Cincinnati Reds: Three players most likely to have a breakout season

2. Robert Stephenson, Right-handed pitcher

Robert Stephenson was all but a forgotten member of the Cincinnati pitching staff following the 2018 season. After being drafted in the first-round out of high school and having little success to show for it, the 25-year-old went 0-2 with 9.26 ERA in 4 games that year. But a bounce-back performance in 2019 has setup Stephenson to make a big leap this coming season.

If Raisel Iglesias struggles as the Reds closer, look for Stephenson or Pedro Strop to take over in the ninth inning. Stephenson has just one save to his name during his four-year career, but he showed that he has the stuff to get the job done late in games last season.

In 2019, Bob Steve put up career-numbers. In 57 relief appearances, Stephenson went 3-2 with a 3.76 ERA in 64.2 innings of work. The 26-year-old struck out 81 batters, and finally realized that walks didn’t have to be part of his game.

For his career, Stephenson’s walk-rate was virtually unfathomable. In 2017, Stephenson’s walk-rate was 13.8% and his BB/9 was 5.63. In 2018, those numbers went even higher. According to FanGraphs, Stephenson’s walk-rate that season was 19.1% and his BB/9 was 9.26. Last season, however, Stephenson turned it around and had a walk-rate of 9.2% and a BB/9 of 3.34.

As impressive was Robert Stephenson’s strikeout rate in 2019. After putting up a strikeout-rate of just 17.5% in 2018, the lowest of his major league career, Stephenson’s strikeout-rate rose to 30.9%. To say that Stephenson has found a home in the bullpen would be an understatement. Look for Bob Steve to become a household name in 2020.