The Reds have shut down 25-year old righty starting pitcher Johnny Cueto for the rest of the year due to a strained lat muscle. Cueto was awesome this year for the Reds! He pitched in 24 games (all starts) for the Reds this year and he was 9-5 with a 2.31 ERA and a 1.09 WHIP. Cueto only gave up 123 hits in 156 innings this year as he was downright nasty. Cueto has now pitched in 116 games (all starts) for the Reds in his first four years with the team and he is 41-37 with a 3.83 ERA and a 1.29 WHIP. It looks like the best is yet to come from Cueto for the Reds.

23-year old lefty reliever Aroldis Chapman has been so-so for the Reds so far this year. He has pitched in 49 games (0 starts) for the Reds so far this year and he is 4-1 with 1 save, a 4.09 ERA and a 1.34 WHIP. Chapman has only given up 22 hits while whiffing 65 batters in his first 44 innings in 2011, and that is impressive. But, Chapman has also walked 37 batters in 2011 and that is way too many. Chapman has now pitched in 64 games (0 starts) in his first two years with the Reds and he is 6-3 with 1 save, a 3.61 ERA and a 1.27 WHIP. If Chapman has harness his control, he will be a truly dominating pitcher as either a starter or reliever for the Reds in the near future.

Everything has finally come all together for 28-year old lefty reliever Bill Bray in 2011. He has pitched in 74 games (0 starts) for the Reds so far this year and he is 5-2 with 18 holds, a 2.82 ERA and a 1.05 WHIP. Bray has only given up 32 hits while whiffing 38 batters in his first 44 2/3 innings this year, as he has been downright nasty. The Reds are glad to see Bray having so much success, as they think they can fully count on him now for the future.

23-year old righty starting pitcher Mike Leake started out this season in the Dog House due to an arrest for shoplifting. They even sent him to the minors for the first time in his career. Leake has rebounded from all of that to pitch well for the Reds this year. Leake has pitched in 25 games (22 starts) for the Reds so far this year and he is 10-8 with a 4.09 ERA and a 1.23 WHIP. He has given up 137 hits in his first 138 2/3 innings but 19 of them have been homers, which isn’t good. He has limited the damage by striking out 103 batters while only walking 34 batters so far this year. Despite spending some time in the minors this year, Leake is leading the Reds in wins.

From 2008-2010, Dontrelle Willis pitched in 30 games (27 starts) in the majors and he was 3-9 with a 6.86 ERA and a 1.99 WHIP. He walked a stunning 109 batters in 123 1/3 innings fromm 2008-10! But, Willis appears to be back on the right track with the Reds this year. He has pitched in 6 games (all starts) for the Reds so far this year and he is 0-2 with a 3.41 ERA and a 1.27 WHIP. Willis’ control has returned as he has only walked 12 batters in his first 37 innnings with the Reds so far this year. He is also swinging a hot stick for the Reds as he is 6 for 15 (.400 avg, 1.200 OPS) with 1 run scored, 1 homer and 2 RBIs. The Reds are impressed with the D-Train and they hope he keeps up the good work.