Reds reliever Jeff Hoffman has quietly put together a nice start to the 2022 season

Jeff Hoffman was not cut out to be part of the Cincinnati Reds rotation; he proved that last season. In 2021, Hoffman pitched in 45 innings as a starter and owned a 5.20 ERA. His 18.5% strikeout-rate and 14.2% walk-rate were almost enough to send him packing.

However, Hoffman suffered an injury and after returning from the IL, the right-hander was sent to the Reds bullpen. As a reliever, Hoffman saw his strikeout-rate climb to 32.2% and his walk-rate dropped to 12.1%.

Believe it or not, outside of Alexis Diaz, Hoffman may be Cincinnati's best reliever in 2022. Diaz and Hoffman are tied for the team-lead in strikeouts by relievers, and only Diaz and Luis Cessa have a lower ERA out of the bullpen than Hoffman.

Reds RHP Jeff Hoffman has quietly put together a solid 2022 season.

Jeff Hoffman has a 1.72 ERA on the young season. In 10 relief appearances, Hoffman has covered 15.2 innings and owns a 23.1% strikeout-rate per FanGraphs. Seven of Hoffman's 10 outings have exceeded one inning of work. Hoffman had nine such multi-inning appearances in 2021.

Given how poorly the Reds starting rotation has performed in 2022, having a pitcher who can go multiple innings in relief is almost a necessity.

Since becoming a permanent member of the Cincinnati Reds bullpen, Jeff Hoffman has a 2.89 ERA and a 4.05 FIP with 55 punch outs and 21 walks over 43.2 innings of work.

Hoffman generates a lot of spin with his fastball. According to Baseball Savant, the right-hander ranks among the best in the league in that particular category.

Jeff Hoffman is oftentimes a very easy target for the fanbase, but in reality, the right-hander is one of the better pitchers in the Cincinnati Reds bullpen. It'll be interesting to see if he can maintain his current level of production.