After turning the corner in earnest in June, Hunter Greene was at his best in his first start of July.
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Greene, the Reds' No. 2 prospect (No. 18 overall), established a pair of career highs on Monday, racking up 10 strikeouts over seven scoreless innings in Class A Dayton's 2-1 win over Lake County. He allowed two hits, both singles, and did not issue a walk.
Greene kept the Captains out of the hit column until the third inning, when Jesse Berardi tagged him for a two-out single after back-to-back strikeouts to open the frame. Greene rebounded to fan the next batter, as he struck out the side for a second straight inning.
A one-out knock by Oscar Gonzalez would be the extent of the offense against Greene, as the 18-year-old right-hander retired the final 10 batters he faced to finish his career-long outing with 69 pitches, 52 of which he threw for strikes.
Selected by Cincinnati with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2017 Draft, Greene opened his first full season by registering a 10.06 ERA in his first seven starts for Dayton. With Monday's performance, however, the triple-digit flamethrower has now allowed two or fewer earned runs in eight straight starts, with a 1.87 ERA over 43 1/3 innings in that span.
He's been especially sharp of late, too, posting a 1.37 ERA with 24 strikeouts in 19 2/3 frames over his past three starts -- his three longest starts this season.
Overall, Greene owns a 4.18 ERA through 15 starts in the Midwest League. He's compiled 77 strikeouts against 19 walks in 60 1/3 innings while limiting hitters to five home runs.