Cincinnati Reds: Cody Reed missed a great opportunity

Cincinnati Reds starter Cody Reed had a really great opportunity to go out on a high note, but a poor performance against the Royals may have cost him.

Cody Reed took the loss in the Cincinnati Reds defeat at the hands of the Kansas City Royals last night. Reed had been rolling of late and really looked the part of a Major League starting pitcher. Now, while one performance won’t make or break Reed’s chances in Spring Training, it certainly would’ve helped if he finished 2018 on a high note.

Look, we have no idea what the Cincinnati Reds’ starting rotation will look like next season. Other than Luis Castillo‘s spot in the rotation, virtually every spot is up for grabs. I would’ve guaranteed a spot as well for Anthony DeSclafani two weeks ago, but his performances lately have to raise the eyebrows of the Reds’ management.

Anyone who’s visited this site before knows that I’m very high on Cody Reed. I think he’s got top-notch stuff and I think the Reds need a quality left-handed starter in order to compete in the National League Central.

Cody Reed had back-to-back solid outings in which he pitched 11 consecutive innings without allowing a run. During that span, he struck out 16 while walking only 2 and opposing batters were hitting on .179 against him.

Last night was not as kind to Cody Reed. His scoreless streak of 11 straight innings was snapped early on. The Royals shortstop Adalberto Mondesi reached base on a single and swiped two bags before coming into score on a Salvador Perez RBI double.

Reed took care of business in the second inning, recording two groundball outs and one strikeout. But, the third inning produced more of the same for Reed. Whit Merrifield, Kansas City’s outfielder, singled and stole two bases before scoring on an Alex Gordon single to centerfield.

Reed as lifted by interim manager Jim Riggleman after Hunter Dozier scored on an RBI single by Alcides Escobar during the 4th inning. Sal Romano came in to get the final out of the inning, and just like that, Reed’s season has come to a close.

It surely wasn’t the season that Reed had envisioned. He only got to start 7 games this season and appeared another 10 times out of the bullpen. As a starter over the final month of the season, Reed was 1-2 with a 4.56 ERA.

Throwing the numbers out the window, which you can’t do because much of the sport of baseball hinges on such things, Reed looked more comfortable on the mound during his starts at the tail end of this season. He still had two starts where he walked at least 3 batters, but the command of his slider, particularly against right-handers looked much improved.

Cody Reed will no doubt get a shot during Spring Training to secure a spot in the starting rotation for the Cincinnati Reds. And while Wednesday’s performance doesn’t absolutely bury him among a group of other potential starters, another solid outing would’ve given him a leg up on the competition.