Cincinnati Reds’ prospect Tyler Mahle may be next to get the call

With the Cincinnati Reds down five starting pitchers from the start of the off-season, seventh ranked prospect Tyler Mahle may be next to make his MLB debut.

The Cincinnati Reds have what some experts were saying the entire starting rotation would be in 2017 on the DL.  That is Homer Bailey, Anthony DeSclafani, Brandon Finnegan and prospects Rookie Davis and Nick Travieso.  Now Sal Romano has made his MLB debut and both Cody Reed and Tim Adleman are back in the rotation.

Tyler Mahle had a rough, short spring with the Cincinnati Reds’ major league camp, but his stuff has never been in doubt.  Mahle is in Double-A Pensacola for the second year in a row.  He made his final 14 starts of last year at Pensacola after starting the season in Dayton.  His career started in 2014 with a bang in Billings and he has never looked back.

Mahle has gone 36-21 in 84 minor league games including 75 starts.  He has struck out 396 in 431 1/3 innings.  Those are good numbers, but there is another number even more impressive.

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Mahle has a minor league career ERA of 3.05.  Some statisticians don’t like ERA as a number, but with a 1.14 career WHIP and fewer hits than innings pitched Mahle has all the numbers that matter.  He has also only given up 30 home runs, which works out to about ten or so per season.

More from Reds Prospects

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• Reds prospect: Rece Hinds finding his power after prolonged stint on IL
• Reds prospects: Bryce Bonnin excelling at every minor league level
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Tyler Mahle may not get the call because the Cincinnati Reds don’t want to move anyone off of the roster.

Adleman, Reed and Romano all have one huge advantage over Mahle and it is the same one that Barrett Astin has.  They are all already on the forty man roster.  Lisalverto Bonilla who just came up to help in pen got the call because he is on the forty man and had already made his MLB debut before the season started.

Mahle is most MLB ready pitcher in the minors, but he has to overcome the fact that Austin Brice, Luis Castillo, and Keury Mella are all already on the forty man roster.  Mahle was drafted in the 7th round in 2013.  He wasn’t expected to compete for an MLB spot until next year at the earliest.  Now he is in a contest with Castillo to get the call up if Reed or Adleman falter.

Next: Stuart Turner off to a tough start in this debut season

The Reds are short on pitching this season thanks to an almost unprecedented run of injuries.  This is after they traded their pitcher from 2016, Dan Straily, to get the aforementioned Castillo.  Now they have to hold things together, even if it eventually means making the call to Pensacola for Mahle.