GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- In a game vs. Dodgers Triple-A players on Tuesday, Reds righty Bronson Arroyo threw 74 pitches over 4 1/3 innings. He gave up three earned runs on five hits with no walks and three strikeouts.
In his third inning of work, Arroyo did give up back-to-back-to-back homers.
"I thought he looked great," Reds manager Bryan Price said. "Three well-hit fly balls that were 'Field 3' homers. They were hit decent, but they weren't traditional home runs. His velocity was up bumping 88, which was good to see. He has a game plan with what he's doing. He stayed almost exclusively inside on the hitters, and that was more than anything to keep them away from being able to extend. That put him in a position to be vulnerable for the long fly ball. But that was his game plan, and he executed it. I'm very, very satisfied with the way he's been throwing."
Arroyo, a non-roster invitee who pitched for Cincinnati from 2006-13, will make one more Minor League start on Sunday. But it will come after the Reds have to submit their Opening Day roster, so the 40-year-old right-hander won't officially make the team when the season opens. But if he stays healthy in his final start, he will complete a comeback after over two years out of the big leagues because of arm injuries.
If there are no issues, Arroyo could make his regular-season debut on April 8 at St. Louis. To open the season, left-hander Cody Reed will have a spot in the rotation but be available out of the bullpen for the first few days. Price and general manager Dick Williams also expect Reed to get a start in the big leagues early on.
"There's a way through this, but it also gives us a chance to have [Arroyo] pitch another time and make sure he says, 'Yeah, I'm ready,'" Price said. "And he gets the reps and the ups and downs, and that's why these Minor League games have been so important for him. I anticipate him being ready, but this is the only way we cover ourselves, if we have somebody ready as a just-in-case fallback."
Worth noting
• Reliever Raisel Iglesias threw a side bullpen session on Tuesday morning without incident. Iglesias has not pitched in a game since March 14 because of a bone bruise in his right elbow from a fall. But Price said the right-hander will break camp with the club and should be ready to begin the season on the active roster.
• Pitcher Homer Bailey (elbow surgery) played catch for the first time on Monday and reached a distance of 90 feet. There were no issues and his throwing program will progress.
• Fellow starter Anthony DeSclafani, who has an ulnar collateral ligament sprain in his right elbow, is continuing with his rehab. DeSclafani recently underwent a platelet-rich plasma injection to speed his healing process.