Former Reds arm who was unexpectedly dumped by Twins could stabilize Cincinnati's bullpen

The Cincinnati Reds bullpen has fallen on hard times. Closer Emilio Pagán is on the injured list, and won't return for several weeks. Graham Ashcraft and Connor Phillips have forgotten how to throw strikes, and Tony Santillan's velocity is down year-over-year. The Reds relief corps owns a collective 4.98 ERA on the season, but since the month of May began, that number is sitting at 7.71.

The Cincinnati bullpen needs help, and perhaps former Reds' pitcher Matt Bowman could be the answer. The right-hander signed a minor-league deal with the Minnesota Twins this past offseason and was outrighted to Triple-A St. Paul to begin the year. In 14 appearances, he owns a sparkling 1.69 ERA with 25 punch outs over 21⅓ innings pitched.

Bowman, however, exercised his opt-out clause recently, and the Twins chose not to add him to the 40-man roster. He's now a free agent, and given the injuries and lack of production from the Reds' pen of late, president of baseball operations Nick Krall should definitely give Bowman's representation a phone call.

As New York Post columnist Jon Heyman correctly points out, Bowman is inducing ground balls at a very high rate this year. Reds fans know all too the well the value that brings to a team who plays half their games inside the hitter-friendly confines of Great American Ball Park.

Adding Matt Bowman could help the Reds' bullpen stem the tide

Bowman is going to be a popular name among GMs for the next couple of days, and with so many teams looking for relief help, Cincinnati could easily be outbid for his services. The Reds recently chose not add Andrew Chafin to the Major League roster and allowed him to re-enter the free-agent market. The southpaw has yet to find a new destination to call home this season, and much like Bowman, Chafin put up good numbers in Triple-A to begin the year.

Adding Bowman isn't going to save Cincinnati's season, but it could add some length to a bullpen that's running on fumes at the moment. Reds' relievers have cleared 188 innings this season, and manager Terry Francona has heavily relied on the trio of Ashcraft, Phillips, and Santillan ever since Pagán landed on the IL.

Adding Bowman could be a short-term solution until the Reds' bullpen is back to full strength — Caleb Ferguson should be activated from the IL soon — and would certainly bring another veteran presence to a relief corps that stocked with young talent.

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