Cincinnati Reds

Another huge shock came to Reds fans on Sunday when David Bell announced to the media that Frankie Montas, not Hunter Greene, would be the Reds' Opening Day starter. This will be Montas' 3rd Opening Day start in his career, the other two coming with the A's in 2020 and 2022. Montas' stat line from his Opening Day start in 2020 was 4.0 IP, 3H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 5 SO. This doesn't look too bad when you look at his last Opening Day start in 2022 which looks like 5.0 IP, 6H, 5 ER, 1 BB, 6 SO. This is an interesting move by David Bell but honestly Hunter Greene's stat line from last years Opening Day doesn't look any better with 3.1 IP, 5H, 3 ER, 3 BB, 8 SO. Judging by these stat lines, no one looks like a sure fit to start for the Reds first game of the 2024 season. Looking at both of their Spring stats for this year they are very similar in numbers except strikeouts, which belongs to Hunter Greene. For me, this is a toss up decision that could go either way and there's no clear argument for either one of them to start of the other. David Bell said that Montas' experience, veteran presence, and the way he came into camp showed how ready he is and how hard of a worker he is. I believe some people are getting way to hung up on who starts the first game of the season considering there are 161 other games to play, but the decision has been made by David Bell and as Reds fans it is our job to fully support whoever is out there. I'm excited to see Montas go out there and have a career day and shut down the Nationals and lead the Reds to a huge win to start the season. Hunter Greene will start Game 2 of the season and hopefully start the Reds off strong at 2-0.

Cincinnati Reds top prospect, Noelvi Marte, was suspended Friday for 80 games for breaking the MLB's PED (Performance Enhancing Drug) policy this offseason. Marte tested positive for Boldenone, an anabolic steroid, to help increase muscle mass and help speed up muscle recovery. It was well known that Marte had been dealing with a lingering hamstring injury that he sustained during the Dominican Winter League during the offseason. When looking at PED usage I always like to hope that guys make a mistake and take something they didn't know was on the banned substance list but being an anabolic steroid that is injected it's hard to feel bad for Marte because he knew what he was doing and decided to take the risk. This was a dumb move by Marte considering all the hype this offseason for the Reds and knowing that he was a huge factor going into this season. I don't know if the Reds' Front Office knew about this previous to the announcement because this makes the Candelario singing and India Extension look a lot better to Reds fans. The Reds are very lucky that their infield was already overcrowded as it was, this makes the subtraction of Marte so much easier. I believe what hurts the Reds the most is not just the 80 game suspension but if the Reds do make the postseason then Marte will not be allowed to play during that either. So this begs the question, when Marte comes back do they play him as a consistent starter until the end of the season? Or do they give guys who are eligible for the playoffs more reps and sit Marte unless he is needed? This will be a very tough decision if the Reds are fighting for a playoff spot and need to put Marte out there if he is the best option to help the team win.

Not only did this decision to use PED's affect Marte but it affected another Reds prospect who has been scratching and clawing his way to the big leagues for years now. Jose Barrero. After the announcement of Marte a lot of fans thought that this would be Barrero's chance to get in the mix and show the front office what he's got, until Saturday. Barrero was released by the Reds and did not clear waivers and was picked up by the Texas Rangers. Some people are thinking this is in response to Marte's suspension to help make room on the roster for the Reds to sign a potential free agent to help fill that spot in the lineup. Some possible FA that could be picked up would be Adam Duvall, Tommy Pham, or a long shot with J.D. Martinez. I doubt any of these guys get signed but a reunion with either Duvall or Pham wouldn't be a bad thing. All of these guys are guys who produced a 2.5 WAR or higher last season. J.D. Martinez would be someone who could make a big impact for the Reds with his power and the size of GABP, but just depends on what some of these guys' asking prices are. Basically this has just created a big mess for the Reds and now they may have to shop around to fill a void that will be missing for this extremely talented team.