Terry Francona all but screams Hunter Greene withheld key injury info from Reds

(Updated: 3/10/26 at 3:45 p.m. ET) Cincinnati Reds starting pitcher Hunter Greene is set to undergo arthroscopic surgery on his right elbow to remove bone chips and loose bodies. According to reports, he's likely to miss 14-16 weeks and won't be back on the field until sometime in July.

Greene said himself last week that he felt discomfort in his elbow over the final month of the 2025 season. It even came to light recently that he received a platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injection last October at the behest of Dr. Neal ElAttrache.

Greene's acknowledgment of this lingering injury has Reds Country incensed, and fans are beginning to ask a simple question: Why he didn't have this surgery during the offseason? Did the Reds medical team screw up again? Based on recent comments from Reds manager Terry Francona, he was unaware of Greene's injury.

“He never told me (directly) any of that,” Francona told Cincinnati reporter Charlie Goldsmith. “I know he has mentioned it to (pitching coach Derek Johnson). He was always telling me he was good. I liked the way he was pitching. The trainers, we’re never going to send somebody out there if they shouldn’t pitch or play. Ever.”

Why did Hunter Greene wait to inform the Reds of his injury?

Greene's inability to post has been a constant source of consternation for the Reds fanbase. He started just 19 games last season due to a lingering hamstring injury. The right-hander missed three weeks, then suffered a setback that kept him on the IL for more than two months.

Greene has repeatedly stated that one of his primary goals is to be on the mound consistently, but he's failed to live up those expectations every season. Across his four big-league seasons, Greene's averaged just 22.8 starts per year and 123.8 innings pitched.

There were various trade rumors throughout the offseason, many of which cited Greene's durability as a big reason why Cincinnati was entertaining the idea of trading their All-Star starter. The Reds front office eventually quelled those rumors, but one has wonder if they were waiting to see whether or not another organization was ready to blow them away with an offer they couldn't refuse.

A few Cincinnati sports reporters have questioned Greene's desire and durability in the past. The Reds fireballer appeared to take exception to at least one beat reporters comments earlier this spring saying they were a "defamation of character".

But until Greene can put these constant injury concerns in the rearview mirror, that narrative is going to continue, and it should. There's no longer any need fans or the media to refer to Greene as the Reds ace. An ace answers the bell — something Greene's failed to do.