Reds lefty Williamson strikes out one in Triple-A rehab start

Reds left-hander Brandon Williamson made a Minor League rehab start with Triple-A Louisville on Thursday, as he nears his return to the big leagues after being sidelined with left shoulder fatigue since late April.

Here’s what you need to know:

How did Williamson perform?

Williamson surrendered four runs on two hits, walking two and striking out one over two-thirds of an inning against St. Paul at CHS Field. He retired the first batter he faced on a fly ball to right field, but the next batter, Walker Jenkins, connected for a solo home run to left. Williamson struck out the next batter, but then issued back-to-back walks.

With two on and two out, Ben Ross delivered an RBI single to left to tie the game. Following a mound visit, Williamson balked in St. Paul’s third run and then was taken out of the game. He was charged with a fourth run when the next batter singled to score Ross. Overall, Williamson threw 34 pitches, 19 for strikes.

What’s next?

Prior to Thursday’s outing, Williamson made a rehab appearance with Double-A Chattanooga last Saturday. He yielded one run on no hits over two innings in that start, walking two, hitting a batter and striking out three.

With two rehab starts in the books, the 28-year-old southpaw will probably need a couple more in order to build up his pitch count before returning to the Major Leagues following a three-month absence.

What are they saying?

Williamson has a history of shoulder issues, including a left shoulder strain that caused him to miss five months in 2024. He then missed the entire 2025 campaign recovering from Tommy John surgery to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his left elbow.

“I feel like I've been really kind of just trying to battle the fatigue of coming back,” Williamson said after exiting his April 29 start against the Rockies after three innings. “I haven’t been pitching for two years, and I'm not including before Spring Training, and now I'm close to 50 innings. So, even if I didn't have surgeries, I'd probably be at that point, but that just kind of adds to it.”

What else?

With the Reds having to place ace right-hander Hunter Greene back on the IL due to right elbow soreness, it’s all the more important for Cincinnati to get a healthy Williamson back into the rotation.

The club will hope that coming off the current IL stint, Williamson will be more like the pitcher who had a strong Spring Training and gave up one run over 12 innings across two road starts on April 6 and April 17, as opposed to the one who gave up nine runs over 7 1/3 innings across two starts just before he went on the IL.