Reds lefty Brandon Williamson hasn’t pitched within the majors this season attributable to a shoulder pressure he suffered again in spring coaching. He’d been out on a minor league rehab stint and seemed to be nearing a possible return, however issues have now hit a snag. The Reds introduced Friday that Williamson has been pulled again from his rehab project — however not reinstated to the roster. Slightly, he’s remaining on the injured listing.
That usually signifies a setback, and shortly after the announcement, supervisor David Bell certainly introduced to the Reds beat that Williamson is experiencing continued discomfort in his ailing shoulder (X hyperlink by way of Charlie Goldsmith of the Cincinnati Enquirer). He’ll be shut down for at the least the subsequent seven days whereas the Reds see how his shoulder responds and consider their choices.
It’s poor timing for Williamson, who appeared as if he may need a rotation spot to combat for upon his return. Cincinnati optioned struggling righty Graham Ashcraft to Triple-A Louisville yesterday, creating a gap within the rotation behind Hunter Greene, Nick Lodolo, Frankie Montas and Andrew Abbott. The Reds produce other choices to fill that spot — Nick Martinez and Carson Spiers amongst them — however Williamson’s obvious setback is a most unwelcome growth, on condition that he’s an intriguing younger arm and potential constructing block for the workers.
Williamson, chosen by the Mariners out of TCU within the second spherical of the 2019 draft, went from Seattle to Cincinnati as a part of the swap sending Eugenio Suarez and Jesse Winker to the M’s. The 6’6″ southpaw was ranked among the many recreation’s prime 100 prospects by Baseball America on the time of the commerce and wound up making his MLB debut with the Reds final yr. In 23 begins, he pitched to a good 4.46 ERA, although that quantity is maybe skewed by a tough arrival within the majors.
Williamson posted a 5.82 ERA by means of his first eight begins however rebounded with 78 1/3 innings of three.79 ERA ball in his closing 15 journeys to the hill. After posting lackluster strikeout and stroll charges of 17% and 9.9%, respectively, in these first eight outings, the Minnesota native settled in with stronger marks of 21.6% and 6.9% within the season’s closing three months. It was a powerful end to his season, and when including in 34 Triple-A frames to his 117 MLB innings, Williams closed out the yr with a career-high 151 frames. Between his late efficiency and his lack of workload issues, it appeared as if he’d pitched is approach onto the Reds’ beginning 5 — or on the very least into the dialog.
Any such arrival will now be additional delayed. The Reds haven’t offered additional particulars, nevertheless it’s clearly a worrisome signal when a pitcher who’s missed greater than two months with a shoulder pressure studies discomfort on the heels of a fourth rehab look. Presumably, the Reds will present additional particulars in some unspecified time in the future subsequent weekend or early within the following week. For now, Williamson will proceed to accrue massive league pay and repair time on the 60-day injured listing. He entered the season with 139 days of MLB service and has already reached one yr, putting him on target to succeed in arbitration after the 2025 season as a Tremendous Two participant and free company after the 2029 marketing campaign.
