Reds’ Hunter Greene Headed to 15-Day IL With Grade 1 Groin Strain
Cincinnati Reds ace Hunter Greene will soon be placed on the 15-day injured list after his MRI results revealed a Grade 1 groin strain Thursday, according to manager Terry Francona.
Greene’s IL stint is expected to be officially announced in the coming days, likely ahead of Friday’s contest versus the Houston Astros after the team didn’t make a roster move before Thursday’s series finale at Truist Park against the Atlanta Braves.
The 2024 All-Star was removed from Wednesday’s outing due to groin discomfort he felt while warming up ahead of his fourth inning of work. Prior to exiting, the 25-year-old had completed three scoreless innings, allowing two hits and zero walks, striking out six of his 11 batters faced.
“It’s not terrible but it’s going to be an IL placement though, because we need him to miss maybe a start or two,” Francona told reporters Thursday, including MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon. “We’re kind of still talking through some things. With Monday off, we want to talk through it a little more. We’ll have some information [Friday].”
The good news is that it appears Greene has avoided a major injury and shouldn’t miss more than two turns through the rotation. It’s still a significant blow for Cincinnati’s staff, though, as he’s been one of the sport’s best starting pitchers this season.
In eight starts, the hard-throwing right-hander has pitched to a career-best 2.36 ERA and 3.08 FIP across 45.2 innings, registering 61 punchouts – third-most among major league starters, trailing only Philadelphia’s Zack Wheeler (66) and Washington’s MacKenzie Gore (68).
Greene has also accounted for 1.3 fWAR thus far, placing him tied for sixth in the majors among starting pitchers.
“You don’t want to miss him for even a day but all things considered, he’s going to be OK. We’ve got to take care of him,” Francona said.
The Reds have yet to announce a replacement for Greene in the rotation, whose spot will come up again in Chicago on Tuesday versus the White Sox. Chase Petty and Connor Phillips – both of whom are already on the 40-man roster – are the most likely candidates to be promoted.
Petty, the organization’s No. 6 prospect per MLB Pipeline, was most recently up with the big-league club as the 27th man during the double-header on Apr. 30. The 22-year-old started Game 2 against the St. Louis Cardinals but didn’t make it past 2.1 innings after surrendering nine runs (all earned) on seven hits – including two home runs – and a pair of walks.
The young right-hander was returned to Triple-A Louisville following his major league debut, meaning he’d have to spend 15 days in the minors before he could pitch for the Reds again. However, that rule doesn’t apply if he’s replacing an injured pitcher.
Phillips, meanwhile, made five starts for Cincinnati in 2023, posting a 6.97 ERA and 5.92 FIP with 26 strikeouts over 20.2 innings. The 24-year-old has made three rehab starts at High-A this season as he recovers from shoulder fatigue that sidelined him for most of spring training.
-Thomas Hall
Twitter: @Hall_Thomas_
Photo: Minda Haas Kuhlmann. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.