Projecting the Cincinnati Reds 2022 Opening Day roster 2.0

Cincinnati Reds starting rotation (5)

Luis Castillo (RHP), Tyler Mahle (RHP), Mike Minor (LHP), Vladimir Gutierrez (RHP), Hunter Greene (RHP)

Last week, we saw Sonny Gray traded to the Minnesota Twins. While Nick Krall tells Reds Country that the front office has no intention of trading Luis Castillo or Tyler Mahle prior to the 2022 season, it's hard for the Cincinnati fanbase to trust anything that comes out of the mouth of the team's general manager. For now, we have no choice, and we'll keep Castillo and Mahle in the mix.

Vladimir Gutierrez feels like the safest bet among the returning the starters. While the right-hander appeared to run out of gas down the stretch last season, the Cincinnati coaching staff are hopeful that Gutierrez's increases his stamina heading into the season and eclipses double-digit wins in 2022; something he fell one shy of in 2021.

Mike Minor is the newest addition to the Cincinnati rotation. While curious in nature, the trade did bring an established left-hander on a modest contract to the Queen City. Hmm, seems like the Reds already had one of those (Wade Miley), didn't they? Regardless, I think the addition of Minor is a solid piece and it will help the youngsters in the rotation to have a veteran presence.

Now, I've been hesitant to add any of the Reds young pitching prospects to the roster predictions thus far, but I'm thinking it's time to give Hunter Greene the benefit of the doubt. Cincinnati could always choose to start the right-hander at Triple-A, but if they want to put butts in the seats, adding Greene to the Opening Day roster will help do that.