Bats Rack: Rehab Updates

Jose Arredondo has pitched well in his rehab appearances (source: MLB.com)

There are currently four players on the Bats’ roster on rehab assignments: Jose Arredondo, Homer Bailey, Johnny Cueto, and Fred Lewis. Here’s an update on how they’re doing:

Put simply, Arredondo is ready to go. He pitched two perfect innings in game 2 of the Bats’ double header yesterday and got the win. His fastball topped at 94 and his off speed stuff was absolutely filthy. Here’s Arredondo’s line in 7 appearances between Double-A Carolina and Triple-A Louisville:

IP	W-L	ERA	H	R	ER	K	BB
9.2	2-0	1.86	4	2	2	13	4

Stellar to say the least, no? Imagine a bullpen that has the capability to pitch the 7th, 8th, and 9th innings with Arredondo, Chapman, Cordero. Sounds pretty good to me!

Bailey has also impressed. He has yet to surrender a run in two starts for the Bats. He is scheduled to start again on Saturday vs. the Norfolk Tides (Baltimore). Bailey’s line in his two starts looks like this:

IP	W-L	ERA	H	R	ER	K	BB
10.1	1-0	0.00	6	0	0	8	2

Homer showed how good he can be in his last start vs. Toledo (Detroit), striking out 6 in just 5.1 IP. But, as we all know, he has shown these brilliant flashes before—and it hasn’t panned out very well. Hopefully, though, this will change and Bailey can keep it going.

Johnny Cueto did not look great in his first two starts. He gave up 2 R in 3.1 IP in his first start and 8 R in 1.2 IP in his second. However, he looked pretty good in his last outing, going 4.2 innings giving up no runs on 3 hits against Durham (Tampa Bay). Here’s Cueto’s line through three starts:

IP	W-L	ERA	H	R	ER	K	BB
9.2	0-2	8.38	14	10	9	7	4

Again, while those aren’t great numbers, he looked pretty good in his last outing. He is scheduled to start again on Sunday against Norfolk. Hopefully, he can build on his last start.

That leaves us with Fred Lewis, a career .272 hitter in 5 major league seasons. Lewis has swung the bat well during his rehab stint. He swings the bat hard and shows great patience, but he does strike out a few more times than you’d like. Here’s Lewis’ line in 11 total games:

AVG	AB	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SO	BB
.303	33	10	4	0	1	3	7	9

Lewis has flashed a lot of speed in the outfield. I haven’t had a chance to see his arm yet, but if I made a guess based on his physique, I’d say it’s pretty good.

All four of these guys should be ready to move up to the Reds very soon. The only question remaining is who the Reds send down to make room for these guys.

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Tags: Fred Lewis, Homer Bailey, Johnny Cueto, Jose Arredondo