Reds To Use Opener To Ease Chase Petty's Burden

 

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Chase Petty is working on the side with pitching coach Derek Johnson.  Even though it is Petty's rotation spot, manager Terry Francona and Johnson decided to lighten the 22-year old's workload.

Veteran Brent Suter will open the game against the Cleveland Guardians on Saturday. Petty will follow at some point in the game.

"We're trying to balance getting a win and taking care of Petty," Francona said. "Anything he experiences now will help him. He's an amped up kid anyway. We don't want to take that away from him. Like I explained, we're trying to balance. No one has a crystal ball. We do the best we can."

Suter opened several games in his career, including the April 20, game in Baltimore. He will go as far as he can to reduce wear and tear on the bullpen.

Petty has been with the team since his last start in Houston. He is getting to know what it is like in the major leagues. 

"Anything he experiences now will help him. Having him here for a week instead of just being called up and pitching, having a side day with DJ should help him. He's young," Francona said. 

Francona doesn't want to make a habit of using an opener, "I don't think you can do this all that often unless you're ok with sending guys up and down and we prefer not to do that."