Reds beat writer Mark Sheldon posted a few hours ago on his blog about the Reds September call-ups, as the MLB rosters expand to 40 players today:
The Reds will add 10 players to the big league roster now that rosters can expand for September.
Recalled from Triple-A Louisville:
RHP Carlos Contreras (#53)
RHP Daniel Corcino (#64)
IF/OF Jake Elmore (#15)
LHP David Holmberg (#36)
RHP J.J. Hoover (#60)
C Tucker Barnhart (#16)
1B/OF Donald Lutz (#23)Recalled from Double-A Pensacola:
OF Yorman Rodriguez (#33)
Contracts selected from Louisville:
OF Jason Bourgeois (#30)
LHP Ryan Dennick (#41)Moved to the 60-day disabled list: RHP Homer Bailey. That means that Bailey’s season is over after he went on the 15-day DL Aug. 16 with a flexor mass strain in his right forearm, and hasn’t pitched since Aug. 7.
It was a bit surprising that the Reds elected to call up so many players, but we will get a chance to see some fresh faces. The Reds only made three call-ups last September (Hamilton, Soto, and Miller), and seven call-ups in September 2012. The big surprises this year was that Neftali Soto and Curtis Partch were both not called up, despite being on the 40-man roster.
Yorman Rodriguez is an exciting call-up. Our own Doug Gray wrote a great piece last week about how Yorman Rodriguez is someone to watch in September.
Carlos Contreras and Daniel Corcino both showed nice promise in limited appearances with the Reds earlier this season. Corcino is currently the Reds #11 prospect according to MLB.com.
Donald Lutz didn’t get a lot of chances during his time with the big league club earlier this year, but he might get more chances with the Reds falling out of the race.
Tucker Barnhart showed he has the ability to catch and handle a big league pitching staff earlier this season.
J.J. Hoover and David Holmberg really struggled this season with the big league club, so maybe they will get a chance at redemption.
The other guys besides Rodriguez who will be making their debuts with the Reds are Jason Bourgeois, Jake Elmore, and Ryan Dennick.ÂÂ
You may remember outfielder Jason Bourgeois from 2010 when he was with the Astros. Thom Brennaman’s famous call of Jay Bruce’s walk-off HR to clinch the NL Central in 2010 was “racing back to the wall Bourgeois…..the Reds are the National League Central Division champions!” Bourgeois has 515 career PA in the MLB, and he has hit .259/.305/.326. He has spent the entire 2014 season with the AAA-Louisville Bats, and he has done pretty well, hititng .278/.329/.364 with 4 HR, 42 RBI, and 24 SB.
The Reds claimed Jake Elmore off waivers from the A’s back on August 2nd. Elmore hit .242/.313/.325 with 2 HR and 6 RBI in 136 PA with the Astros in 2013. He hasn’t seen any MLB time in 2014, but has hit .281/.374/.365 in AAA with Sacramento River Cats (A’s) and the Louisville Bats. Elmore offers the Reds incredible position flexibility, as he has played every single position (including pitcher!) in the minors. His primary position is 2B, but he has also played a lot of SS and 3B.
Lefty reliever Ryan Dennick has had a nice season with the Louisville Bats, posting a 2.36 ERA and 1.21 WHIP in 57 appearances (all as a reliever). Dennick came up through the Royals organization. The Reds selected Dennick from the Royals in the Rule 5 draft back in 2012. Dennick has yet to make an MLB appearance.
This also means the end of the season for Homer Bailey. This is definitely the best decision for the Reds, as they have fallen out of the race. The Reds will definitely need a healthy Bailey for 2015. It is just such a shame because Bailey was pitching so well of late. Bailey posted a 2.66 ERA and 1.01 WHIP with 68 strikeouts and 24 walks in 12 starts since June 1st. The Reds should probably also shut down Joey Votto for good, and give him all the rest he can get for 2015.