Reds RHP Hunter Greene As Impressive As Expected

It was a spring training intrasquad game, so Reds righthander Hunter Greene’s final line was a little odd, but no matter if his two innings added up to seven outs, he was impressively effective.

Greene allowed one infield single and one hit-by-pitch. He struck out three and had eight swings and misses in just 31 pitches.

Greene was efficient enough that he was given an extra batter and an extra out in the second of his two innings so that he could get enough work.

He was everything expected from the second pick in last June’s draft. Greene didn’t touch 100 mph like he often does, but his 95-99 mph fastball was impressive enough. But more importantly, he also showed some feel for breaking off sliders with some depth and tilt and an intriguing changeup as well.

Greene’s teammate/opponent on Tuesday was lefthander Packy Naughton, the Reds’ ninth-round pick from last year. It’s hard to stand out when your matching pitches with Greene, but after an effective 2017 season at Rookie-level Billings, the Virginia Tech Hokie showed again he could mix three solid pitches.

Naughton sat 90-92 mph, but it was his big 1-to-7 curveball that frequently kept hitters off balance. He also mixed in a very usable changeup as well, staying one step ahead of the hitters he was facing.