Desmond Jennings to Reds: Latest Contract Details, Comments and Reaction

The Cincinnati Reds announced Thursday that they have signed outfielder Desmond Jennings to a minor league contract with an invitation to major league spring training. 

According to the Cincinnati Enquirer's Zach Buchanan, Jennings will earn $1.5 million if he makes the Reds' roster. 

Jennings spent the first seven years of his career with the Tampa Bay Rays, but he's been limited to 93 total appearances over the past two seasons. 

And based on the way he struggled last season when healthy, carving out a spot on the Reds' bench could prove difficult. 

While Jennings was once a heralded prospect in Tampa Bay's farm system, he's failed to live up to that status. 

A .245 lifetime hitter, Jennings posted slashes of .200/.281/.350 to go with seven home runs and 20 RBI in 225 plate appearances in 2016. 

If there's good news for Jennings, it's that he flashed a bit more pop at the plate last season despite posting numbers that were largely uninspiring. According to FanGraphs, Jennings recorded a fly-ball percentage of 37.1—nearly two percent better than his career average.

Jennings also hit balls hard 26.4 percent of the time in 2016, which represented a 3.2 percent improvement from the year prior. 

If the 30-year-old is able to flash some improved consistency at the plate in spring training along with some error-free fielding, he could conceivably fit on Cincinnati's roster as a platoon option in the outfield.