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Dateline: Goodyear, Arizona
The two spots in the Reds' starting rotation are filled and it is a hybrid rotation.
Chase Burns, Brandon Williamson and Rhett Lowder will all be in the rotation. It will not be a six-man rotation but none of them have enough time in the big leagues. They will get into a five-day routine but won't start every fifth day.
Some days they will piggy back, other days they will skip a turn.
"To start the season, and I mean like to start the season. We're not going to have a six-man rotation," Francona explained. "We have six for five. The way I can explain it. Lowder didn't pitch last year. Williamson hasn't pitched in 15 months and Burns has 13 minor league starts. We're trying to help those guys along and not sacrifice winning."
How will it work?
"You'll see Willy either come in after Burns or start a game and have Lowder. I don't think we have to say it ahead of time as far as strategy goes but that's kind of where we think. You're going to see them pitch on of those two days. I think the score dictates some things. If we're going to do it we're going to do it so they get as normal a build up as they can. It won't be forever because it won't work. Eventually there will be five," Francona said. "They were all excited."
Francona came up with the idea at a game at Talking Stick last week and bounced it off pitching coach Derek Johnson.
"I told DJ that I was just spit balling and told him to feel free to blow holes in it," Francona said. "Nothing is going to be perfect. He said the more he thought about it, the more he liked it. We talked to Nick (Krall) and Brad (Meador) about it. I wasn't trying to sell it to them. I wasn't sure how I felt about it at the time. It was just an idea. As we got closer it started to make more sense."
All three have pitched well enough to make the team in spots and worked through a little bit of adversity but Williamson has really stood out.
"He's probably pitched better than anybody here," Francona said. "The thing that he hasn't done is go every five days for a whole year. It wasn't his fault. So we're trying to help him through but we never want to sacrifice winning."
Burns and Lowder will start the two exhibition games in Milwaukee on Monday March 23 and Tuesday March 24. Williamson will pitch in a minor league game in Goodyear on Wednesday and fly back to Cincinnati.
Francona and Meador told Connor Phillips that he made the team.
Phillips effectively ate some big innings for the Reds down the stretch that put them in the playoffs.
There is one bullpen spot to be filled and Hagen Danner is in the mix. He is a non-roster player that will cause someone to be taken off the roster. Caleb Ferguson is dealing with a strained right oblique with no fixed date for return.
The Outfield
Will Benson is on the team as the outfield picture becomes clearer. He will join TJ Friedl, and Noelvi Marte with Spencer Steer helping in right and left field.
The choice for the last two bench spots are among these four players. Right handed hitters, Rece Hinds and Dane Myers and left handed hitters JJ Bleday and Nathaniel Lowe, who is also a non-roster invitee, meaning a spot needs to open on the 40-man roster.
"We're not quite there yet," Francona said. "I don't want to get too far because it will be the process of elimination. But it's fair to say that it will be two of those four."
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