Hunter Greene’s words to Reds clubhouse ring hollow given his track record

Cincinnati Reds ace Hunter Greene battled Pittsburgh Pirates starter Paul Skenes on Wednesday and allowed two runs on five hits in six innings pitched. Greene was unavailable for comments after the game, but returned to the clubhouse on Thursday and was visibly upset with the team's performance from the night before.

Speaking to Cincinnati reporter Mike Petraglia, Greene spoke on the team's failure to capitalize in key moments during Wednesday's game. “I feel like there's moments I was obviously frustrated last night, and moments where we've got to be able to capitalize in certain situations that momentum was on our side," Greene said. "Got to capitalize. That's where a lot of success happens in the game."

Greene continued, "I feel like there were opportunities for that. We haven't been able to do that. So I feel like it’s kind of put us in a tough position here at the end. Obviously, (I'm) still optimistic, but I think if we were to handle some other situations that we had the momentum on our side we’d be in a different position.”

Hunter Greene’s words to Reds clubhouse ring hollow given his track record

Nothing Greene said is necessarily untrue. The Reds have struggled to take advantage of favorable situations throughout the season. Cincinnati ranks 19th in terms of RBI and 20th in OPS with runners in scoring position this season.

The Reds have had to rely heavily on the pitching staff this season, and there's no doubt that Greene and other starters feel the mounting pressure of having to be nearly perfect every time they take the mound.

But if Greene didn't throw his teammates under the bus with those comments, he came about as close as you can without stepping over that line. At no point during that conversation did Greene take accountability for his mistakes — everything was directed at his teammates.

Greene later said, "I would have gotten out of innings if there was some stuff on my side. So I won’t put anybody on the spot, and never like talking about certain stuff that I can't control. But I don't think two runs would have been on the board (and) I think would have been maybe a different outcome."

Those comments are definitely a shot at his teammates, and if you read between the lines, it would seem that he's throwing Sal Stewart — a rookie — under the bus for failing to secure the final out of the sixth inning on a ground ball off the bat of Spencer Horwitz.

Stewart looked to have overran the play, the ball scooted under his glove, and into left field, which allowed Bryan Reynolds to score. By the way, Reynolds was only aboard because Greene grooved a fastball that the Pirates outfielder crushed out to center field with an exit velocity of 107.5 mph.

Greene was obviously frustrated, and most Reds fans probably share his dissatisfaction. However, those are not the type of comments that you want to hear from your ace if you're Terry Francona.

Furthermore, those are mighty big words from a pitcher who's spent essentially half of the 2025 season on the injured list. How many more games would the Reds have won if Greene was available to pitch? Greene's been outstanding — when he's on the field — but has only appeared in 19 games this season and is barely over 100 innings pitched.

Frankly, Greene should apologize to his teammates for these comments, and hopefully Francona or one of the veterans on the club has already spoken to him about it. Reds fans undoubtedly share Greene's frustration give the number of opportunities it seems like this team has squandered this season, but those are not the types of things that should leave the clubhouse — ever!

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