Cincinnati Reds Get Devastating Injury News, Promote Yunior Marte from Triple-A

The Cincinnati Reds were dealt some devastating injury news on Friday afternoon, placing Graham Ashcraft on the 60-day injured list with a UCL strain in his right forearm.

In a corresponding move, the Reds selected the contract of Yunior Marte.

The Reds signed Marte to a minor league deal in the offseason.

Marte has spent parts of three seasons in the major leagues with the Giants and Phillies. Over 102 career appearances, the 30-year-old owns a 5.64 ERA across 113 1/3 innings pitched.

Marte's most recent major league action came in 2024 with Philadelphia. The right-hander appeared in 23 games, posting a 6.92 ERA with 23 strikeouts over 26 innings.

He spent the 2025 season overseas with the Chunichi Dragons in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball league, where he enjoyed much better results. Marte recorded a 1.90 ERA in 55 appearances and struck out 50 batters across 52 innings.

Marte has appeared in 20 games for the Reds' Triple-A affiliate and has a 5.12 ERA in 19 1/3 innings

Reds manager Terry Francona spoke about him this spring.

"He has a big arm," Francona told Charlie Goldsmith. "Quick to the plate. The one time (in a spring training game) where he didn’t reel in as quickly as you’d hope, that’s important. He has a big arm. When he gets his breaking ball when he wants to, it’s good."

A Huge Blow to the Bullpen

May 23, 2026; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Cincinnati Reds pitcher Graham Ashcraft reacts after the final out of the eighth inning against the St. Louis Cardinals at Great American Ball Park. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-Imagn Images | Aaron Doster-Imagn Images

It's never good when you hear the words UCL injury, which is exactly what Ashcraft is dealing with. It's an injury that often comes with Tommy John surgery.

With Emilio Pagan on the injured list, the Reds have been using Ashcraft in high-leverage spots this season, and he's arguably been their best reliever out of the bullpen. For a bullpen that has struggled big time in May, this is a huge blow. Guys like Pierce Johnson, Tony Santillan, Brock Burke, and Caleb Ferguson are going to have to step up and be able to pitch in higher leverage spots.

The Reds host the Braves for a three-game series at Great American Ball Park starting on Friday night. Clay Holmes will start for Atlanta and Chris Paddack will start on the mound for the Reds.

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