Graham Ashcraft's ominous response upon move to Reds bullpen should scare Alexis Díaz

The Cincinnati Reds made it official earlier this week — Graham Ashcraft is moving to bullpen. Whether he actually breaks camp with the big league ball club has yet to be determined, but his role has now shifted from starter to reliever.

This has been expected since, well, last year. Ashcraft has long been viewed as a reliever; even when he was mowing down batters during his successful stint as a starter during his rookie season in 2022. Ashcraft has un-hittable stuff, but all too often he stumbles the second and third time through the batting order.

Ashcraft took his demotion (if you can call it that) quite well. “At the end of the day, if I’m in the bullpen that’s where I want to be,” Ashcraft said. But that wasn't where the right-hander ended his message. While he didn't outright call out Alexis Díaz by name, Ashcraft made it clear what his mission was now that he's part of the Reds bullpen.

Graham Ashcraft's ominous response upon move to Reds bullpen should scare Alexis Díaz

“I would think if they’re moving me to the bullpen, it’s not just to fill (any) role,” Ashcraft told reporters on Thursday. In other words, my goal is to become the Reds closer in 2025. The 27-year-old went out an proved it too. During Thursday's Cactus League against the Kansas City Royals, Ashcraft made short work of the opposition.

Ashcraft came on in relief of Scott Barlow during the fifth inning of Thursday's exhibition contest and faced the minimum over three innings of work. The right-hander was pumping in strikes, with 19 of his 31 pitches landing in the zone. Ashcraft was done after three innings having struck out two and walked just one. That lone runner was erased by a ground ball double-play in the top of the sixth inning.

This could be a troublesome development for Díaz; a pitcher who's looked awful all spring. A hamstring injury kept him out of action for the first couple of weeks of Cactus League play. But upon his return, he's looked lost. The Reds even went as far as to put him into a minor-league game earlier this week.

Alexis Díaz has done nothing to earn his spot on the Reds Opening Day roster

Díaz is coming off his worst season in the majors. His strikeout rate dropped from 30.1% in 2023 to 22.7% in 2024. His walk rate (12.6%) was already among the worst in the league during his All-Star campaign in 2023, but it only got worse last season (12.8%). Díaz's whiff rate also dropped from 34.8% (among the best in MLB during the 2023 season) to just 26.6% in 2024, which is just above average.

There's a good chance that Díaz doesn't break camp with the Reds and is left off the Opening Day roster altogether. Cincinnati has no shortage of backend arms in Ashcraft, Ian Gibaut, Scott Barlow, and Taylor Rogers who could fill the void. The Reds also have Zach Maxwell and Luis Mey — both high velocity, backend arms — champing at the bit to get their opportunity in the big leagues.

If Díaz makes the Reds Opening Day roster, he'll be on a very short leash. And as far as closer duties are concerned, he may have to earn that title based on his spring training performance.

More Cincinnati Reds News and Rumors