Hunter Greene dazzles

A little over a year ago, I wrote an article describing the 2021 outlook for the Pittsburgh Pirates. In that article, I cracked a few jokes at the expense of Pittsburgh, pointing out that as frustrating as it was to cheer for the Reds, at least we weren’t Pirates fans. I must have angered the baseball gods.

In search of positive news, I went to Huntington Park in Columbus Friday night to watch Luis Castillo’s second rehab start. He was pitching for the AAA-Louisville Bats. Castillo opened the year on the Injured List with shoulder soreness and pitched for the Dayton Dragons last week, needing 48 pitches to work 2.1 innings, walking three and striking out four. Castillo was stretched out more in the start I saw in Columbus.

“You are what your record says you are.” — Bill Parcells, Hall of Fame NFL coach The Cincinnati Reds have been every bit of what the team’s 3-19 record says. The Reds were MLB’s worst team in April. They rank last in offense (wRC+, wOBA), pitching (ERA, xFIP), base running (BsR) and defense (DSR). That’s the grand slam of baseball futility. Yet beyond what the abysmal 3-19 record says about the team is what it says — no, shouts — about the organization’s ownership and management.