Reds bullpen move unlocked something Chase Petty desperately needed

The Cincinnati Reds’ young core hasn’t been shy about announcing themselves. Sal Stewart has brought the intensity. Same with Chase Burns. Cincinnati needed some of that. At some point, the Reds needed their young talent to stop being a future sales pitch and start becoming the reason this team has a pulse.

Chase Petty appears to be next in joining that group. Tucked inside the Reds’ recent pitching shuffle is something worth monitoring. Petty moving to the bullpen may have unlocked the confidence he’s needed.

Petty’s stuff was never in question. The Reds traded for him in the Sonny Gray deal because the upside was there. The arm talent was always loud. But you still have to get hitters out. Petty struggled with that when he got his first taste of the majors in 2025. It was a brutal cup of coffee that ended with a 19.50 ERA with just six innings of work across two starts and one appearance in relief.

Chase Petty’s stuff needed a simpler assignment from the Reds

The Reds could’ve kept trying to force the starter version of Petty into the big-league picture. But instead, they did something far more practical. They shortened the ask. And that might be exactly what Petty needed.

Since joining the bullpen, Petty has thrown 4⅔ innings. He allowed a solo home run in his first relief outing on June 10, but since then, he has allowed just one hit while striking out two. Certainly not enough to throw him a parade. But it’s a noticeable difference.

Not quite the same, but Petty’s move to the bullpen shares similar logic as Burns' move in 2025. It lets him simplify everything. Hit the spots. Trust your stuff. Stop pacing yourself for a lengthy outing. And don’t worry about trying to prove you are a starter every time you touch the ball. Just go get outs.

To be fair, Burns' move to the pen was more about throttling back his innings and workload. But still, simplifying the approach and embracing more of a bulldog mentality on the mound has helped future Reds starters over the years. And this could very well do the same for Petty. 

That role can do a lot for a young pitcher with big stuff and a bruised big-league introduction.

Petty recording his first major-league win in relief against the Arizona Diamondbacks should not be brushed aside. After being punched in the mouth in your first go in the majors, you need a proof of concept that says there’s a version of this that can work. 

That is especially important for Petty, whose development has already had a few different chapters. He came into pro ball known for his velocity, and the Reds have tried to mold him into more than a thrower. The pitch mix has grown and he’s creating more deception off his sinker by using the changeup more often, mixing in the slider a bit more, and cutting back on the four-seamer usage to keep hitters off-balance.

But sometimes the biggest development is not introducing a new pitch. It’s the moment a guy realizes he can get major-league hitters out. That’s what the bullpen opportunity may be giving Petty. Not a finished product, but simply belief. 

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