The Reds are counting on a big season from familiar arms and also some newcomers
Pitchers and catchers report to Goodyear, AZ for Spring Training on February 14, 2024. The Reds currently have a full 40-man roster and will need to whittle it down to 26 by Opening Day. 13 of those 26 will be pitchers.
The Returners
Of the 40 players currently on the roster, 23 are pitchers. Of those 23 pitchers, 18 saw Major League time with Cincinnati in 2023. Here they are:
Andrew Abbott, LHP
Tejay Antone, RHP
Graham Ashcraft, RHP
Fernando Cruz, RHP
Alexis Diaz, RHP
Buck Farmer, RHP
Ian Gibaut, RHP
Hunter Greene, RHP
Casey Legumina, RHP
Nick Lodolo, LHP
Sam Moll, LHP
Connor Phillips, RHP,
Lyon Richardson, RHP
Lucas Sims, RHP
Carson Spiers, RHP
Levi Stoudt, RHP
Brandon Williamson, LHP
Alex Young, LHP
The Redlegs will obviously have some tough choices to make as Spring Training progresses. They have plenty of contenders for a very limited number of open spots.
Only 5 starters and 8 relievers will be chosen for Opening Day - but there are more than just the 18 returners to consider.
The Newcomers
Nick Krall and his merry crew were busy in addressing the 6th worst pitching staff in baseball by ERA in 2023 (4.83). Cincy pitchers also dealt the 4th highest amount of walks at 613, and allowed the third most home runs at 222.
Needless to say, help was needed.
Here are the 5 new additions to the 40-man roster who did not see time in Cincinnati in 2023:
Nick Martinez, RHP
Frankie Montas, RHP
Emilio Pagan, RHP
Christian Roa, RHP
Brent Suter, LHP
Roa was added to the 40-man roster as a rule 5 draft protection measure and likely does not factor in to the Opening Day plan.
However, the other 4 were signed to contribute heavily in 2024 and will certainly active for Opening Day, barring any injuries of course. This leaves only 9 slots for returning pitchers or non-roster invitees on the 2024 staff.
The Longshots
As every team does each year, the Reds have invited several players to Major League camp who are not on the official roster. The Reds' list of non-roster invitees (NRI) will grow leading up to Spring Training so we will not list them all, but they can be found here. The general idea with these NRIs is to throw things against the wall and see if anything sticks, but they generally fall into one of the following buckets:
• Top prospects. They receive big league exposure and access to top coaches / veteran knowledge while also providing enough bodies for drills / exercises. 2023 first round pick Rhett Lowder is an example of this for this season.
• Wily veterans or journeymen. These are more camp bodies who also provide injury depth - and sometimes turn into solid roster contenders. Usually high upside or risky players returning from injury or a down season. Examples would be Brooks Kriske and Tyler Gilbert for 2024 with many more to be added.
• Players who have appeared for a major league team before but are currently in the minor leagues. Teams do this as both a sign of respect and because these players have the best chances of cracking a roster - they have been there before. Examples of this include Reiver Sanmartin and Tony Santillan this year.
There will definitely be more camp invites, but all are extreme longshots to make the team.
Maybe former Red Alex Blandino will crack the roster and take MLB by storm as the next great knuckleballer???
More updates to come on the pitching staff as we approach Opening Day.
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