Greene, Pagán impress with Louisville, nearing return for pitching-needy Reds
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PITTSBURGH -- Louisville Slugger Field is located 387 miles from PNC Park, where the Reds played the Pirates on Sunday. But developments there could have a substantial impact this week for the big league roster.
Starting pitcher Hunter Greene and closer Emilio Pagán both likely completed their rehab assignments with Triple-A Louisville on Sunday afternoon.
Facing St. Paul, Greene pitched 6 1/3 scoreless innings with one hit, no walks and four strikeouts while throwing 82 pitches (54 strikes). After giving up a double to open the top of the second inning, the right-hander retired his final 16 batters in a row.
Pagán worked one scoreless inning with one hit while throwing nine pitches (eight strikes). It was his second rehab appearance for Louisville after he threw six pitches during a perfect first inning on Friday.
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Over three rehab starts -- two with Louisville and one with the Rookie-level ACL affiliate -- Greene threw 14 1/3 scoreless innings. Manager Terry Francona and Greene both expected Sunday to be the final game he would need before being activated.
“I’m looking at what I did last year. I came in and pretty much dominated the whole entire stretch in the second half," Greene said on Wednesday. "That’s my intention coming back here again."
Greene, 26, underwent arthroscopic surgery to remove bone chips from his right elbow on March 11 and was expected to miss up to four months. The loose bodies were actually detected back in October, but Greene opted not to have surgery immediately and chose a platelet-rich plasma injection.
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The delay proved costly to the Reds, who endured other rotation and bullpen injuries throughout the season's first half. When he came back last August from missing over 2 1/2 months with a right groin strain, he did help the club down the stretch to reach the playoffs. But this season, the Reds have sunk to last place in the National League Central standings after a rough last two months, and they are 4 1/2 games back of a NL Wild Card spot.
Pagán, 35, strained his left hamstring while pitching for Cincinnati vs. the Cubs on May 5 at Wrigley Field. He could rejoin the Reds for their next series against the Brewers. His return will be a welcome addition for a bullpen that is also missing key setup relievers Tony Santillan (left oblique) and Graham Ashcraft (right UCL).