Brandon Williamson and Carson Spiers made life harder for the Reds this offseason

September is a critical time for MLB teams. For contenders, jockeying for positioning and/or making a final push for a playoff spot is top of mind. However, for teams out of the race like the Cincinnati Reds, it might be arguably more important because it's the time when young players come up from the minor leagues, trying to stake their claim for a role on the following year's roster.

For the Reds, a pair of hurlers had a key opportunity this September. They might not be very young; both are 28, but inexperienced is a good word to describe both Brandon Williamson and Carson Spiers. Coming up big in September would have been huge for both of these pitchers.

Cincinnati will have a need in the rotation in 2027. The club might have multiple. Only three starters' names can be written in ink: Chase Burns, Andrew Abbott, and Nick Lodolo. Terry Francona seems to have faith in Rhett Lowder for the fourth spot, but even then, he's not above competition.

Hunter Greene won't be walking through the door next year, so even if Lowder proves himself worthy in spring training, there's still an open spot with Brady Singer hitting free agency. Unfortunately, neither of these potential rotation options stood out with their late-season opportunities.

Brandon Williamson and Carson Spiers gave the Reds more questions than answers with September performance

Injuries have been the story line for both of these once-promising arms. Wiliamson faced stiff competition this spring training but managed to make the cut and land on the Reds' Opening Day roster. His inclusion was aided by Greene's first elbow injury of the year, plus a blister on Lodolo's left index finger.

Williamson wasn't long for the majors, tough. Through the end of April, he posted a 6.11 ERA over six starts, but before the poor performance could boot him from the 26-man roster, a shoulder injury landed him on the shelf. It was a devastating turn of events for a southpaw who was already coming off of Tommy John surgery.

Spiers' injury story is even more checkered, and it wasn't even clear that he'd be able to pitch in 2026. He came back faster than expected from his own recovery from Tommy John surgery and showed some promise with a 3.54 ERA over four starts at Louisville. His September call-up was limited to six innings over two appearances, but he surrendered four homers in the process of giving up five earned runs over that time.

Williamson's performance is even more concerning. He struggled in Louisville with a 5.94 ERA over five starts and 16⅔ innings pitched. When he resurfaced in the majors, he recorded a 4.38 ERA over 24⅔ frames, but he allowed five homers and 10 walks in that time and posted a much more ghastly 5.70 FIP.

These are small samples from pitchers recovering from injuries, so up to a certain point you have to take these poor results with a grain of salt. At the same time, these injuries to a pair of pitchers with lengthy injury histories are concerning in and of themselves.

It's clear that while Williamson and Spiers can compete, at least one competent starter must be brought in to vie for a spot in the rotation. Otherwise, we're looking at a potential doom-and-gloom scenario.

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