Reds rotation injuries are making one offseason departure look much worse

The Cincinnati Reds already had enough reminders that pitching depth is fragile. Hunter Greene’s elbow surgery changed the whole rotation picture, and injuries to Brandon Williamson and Rhett Lowder only made it thinner. Once Cincinnati had to reach this far down the pitching map, the rotation’s supposed cushion started feeling a lot thinner.

Nick Martinez’s start in Tampa Bay lands with a little more of a sting right now. He was a useful, versatile veteran pitcher when he was in Cincinnati. He was valuable because he could start, relieve, absorb innings, and keep a staff from sliding out of control. It becomes much easier to miss when the rotation starts springing leaks all over the place.

Martinez signed a one-year, $13 million deal with the Rays after leaving Cincinnati, and Tampa Bay has gotten exactly the kind of return that makes everyone in Cincinnati stare at the transaction log with regret. Through his early run with the Rays, Martinez has been one of Tampa Bay’s most reliable starters, carrying a 4-1 record with a 1.70 ERA over 47.2 innings and eight starts as of May 12.

And for a Reds team currently trying to patch together innings, it’s impossible not to look at Martinez and think about how useful that kind of dependable veteran would look right now. 

Nick Martinez is exactly the kind of pitcher the Reds suddenly need

The cruel part is that Martinez’s value was always hiding. He was never the flashiest pitcher on the market, and he wasn’t going to turn into the kind of signing that made a fanbase celebrate in February. He was the veteran arm who looks a lot more important once rotations start cracking in May.

Cincinnati built their rotation around upside, and that made sense. Greene is the top-end arm. And Lowder is part of the future. Andrew Abbott’s recent dominance has also helped calm things down. The Reds are not completely lost. They still have enough talent to keep the season from turning into a pitching emergency.

But upside is great until the injured list starts collecting starters. At that point, the separator is not always who has the loudest prospect pedigree. Sometimes, it’s the veteran who knows how to navigate a lineup three times. That’s Martinez.

Tampa Bay has leaned into him as a real starter, and he has rewarded them with the kind of calm that plays especially well when a team needs stability. His sinker, changeup, and cutter mix has given him a clean identity, and the Rays have done what the Rays so often do: identify a useful pitcher, put him in a role that works, and make the rest of the league look a little silly for not being more aggressive.

The Reds still have ways to survive this. Abbott finding his groove again changes the mood. And Nick Lodolo is back from injury. But the Martinez exit now feels like the kind of small offseason loss that gets bigger once the season starts applying pressure.

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