WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Cincinnati Reds have several players on the injured list, but Wade Miley might be the only one who returns during their six-game road trip.
• Joey Votto is participating in more baseball activities, but he remained in Cincinnati as the team traveled to face the Washington Nationals on Tuesday. Reds manager David Bell said Votto is now swinging a bat. Votto started fielding ground balls last weekend.
Votto has been out since May 5 with a broken left thumb after he was hit by a pitch.
• Mike Moustakas, sidelined with a right heel contusion, has been wearing a boot on his right foot. Moustakas said an MRI showed "a little partial tear, I guess, in the plantar fasciitis or something like that," which made it painful to walk.
"By the end of the week, hopes to be out of the boot and doing some more running," Bell said. "He's running in the water right now. Hopefully, by the weekend, he'll be running outside. When we get off the road next week, I think we'll have a much better idea of where he is."
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• Aristides Aquino is expected to begin a rehab assignment at Triple-A Louisville in the next week. Aquino has been on the injured list since April 16, which is when he had surgery to remove the hook of the hamate in his left hand.
"He's going to need some at-bats, so I'd expect him to be playing there the first couple of weeks of June," Bell said. "We'll see where he is at that point."
• Nick Senzel remains out with knee soreness. Bell said they hope to learn more information about the severity of the injury in the next couple of days.
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• Miley traveled with the team to Washington and he could start Sunday in Chicago. He's on the 10-day IL with a left foot injury.
HOMECOMING: As Sean Doolittle prepared to face the Washington Nationals for the first time since joining the Reds in the offseason, the question that his teammates kept asking him was whether there would be a tribute video.
“This is how different it is here,” Doolittle said Sunday. “I'm like one of the oldest guys on the team here. They want to know if they think the Nats scoreboard, the people who put the video together, will be able to colorize the video because I'm so old.”
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Doolittle didn’t allow himself to start thinking about his return until a few days ago. It’ll be his first time facing a former team because he’s never pitched against Oakland since leaving the A’s.
He was a popular player on and off the field with the Nationals, one of the key relievers on their 2019 World Series title team.
“I'll never forget the way they really just embraced me right away, right after the trade in 2017,” Doolittle said. “They started doing the 'Dooooo' in the stands. I remember, it seems silly now, I was so nervous after I got traded. The first week or two, it felt like I made my Major League debut all over again. I was so nervous, I forgot how to pitch. I barely got a save my first outing. I had a messy outing against the Brewers shortly thereafter, but every time I came into the game, they were on their feet.
“From there on out, I feel like I developed a pretty special relationship with the fans in the time that I was there. I'm obviously grateful for their support. I think that's one of the things I'm looking forward to is having fans back at Nats Park and maybe see some of them again, some familiar faces and say thank you in person, because I really do appreciate the way they embraced me and my wife.”
It's been a rocky season for Doolittle this year. He’s posted a 4.15 ERA in 20 appearances and he’s allowed 10 of his 12 inherited runners to score.
There are some positives: He has a career-high strikeout rate, regaining velocity and deception with his fastball, and he’s made positive strides with his slider that he hasn’t thrown often. But he’s been giving up too much hard contact.
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“I feel like overall this year, I’ve been throwing the ball with a lot more confidence than I was definitely last year and at many points during the 2019 season,” Doolittle said. “Just feeling more comfortable, feeling like I’m not searching out there.”
CLEARED WAIVERS: Reds reliever Carson Fulmer, who was designated for assignment last Friday, cleared waivers on Monday and was outrighted off the 40-man roster.
Fulmer will report to Triple-A Louisville. He had a 6.66 ERA in 25 2/3 innings this season.
MINOR-LEAGUE HONORS: Reds top pitching prospect Nick Lodolo was named the Double-A South Player of the Week on Monday. In his lone start, he struck out 11 across 7 1/3 innings while giving up one hit and one walk.
In three starts at Double-A Chattanooga, Lodolo is 1-0 with a 0.53 ERA. He’s struck out 24 and walked five in 15 2/3 innings.
Hunter Greene won the award in the previous week. Greene is 3-0 with a 1.69 ERA in four starts at Double-A with 33 strikeouts and eight walks in 21 1/3 innings.
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