​Two months ago, the Cincinnati Reds kicked off May perched atop the NL Central with a 20-11 record, setting a franchise mark for most wins before May. It felt as if the resurgence of winning baseball had returned to Cincinnati. But since then, the team has tumbled to the bottom of the division after a brutal May and June, posting a 19-34 record in that stretch—the second-worst in the majors. With the season still alive, the sense of impending doom around Cincinnati is palpable.
It’s hard to reconcile that, at one point, this Reds bullpen looked like baseball’s best. After 31 games, the bullpen carried a 2.59 ERA, leading the majors. April saw a peak at 2.31, and it seemed every time the relievers opened the door, Cincinnati held the advantage to close out the game. The bullpen’s dominance helped the Reds begin the season 12-0 in games decided by two runs or fewer, tying the 1987 Brewers for the most such wins in history.
Today, however, Cincinnati’s bullpen carries a 4.66 ERA, ranking 24th in the league. Excluding those explosive March and April months, the figure dips to 5.33, which would place it 28th. A key culprit behind the elevated ERA is the walk rate: allowing 5.47 batters per nine innings this season, the worst in the league by a wide margin. This issue surfaced prominently against the Pirates, who tied an MLB record by walking seven consecutive Reds hitters.
What was once a formidable bullpen has deteriorated into a liability. Leads aren’t as safe, and opportunities for rallies are harder to seize. While the bullpen deserves a portion of the blame, the starting pitchers haven’t been pitching up to par either. The first batters out of the gate own a 4.51 ERA, ranking 20th, aside from Chase Burns—who has allowed two or fewer runs in 14 of his 17 starts this season, serving as a bright spot in a otherwise uneven group. The starting rotation’s walks persist as a major problem, issuing 3.84 free passes per nine, 26th in the league, forcing the top of the lineup to face more hitters and pummel more pitches. As a consequence, Reds starters are averaging a heavy 17.29 pitches per inning, the fourth-worst mark in the majors, which often compels earlier-than-anticipated departures. That dynamic pushes the bullpen into more frequent use, ranking second-most in baseball in terms of relieving stress, and that pattern is unsustainable for a team hoping to contend.
Cincinnati is crying out for its starters to endure longer outings—more than four or five innings—to spare the bullpen from being overtaxed. If the rotation can stabilize, deliver more length, and curb walks, the relief corps could begin to regain its footing. Consistency and longevity from the starters would lay a more solid foundation for the entire staff and could spark a renewal of confidence across the mound.
Scoring runs has also been a recurring obstacle throughout the season. With the Reds ranking 13th in total home runs at 107 this year, power hasn’t been the bottleneck it might appear to be. The bigger issue is production when the ball leaves the yard. Too often, the homers have been solo shots, leaving the rest of the lineup without the necessary knock-on effect to drive in runners from the basepaths. The result is a stagnant offense that struggles to turn long balls into sustained rallies, limiting the team’s ability to capitalize on budding chances and convert opportunities into runs.
If Cincinnati can inject some balance—improving plate discipline, reducing walks, and extending performances from their starters—the odds of turning the season around rise significantly. The bullpen’s early-season swagger can’t be merely a memory; the relievers need to be supported with better starts, more efficient innings, and a more productive offense. A return to the level of consistency that once defined this club could reignite optimism in Cincinnati and set the stage for a meaningful stretch run.