Could Nick Lodolo Be Heading to the Bullpen in 2024?

The Reds lefty is coming off injury and the rotation has been replenished in his absence.

Author:
Austin Elmore
Publish date:
Jan 9, 2024 11:15 AM EST

In this story:

After the Reds made the signing of Frankie Montas official, President of Baseball Operations Nick Krall said the team didn’t expect any more major moves to take place between now and the start of spring training in February.

That means the biggest question the Reds need to answer before opening day is simple: who will be in the Reds five-man starting rotation?

Hunter Greene, Andrew Abbott, and Graham Ashcraft are the obvious top three. After that, things get interesting. The Reds signed Montas and Nick Martinez in free agency and they are expected to compete for those other two spots, along with Nick Lodolo, Brandon Williamson and Connor Phillips.

Lodolo missed significant time once again in 2023 due to a left leg injury, but has shown promise in his limited time in the big leagues. He's also been inconsistent and injuries have led to some doubt about his future.

Williamson has been up-and-down, but came on strong during the second half of last season, making 23 total starts for the Reds and recorded a 4.46 ERA in 117 innings pitched.

Phillips is perhaps the least likely among the three due to his youth, but could provide an option in the bullpen if he pitches well in spring training.

The next question is, with just two left handers in the Reds bullpen now, could either Lodolo or Williamson be the third if they don’t find a spot in the rotation?

The two left handers in the Cincinnati bullpen right now are Sam Moll and Alex Young. Moll was acquired by Krall from Oakland midway through last season, and pitched well in 25 games for Cincinnati, posting an ERA of just 0.73 and a WHIP of 0.973.

Young appeared in 63 games for the Reds in 2023, finishing the season with a 3.86 ERA in 53 2/3 innings.

Another lefty in the bullpen could be valuable. The Reds did sign Justin Bruihl, who has a career 4.22 ERA over 70 innings pitched the last three seasons with the Dodgers and Rockies, but his status is unclear and he feels like more of a long-shot.

If Lodolo is stretched out and has the ability to go multiple innings, the thought of his nasty stuff in the middle innings is intriguing.

When you consider the analytical approach of the Reds that often leads to starters not pitching deep into games and how frequently opposing managers load the lineup with left handed bats against Reds right-handers, another multi-inning pitcher becomes even more valuable.

That's also why Williamson could fill this role. He rarely pitched more than twice through an opposing lineup when he started for the Reds last season.

Not to mention, the Reds really like Lodolo and believe he can return to his 2022 form and be dominant in the rotation if he's healthy.

Long story short, the Reds have a lot more talent in their rotation right now than they did a year ago, and this team saw important innings pitched by guys like Luke Weaver and Brett Kennedy.

The surplus of talent and not knowing what to do with it is a good problem to have and will lead to some fascinating decision making in spring training.

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