This former Reds starting pitcher has a very dubious distinction

Twenty years ago, the best starting pitcher on the Cincinnati Reds staff was a man by the name of Jimmy Haynes. The right-hander, fresh off a two-year stint with the Milwaukee Brewers, was Reds' manager Bob Boone's No. 1 starter in 2002.

Haynes was originally drafted by the Baltimore Orioles in the seventh-round of the 1991 MLB Draft. Haynes pitched two seasons with the O's before landing in Oakland for three seasons and racking up a 21-27 record with the A's before heading to Milwaukee.

In 2002, Haynes led the Reds in innings pitched (196.2) and strikeouts (126) while posting a 4.16 ERA in 34 starts. Also among those included in the 2002 Cincinnati rotation were Elmer Dessens, Chris Reitsma, and Ryan Dempster.

Former Reds pitcher Jimmy Haynes holds a dubious distinction.

Jimmy Haynes finished his career in 2004. He was released by the Cincinnati Reds after going 0-3 in five games and posting a 9.60 ERA. Haynes had nearly as many walks (7) as he did strikeouts (8) and his atrocious WHIP of 2.200 helped push him out the door.

Haynes miraculously completed a 10-year major league career; something that would be highly unlikely in today's game given how poorly the right-hander actually performed over the course of his 10 major league seasons.

Believe it or not, according to CBS Sports, Jimmy Haynes actually has the highest ERA of any pitcher in Major League Baseball history among those who've thrown at least 1,000 innings.

Haynes completed his career with a 63-89 win-loss record and a 5.37 ERA over 1,200.2 innings pitched. The Georgia native has 762 career punch outs and one save to his credit.

The Cincinnati Reds have set the bar pretty low to begin the 2022 season after a 3-22 start. Let's hope things improve as the season progresses and none of Cincinnati's starters enter the same conversation as former Reds pitcher Jimmy Haynes.