Yasiel Puig Says He'll Miss His Reds Teammates After Reported Trade to Indians

The Cincinnati Reds traded outfielder Yasiel Puig to the Cleveland Indians in a three-team deal with the San Diego Padres on Tuesday, according to Jon Heyman of MLB Network.

Puig, who finished his Reds career against the Pirates on the same evening, told reporters postgame that he'll miss his old teammates:

"I'm going to miss all of my teammates here," Puig said per Mark Sheldon of MLB.com. "This part of the year has been amazing for me, being on this team with my teammates and the city.

"I'm leaving a lot of love. Now it's time to move forward and go to my new team and help my team get to the playoffs."

The 28-year-old Puig has 22 home runs and 61 RBI to go with a .252 batting average this season. He has also stolen 14 bases.

Puig became a fan favorite during his short four-month tenure in Cincinnati. As referenced in his postgame interview, he embraced the local community and helped children in need. Of note, the Blog Red Machine gave a shout-out to Puig for a pregame gesture recently:

The right-fielder also shook every reporter's hand following his closing press conference, per Brandon Saho of WLWT:

Puig is staying in-state for his next MLB stop, but he's making a bigger move up the standings. Cleveland is 62-44, good enough for second place in the American League Central and first in the Junior Circuit's wild-card standings.

The Tribe don't have much breathing room, however, with the Tampa Bay Rays, Boston Red Sox and Oakland Athletics firmly in the wild-card race as well.

Puig will join his team in the midst of a big nine-game homestand against the Houston Astros, Los Angeles Angels and Texas Rangers. Cleveland hosts Houston on Wednesday and Thursday.