Terry Francona stuns Reds fans with baffling midgame rotation decision

Nick Martinez was not scheduled to pitch on Saturday afternoon in St. Louis, but Terry Francona obviously had other plans. After Brent Suter allowed two runs through the first two innings against the St. Louis Cardinals as the opener, Francona summoned Martinez to come on in relief of the Cincinnati Reds' lefty to start the third inning.

Martinez pitched during Thursday's series finale against the Minnesota Twins, and was slated to take the hill next week against the New York Yankees. His next starter, however, could be in doubt following Francona's peculiar decision to turn to the veteran during the middle of Cincinnati's game at Busch Stadium.

Martinez has plenty of experience as a reliever. Much of his success in 2024 came out of the Reds bullpen, but Saturday's action marked the first time this season that Martinez came on in relief. His presence on the mound, however, begs the question — who's going to start next week against the Yankees?

Terry Francona stuns Reds fans with baffling rotation decision midgame

Chase Petty was activated prior to the game against the Cardinals, and many Reds fans expected the rookie to make his third appearance of the season. Petty has endured his fair share of struggles during his first two starts, but with Wade Miley on the IL following a flexor strain, the right-hander was expected to receive the bulk of innings on Saturday.

It remains to be seen if Petty will be called upon at all during Saturday's game, but after seeing Martinez, then Ian Gibaut enter, that seems unlikely. There is a chance, perhaps, that Petty will get the start next week in place of Martinez. Having gone just three innings and thrown only 52 pitches during his abbreviated outing on Thursday against the Twins, Martinez was more than capable to go multiple innings against the Cardinals and was finished after two innings and only 18 pitches.

Francona has shown time and time again that he's not worried about tomorrow's game, and is instead focused on winning the game at hand. While that's certainly admirable, this decision will have a ripple effect heading into next week and could force Nick Krall to make another roster move ahead of the upcoming series against the Yankees.

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