Surprisingly high number of walks bring Nick Lodolo's rookie season to an end

Nick Lodolo's rookie season came to a close on Saturday afternoon in Chicago. The Cincinnati Reds starter went five innings, allowed just two hits and recorded five strikeouts, but Lodolo also allowed five free passes.

Walks have been something that, for the most part, Lodolo has kept under control this season. The five walks issued on Saturday at Wrigley Field were the most the left-hander had surrendered this season. Twice in 2022, Lodolo allowed four walks.

Still, it was a successful rookie season for the 24-year-old, and Nick Lodolo may well be in-line to the Cincinnati Reds Opening Day starter next season.

High number of walks punctuate Nick Lodolo's rookie season with the Reds.

Nick Lodolo pitched well enough during the spring to earn his way onto the Cincinnati Reds Opening Day roster. While his inclusion was delayed by a few days because of roster construction, for all intents and purposes, Lodolo was part of the Opening Day roster.

Lodolo made his major league debut on April 13th versus the Cleveland Guardians and allowed five runs on seven hits while striking out four batters.

Lodolo was just three games into his big league career before an injury landed the southpaw on the IL for over two months. But, upon his return, Lodolo has been quite impressive. Since returning in early-July, Lodolo has gone 3-5 with a sub-3.50 ERA and a K/9 of 11.51 and a 30.7% strikeout-rate.

While Hunter Greene got most of the preseason-hype, Nick Lodolo may have gotten the better of his rookie counterpart in terms of production this season, but Reds Country should be ecstatic for the future 1-2 punch that the duo is likely to provide atop the Cincinnati starting rotation.

With Luis Castillo and Mike Minor beginning the season on the Injured List, the Cincinnati Reds received some unexpected early-season contributions from Nick Lodolo. The lefty may have set a career-high in walks on Saturday in Chicago, but his career trajectory looks fantastic.