Unexpected Name Emerging in Reds Opening Day Roster Conversation

We are still just a couple of weeks into Spring Training, but we've already have plenty of storylines in camp.

Who will take home the final couple roster spots? Who will win the fifth starter spot? Who will earn the final bullpen spots?

Reds beat reporter Mark Sheldon recently suggested one dark-horse candidate that could grab one of those available bullpen spots.

"In camp as a non-roster invite, Antone is working his way back from his third Tommy John surgery on his right elbow, which he underwent in 2024," Sheldon wrote. "So if anybody knows how to play the underdog role and make a team, it's this guy. The reliever made the roster in '24 in similar fashion after his second TJ surgery and has a determination to beat the odds to go with feeling good in camp. Because of his elbow problems, he has been limited to only 45 games since 2020. If Antone can make the team and have an injury-free season, he would be a runaway leading contender for the NL Comeback Player of the Year Award."

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Antone is a player that all Reds fans are rooting for. The 32-year-old had has brutal luck and like Sheldon wrote, has had three Tommy John surgeries since breaking onto the scene.

In 2025, Antone made 15 appearances between High-A Dayton, Double-A Chattanooga, and Triple-A Louisville. He gave up 17 runs on 23 hits in 15 innings, while walking nine and striking out 15.

On Sunday, Antone pitched a perfect 1-2-3 sixth inning in his 2026 Spring Training debut.

His teammates are rooting for him as well.

“What he has done is incredible,” Tony Santillan told Charlie Goldsmith of Charlie's Chalkboard. “You hear three (surgeries), and that doesn’t happen. Actually witnessing it, he looks really good. Watching him, you’d have never guessed he was on his third (Tommy John). I’m very happy for him. It hasn’t been an easy road for him. I have nothing but respect and love for him.”

If Antone were to shock the world and make the Opening Day roster, it would be one of the coolest stories in Major League Baseball.

You can see a dark-hose candidate for each team here.

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