Kyle Nicolas' meltdown leaves Reds with obvious but tricky next move

The Cincinnati Reds defeated the Tampa Bay Rays on Tuesday night 12-6, but the final score makes the game look much closer than it really was. Reds reliever Kyle Nicolas entered in the ninth inning with Cincinnati leading 12-2. He proceeded to walk five of the nine batters he faced and allowed four runs to cross the plate.

There's little doubt that Nicolas' performance will earn him a one-way ticket back to the minor leagues, but the Reds must decide who they'll replace him with. Left-hander Caleb Ferguson is set to begin a rehab assignment this week, so Cincinnati could opt to hold onto Nicolas for a few more days. That seems unlikely, however.

Luis Mey or Zach Maxwell should join the Reds bullpen

Look for the Reds to recall one of Luis Mey or Zach Maxwell to the active roster. While there are certainly more deserving relievers down on the farm, Mey and Maxwell are the only two healthy arms who are part of the 40-man roster.

With Ferguson likely weeks away from returning, selecting the contract of Andrew Chafin or Tejay Antone would be a foolish endeavor. Not only would it require the Reds to remove a player from the 40-man roster, but once Ferguson is activated, Cincinnati's front office would then have to make another move.

The Reds have just three relievers on the active roster who have minor-league options remaining. One of those is Nicolas who'll surely be sent back to Triple-A Louisville. The other two — Connor Phillips and Graham Ashcraft — are key members of the relief corps, and are not going anywhere. As such, the Reds should recall Mey or Maxwell and then option that player back to Triple-A once Ferguson is activated from the 15-day IL.

Mey has made nine relief appearances for the Louisville Bats this season. He has a 6.00 ERA with 11 strikeouts and three walks over nine inning of work. The opposition has torched him to the tune of a .316 batting average against.

Maxwell hasn't been much better. He owns a 6.23 ERA with 13 punch outs and seven walks in 10 appearances. The hulking right-hander has seen opposing hitters post a .306 batting average against across 8⅔ innings pitched, and he's coming off a week in which he walked three of the 14 batters he faced. Command and control continue to plague both Mey and Maxwell.

Neither pitcher is a solid option at this moment, and the Reds could decide to simply keep Nicolas on the roster until Ferguson is healthy. While his meltdown on Tuesday night was unfortunate, he had pitched well during his previous two outings.

Overall, the Reds bullpen has been the strength of the team through the first few weeks of the season. But there's no way Reds manager Terry Francona will be able to stomach what Nicolas did on Tuesday night. He'll either be on a plane back to Louisville or on a very short leash.

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