The Reds decided to make a rotation swap by having Luis Castillo start Thursday's series opener vs. the Rockies in Denver, instead of his scheduled start on Friday, and Wade Miley getting an extra day of rest and being slated for the second game of the four-game set.

Castillo and Miley have been on opposite tracks of late. Miley pitched a no-hitter Friday in his previous start in a 3-0 win at Cleveland. Cincinnati is winless in each of Castillo’s last five starts, but the right-hander gets to stay with his regular four days of rest.

“I think it accomplishes a couple of different things,” Reds manager David Bell said on Wednesday. “Wade, there's somewhat not only physical effort that went into his no-hitter the other day, but just the emotional, the mental grind of [114] pitches, complete game and then everything surrounding it. He's been pitching for a long time, he's dealt with things like this before, but I think just giving him the extra time was really just kind of trying to be proactive and thinking ahead so we can keep him healthy for the whole year.

“Then Luis, just keeping him on four days’ rest, I think was really important. He's trying to get back into the flow. I think a longer break would've been tough for him. I think he wants to get back out there as soon as he can, so I think it did accomplish both.”

Miley appreciated the extra day but noted that he felt good both physically and mentally.

“I feel like I can pitch today or tomorrow or whenever. I feel fine. I’m happy to take the extra day as well,” Miley said. “I think I did a decent job of moving forward to my next start and started preparing. I found out the next day that I would not be throwing in Pittsburgh and I was going to throw in Colorado, that helped. Once I started game planning for Colorado, I kind of put that behind me.”

Akiyama not getting into lineup
Since outfielder Shogo Akiyama was activated from the injured list Friday, he’s only cracked the starting lineup once -- in that day's no-hitter against Cleveland. Akiyama missed nearly two months with a left hamstring injury sustained on March 13.

Akiyama’s omission from recent lineups has less to do with his status and more to do with the hot hitting of Jesse Winker and Tyler Naquin. Winker, in left field, leads the National League in hitting, and Naquin -- who has played center field seven of the last 10 games -- came into Wednesday’s series finale vs. Pittsburgh with a home run in two of his last three games.

“Shogo's still working his way back from an injury. He got to play enough to have him ready to come back or we wouldn't have added him to the team, but he did miss Spring Training and injury can set you back,” Bell said. “In the meantime, some of our outfielders have settled in and are playing really well. We have a long way to go, and Shogo is going to be a big part of the team. He's going to get a lot of playing time.”

Hulk is fading
During a Zoom session with reporters, Miley was asked about the status of the Incredible Hulk temporary tattoo his 4-year-old son, Jeb, put on his right forearm. The pitcher wore it during his no-hitter, and it created a sensation.

Jeb, Miley said, has been less interested in the no-hitter than finding the Avengers cookies that contain the tattoos in the packaging.

“Hulk’s fading, Hulk’s fading fast. It might smell pretty bad when I get to Colorado. I might not take a bath for a couple of days,” Miley said. “I think he’s trying to find Thor for Sonny [Gray]. That’s his mission. I’m not sure he’s overly concerned about the baseball part of it. He wants to get people tatted up with fake tattoos.”