Reds: Michael Lorenzen should be Cincinnati’s closer moving forward

The Cincinnati Reds have had issues with the bullpen closing out games for the majority of the 2021 season. With injuries being a major factor of late, the return of Michael Lorenzen may have solved one of the teams glaring issues. Lorenzen is the best fit to be the Reds’ closer for the remainder of the 2021 season.

Lorenzen missed the first three months of the 2021 season battling a shoulder injury that he sustained in spring training. The right-hander finally made his debut on July 17th, where he would find more bad luck tweaking his hamstring while rounding the bases.

Returning last week from his second stint on the IL, Lorenzen has made a case at being the guy the Cincinnati Reds turn to when closing a game. The Redlegs have 10 different pitchers who’ve notched a saved this season.

Michael Lorenzen should be the Reds’ closer.

In Michael Lorenzen’s six appearances on the mound this season, he has yet to give up a run and has one save on his resumé. While his 2021 season is a small sample size, Lorenzen is becoming a more trustworthy reliever with each appearance he makes.

The right-handed reliever has experience being the closer in the past. Throughout his seven seasons with the Reds, Lorenzen has 11 saves, with 7 of those coming in the 2018 season. Lorenzen’s career WAR stands at 6.9, with 0.7 WAR in his hand full of appearances this season. The Reds need someone they can trust when dealing with a close-out situation in the ninth.

With the recent news that Lucas Sims has been activated back on the roster, David Bell will have some decisions to make on the closer role as the Reds head into a vital final few months of a National League playoff race.

While Sims probably won’t be thrown into a closing role so quickly following his injury hiatus, this will be the perfect time for Bell to see if Lorenzen will be his guy for this final push. Sims relished the opportunity to be the closer for the Reds. Before his injury, Sims collected 7 saves for the ball club, with 0.3 WAR.

The Cincinnati bullpen is finally seeing signs of health at the most important time of the season. Having Lorenzen, Sims, and Tejay Antone return from injuries to bolster this bullpen gives the organization and its fans new life.

The Reds are playing meaningful baseball in August, and the stage is set for an extremely eventful September. Time will tell who the Cincinnati Reds will count on going into a close game in the ninth inning. Don’t count out Mikey Biceps being the guy to get his number called more often than not.