Cincinnati Reds: Predicting the 2020 bullpen after adding Pedro Strop

4. Raisel Iglesias, Right-handed pitcher

Signing Pedro Strop could turn out to be a fantastic signing if Raisel Iglesias‘ struggles from 2019 bleed over into 2020. Last year was one that Iggy would just as soon forget. The Reds closer was utilized a bit differently by new skipper David Bell, and was brought into several games in a non-save situation. It’ll be interesting to see how Bell handles Iglesias this coming season.

The 2020 season will be a big one for Raisel Iglesias. After being the most outstanding pitcher in the Reds bullpen for the previous two seasons, Iggy fell on his face last year. Was it a product of the way Bell used Iglesias? Perhaps, but at the end of the day, as a professional baseball player, when your number is called, you have to perform. Iglesias did not do that in 2019.

Iggy was hung with a club-record 12 losses for a relief pitcher. That’s absurd and it has to change heading into 2020. Though Iglesias had a career-high 34 saves, he also had six blown saves. That number has to go down, as does the number of home runs allowed, which reached 12 last season.

As bad as 2019 was, Iglesias seemed to turn a corner as the season came to a close. Through the end of July, Iglesias’ ERA was sitting at 4.30 with opposing batters knocking him around to the tune of a .244 batting average. Over the final two months of the 2019 season, Iggy showed a glimpse of his old self, striking out 29 batters over the final 24 games and allowing just three homers.