’s acquisition as a free agent inadvertently forced the trade of Hopkins. The 33-year-old backstop signed a one-year contract with the Reds. He spent almost three weeks as the 40th guy on the roster. With Tuesday’s DFA, Tyler Stephenson and Luke Maile are the only catchers remaining in Cincinnati’s 40-man roster.

Even if it wasn’t the result Wynns had hoped for, he probably understood it was a possibility. He agreed to a split contract that would pay him $300K for any work he did at Triple-A and $900K for time spent in the majors. Since Wynns’ minor league options are up, the only way he could have made it to Triple-A is if Cincinnati had once placed him on outright waivers.

Having been in the big leagues for more than three years, Wynns is technically free to turn down the assignment and go back to the free agency market. But to do so would mean giving up the $300K he had committed to in the 50/50 deal. It seems anticipated that he will take the assignment and report as a non-roster invitee to big league Spring Training. He may begin the season in Louisville and make a respectable minor league wage if he is not selected for Opening Day.

If the Reds want to return to a three-catcher group, like they did with Stephenson, Maile, and Curt Casali last season, Wynns is the best non-roster alternative. Wynns is coming off a subpar offensive performance over 51 games against the Giants, Dodgers, and Rockies, hitting.208/.268/.277. Despite having only played in portions of five big league seasons, he has never really threatened at the plate and finished last season ranked as a competent defender. He was a pitch framer who stopped a career-high 30.8% of attempted stolen bases.