During the All-Star break, Cincinnati Reds manager David Bell changed the order of the team’s starting rotation.
Since the Reds were set to face the first place Brewers and Reds starting pitchers Tyler Mahle and Luis Castillo started the first two games of the series after the break, they had a shorter rest than the team’s other starters.
Sonny Gray and Wade Miley had 10 days between starts, and Vladimir Gutierrez had eight days off. But Castillo only had five days between starts, and Mahle had seven days. Since Castillo and Mahle had an abbreviated All-Star break, Bell wanted to give them an extra day off between their first and second starts of the second half of the season.
“The guys at the back end of the rotation got more time off,” Bell said. “I wanted to make sure that Luis and Tyler (were) on a little bit more of a consistent schedule, but also create enough rest for them as well. So I just kind of wanted to spread out a little bit more.”
The Reds solution was a temporary six-man rotation. Starting pitcher Jeff Hoffman (right shoulder impingement) will be taken off the injured list on Wednesday to start the last game of the series against the New York Mets.
Bell hasn’t announced whether Hoffman will stay in the rotation or move to the bullpen after his start. But this week, Hoffman’s start will give Mahle and Castillo an extra day off.
“This time of year, this season being different than any other, it seemed like the right time in the year to do that,” Bell said. “It keeps our options open as well. It makes sure everyone stays healthy. Any issues come up, it’s nice to have all those guys starting as an option.”
After their starts over the weekend against the Brewers, Castillo and Mahle became the only two pitchers on the Reds with over 100 innings pitched this year. Only 27 pitchers this season have thrown over 100 innings and made at least 19 starts, and that group of pitchers includes Castillo and Mahle.
Just over halfway through the 2021 season, they both have already pitched more than 35 innings than they did during the shortened 2020 season.
Unlike division rivals like the Chicago Cubs and the St. Louis Cardinals, the Reds have six capable starting pitchers who have had long turns through the rotation during the 2021 season. Since Cincinnati’s rotation has enough depth, Hoffman will make his first start since May on Wednesday.
“They all deserve to be starting,” Bell said. “(Hoffman) worked hard to be back in the position to make a start for us, so it’s really a great situation to have six starters, and we can go from there. I don’t know how long we would keep it that way.”
Hoffman was in the Reds rotation for the first two months of the season, and he had a 4.61 ERA through 10 starts. He left his start on May 26 against the Washington Nationals with a shoulder injury, and he began a five-start rehab assignment one month later.
While Hoffman was injured, rookie Vladimir Gutierrez took the fifth spot in the rotation. Gutierrez had a quality start in five of his 10 appearances. But he also allowed five-or-more runs in three of those starts. On Monday against the Mets, Gutierrez allowed nine runs and six hits in the worst statistical start of his career.
After Hoffman’s start on Wednesday, he said he’d be open to whatever role the Reds need whether it’s in the rotation or out of the bullpen.
“Any way I can help contribute to a winning team, I'm going to do it,” Hoffman said. “It's just who I am and what I'm here for. As of right now, I'm going to focus on the Mets and try to get through six innings and give my team a chance to win.”
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