Terry Francona Shares Concerning Update on Emilio Pagan After Loss to Cubs

Pagan left Tuesday night's game on a cart.

Apr 4, 2026; Arlington, Texas, USA; Cincinnati Reds pitcher Emilio Pagan (15) throws during the ninth inning against the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Field. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images | Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

Cincinnati Reds pitcher Emilio Pagan threw a single pitch on Tuesday night and immediately grabbed his hamstring before falling over in pain.

It was a moment that could be felt through the television. Despite his struggles this season, Pagan is one of the leaders on this team, and you could see the concerned looks on all of his teammates' faces.

After the game, Terry Francona shared an update on Emilio Pagán, and you could hear how much he felt for him in his voice.

"He's going to get scanned in the morning, I think at 8:50," Francona said. "We will know a lot more then. He's certainly going to be an IL. We just need to see the extent of how bad he did it because you could see by his reaction that he was struggling."

Francona confirmed it was Pagan's left hamstring, which was the same hamstring he felt something in a couple of weeks ago. The skipper was asked if Pagan had still been dealing with that injury.

"I just went and saw him and he said he hadn't felt it," Francona said. "He said he warmed up fine. He said, 'I would never do that.' I believe him."

Jose Trevino also spoke about the Pagan injury after the game.

"That's a tough pill to swallow," he said. "As one of our leaders, as one of our captains, one of the dudes that cares about this team more than a lot of us. He's a big piece of this. I don't know the results yet. I am not a doctor. Obviously, it didn't look good. It's tough, man."

Trevino was asked if he saw anything in warmups to suggest Pagan was dealing with anything.

"I wasn't looking at that in warmups."

Reds Need to Regroup...Fast

May 5, 2026; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Cincinnati Reds manager Terry Francona (77) makes a pitching change against the Chicago Cubs during the sixth inning at Wrigley Field. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-Imagn Images | David Banks-Imagn Images

The Reds have lost five straight games, including two late-game blown leads. With Pagan now out, guys in the bullpen are going to have to step up. The two obvious candidates to close games while Pagan is out would be Tony Santillan and Graham Ashcraft. You could include Connor Phillips in the mix, but his command inconsistencies could make the ninth inning a challenge.

The Reds are 1-6 against the National League Central Division. If they could win the next two games and walk out of Wrigley Field with a split, they could salvage the road trip.

During Tuesday's game, Jim Day interview Francona and he mentioned how much he loves his team.

“You know what, that’s the one thing I’m not worried about. They always stay together. They’re okay. We can’t just love them when we’re winning. We love this group.”