It only took one game for Wade Miley to spark regret from Reds fans

The Cincinnati Reds placed Hunter Greene on the 15-day IL with a groin strain and replaced him with Wade Miley. It was a curious choice given Miley's struggles in the minor leagues this season, but Reds fans were willing to give the grizzled veteran a chance to prove that he's still got what it takes to be a major league-caliber pitcher. The results on Wednesday afternoon suggested otherwise.

The Reds added Miley to the active roster and planned to deploy him as a starter during the team's upcoming series against the Cleveland Guardians next week. But Reds manager Terry Francona proclaimed before Wednesday's game against the Milwaukee Brewers that Miley would be available to pitch out of the bullpen.

With Cincinnati's bats (once again) deathly silent and the Reds trailing 5-1 heading into the eighth inning, Francona replaced Lyon Richardson with Miley. It was the left-hander's first major league action since April 16, 2024.

Wade Miley's struggles vs. Brewers raises concern among Reds fans

Miley allowed back-to-back singles to start the eighth inning, and then catcher interference on Reds' backstop Jose Trevino loaded the bases with nobody out. Brewers' infielder Joey Ortiz grounded into a force play at home plate, but the next batter singled to center field to increase the Brewers' lead. Another force play at the plate followed by a tremendous diving grab in left field by Will Benson allowed Miley to limit the damage to just one run.

Francona sent Miley back on the mound for the ninth inning, and it slowly began to unravel for the veteran lefty. Leading 6-1, the Brewers opened the inning with back-to-back singles once again, and two batters later, Miley surrendered a three-run blast to Isaac Collins. Miley was able to right the ship and get the final two outs of the inning without allowing a base runner, but the damage was done and Cincinnati lost by the final score of 9-1.

In total, Miley worked two innings, threw 38 pitches, and allowed four runs on six hits without recording a single strikeout. The Statcast metrics are rather troubling with Miley averaging just 89 mph on his four-seamer. He didn't get a single swing and miss with Brewers' hitters making contact on all 20 pitches they swung on.

Miley is still undoubtedly shaking off the rust, and the hope is that this tuneup in what was an un-winnable game will help him heading into next week in Cleveland. But if Miley has another outing like this, his time on the Reds roster, and perhaps MLB in general, will be short-lived.

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