Your New Favorite Red: Brandon Finnegan

Anytime you are the headliner trade chip in a trade involving a long-time ace, and fan favorite, your job can become pretty hard. That’s exactly what hand Brandon Finnegan was dealt. At the young age of 22, Finnegan already has more World Series experience than most of the Reds roster, and is arguably the best left-handed pitcher on the Reds team. Plus, he’s a pretty good follow on social media. Do you need any more reasons to call him your favorite player? Well, here’s a few:

You may know Finnegan as the guy who pitched in the College World Series AND the Major League World Series in the same year, 2014, for the TCU Horned Frogs and the Kansas City Royals, respectively. He pitched very, very well for the Royals in 2014, posting a 0-1 record with a 1.29 ERA, pitching exclusively out of the bullpen. The following year, he was up-and-down between the majors and the minors for the first part of the season, but pitched very well when given the opportunities, yet again. This time to the tune of a 3-0 record with a 2.96 ERA. He was later announced as the centerpiece in the trade sending Johnny Cueto to Kansas City. After joining the team, the Reds organization and Brandon had one common interest: Finnegan would return to a starting pitcher, like his college days.

Finnegan’s numbers were not very good at AAA-Louisville, as he went 0-3 with a 6.23 ERA in 8 starts. However, he did manage to post 30 strikeouts in just 30.1 innings pitched at that level. It was enough to get him a late season call-up though, and he got his first cup of tea as a member of the Cincinnati Reds. He started out in the bullpen, and made 2 appearances, before joining the starting rotation. He fared pretty well as a starter, and in 4 starts he managed a 2-2 record and finished the season with a 4.18 ERA while striking out a combined 24 batters in 23.2 innings pitched with the big club. Not too shabby for a guy making his first career major league starts.

After his decent finish to the 2015 season, Finnegan is widely projected to make the teams Opening Day roster, presumably as a starter. Finnegan’s pitch repertoire includes a solid fastball that hangs around the mid-to-low 90’s, a slider that he isn’t afraid to throw to either left-handed or right-handed hitters, and a changeup that is a work in progress, but still effective at times. He adds the extra dimension of having major league experience as both a starter and a reliever, which is something the Reds don’t have exactly have a plethora of, and is very eager to prove the people saying he is a career bullpen arm wrong.

Plus, just look at his puppy, Lulu.

How can you not root for a guy with a dog that adorable?