Cincinnati Reds Move Hunter Greene's Next Start Up to Friday Despite Planned Rest

Instead of getting an extra day of rest, as was initially planned, Hunter Greene will take the mound Friday against the Diamondbacks.

Right-handed pitcher Hunter Greene, who was initially penciled in to start Saturday, will instead take the mound for the Cincinnati Reds against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday.

Greene made his return from a two-month stint on the injured list Sunday, allowing 10 hits, eight earned runs and five home runs in 3.0 innings against the Toronto Blue Jays. On Wednesday, MLB.com's Mark Sheldon reported that manager David Bell would give Greene an extra day of rest before his next start.

However, Greene is now listed as the Reds' probable starter for Friday, a spot that previously belonged to Brett Kennedy. There is no probable starter listed for Saturday, as Graham Ashcraft, Andrew Abbott and Brandon Williamson have stayed put on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday, respectively.

According to Sheldon, Kennedy will be available out of the bullpen.

Before he went down with his hip injury, Greene was 2-4 with a 3.93 ERA, 1.350 WHIP and 12.3 strikeouts per nine innings through 14 starts in 2023. He is now 2-5 with a 4.72 ERA and 1.467 WHIP on the season, as a result of his shaky outing last Sunday.

The Reds took Greene No. 2 overall in the 2017 MLB Draft. By the time 2022 rolled around, he was ranked as the No. 22 prospect in baseball, according to MLB Pipeline.

Greene went 5-13 with a 4.44 ERA, 1.210 WHIP and 11.7 strikeouts per nine innings as a rookie last season, and he entered 2023 having just inked a six-year, $53 million contract to remain in Cincinnati long-term.

The Reds lost game one of their four-game series with the Diamondbacks 3-2 on Thursday. The result flipped the two teams in the standings, helping Arizona take hold of the third NL Wild Card spot by the end of the night. 

First pitch for game two is scheduled for 9:40 p.m. ET on Friday.

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