Reds bullpen is turning into the backbone of a breakout start nobody expected

Coming into the 2026 season, it looked as if the Cincinnati Reds had one clear weak link. The starting rotation, even after Hunter Greene's injury, was considered one of the better units in baseball. With the additions of Eugenio Suarez and a plethora of platoon bats — plus the hopes that a full season of Sal Stewart brought — the Reds' lineup figured to be much improved over the 2025 version. The bullpen, however, was projected to be below average.

Now, though, things look different. Very different. Cincinnati's lineup has produced the fewest runs in baseball (71). The rotation ranks 20th in baseball with a 4.32 ERA. The bullpen? That's been the best unit in baseball with a 2.31 ERA.

Tony Santillan was a revelation last year, and so far in 2026, he's been flawless with a 0.00 ERA. Sneaky offseason acquisition Brock Burke has been almost as good with a 0.96 ERA, putting him as one of the best lefty relievers in the game. Graham Ashcraft has seemingly reached another level, establishing himself as a high-leverage maven with a 1.64 ERA. Connor Phillips is changing the failed prospect narrative and becoming a dominant bullpen arm, and has posted a 2.25 ERA thus far. Even the much-maligned Sam Moll has been a solid contributor.

The Reds bullpen has been dominant, but fans should still be cautious

Cincinnati relievers have the eighth-best strikeout rate in the majors at 25.4%. They've given up the second-lowest batting average against, yielding a minuscule .184 average. In other words, the relief corps been tough to hit and have punched out more than their fair share of batters. So everything must be good, right?

So far, yes, but there are a couple of warning signs. First, Reds relievers have been very walk-prone. Phillips has a 20.8% walk rate. Moll has doled out free passes at a 17.1% clip. Santillan isn't far behind with a 16.2% mark. Even though Burke and Ashcraft have more reasonable numbers, they come in at 10.3% and 11.6% rates, respectively. At some point, if this doesn't get corrected, there will be some implosions.

Secondly, the man locking things down hasn't been anywhere near infallible. Fans were, of course, happy to have Emilio Pagán return to the Queen City and even more so to see him come back at such an affordable rate.

However, thus far, Pagán hasn't been as good as he needs to be. The closer has six saves so far, but a 4.35 ERA and a 14% walk rate are cause for concern. So, too, is his strikeout rate falling from 30% last season to 23.3% thus far in 2026. Overall, he's got something of a track record, so it's not time to panic, but it does bear watching.

So far, the Reds' bullpen has some issues to clean up, but there's a solid foundation to build upon. If they can hone in on the weaknesses and show some improvement, they'll be able to springboard from the hot start to become truly one of the best units in the game.

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