Report: Cincinnati Reds Expected to Promote Highly Touted Bullpen Arm

The Cincinnati Reds are expected to promote right-handed relief pitcher Zach Maxwell on Friday, according to Chase Ford of MiLB Central.

Maxwell is the Reds' 24th-ranked prospect and has a 4.17 ERA in 51 games for Triple-A Louisville this season.

However, In August, Maxwell has an ERA of 0.96 with 13 strikeouts in 9 1/3 innings.

"For the longest time, three things have been true of Maxwell: He’s enormous, he throws very hard and he can’t throw strikes," MLB Pipeline wrote before the 2025 season. "It was true during his three years at Georgia Tech where he struck out 14.7 per nine and walked a batter per inning. And it’s been true since the Reds took him in the sixth round of the 2022 Draft. He’s missed bats at every stop, with a 14.0 K/9 rate while reaching Triple-A in 2024, and while the walk rate is a little better than his Yellow Jackets days, he still carries a career 6.2 BB/9 rate into the 2025 season."

Much like Luis Mey, who the Reds sent down after Wednesday's loss to the Angels, Maxwell has electric stuff. It is just a matter of if he can throw strikes consistently. When Maxwell makes his first appearance, it will be his Major League debut.

The Reds are 67-61 and currently one game back of the New York Mets for the third and final National League Wild Card spot.

The Cincinnati Reds are calling up Zach Maxwell to the majors, per @_chaseford. pic.twitter.com/yNUD2tHzli
— Milb Central (@milb_central) August 21, 2025