Lorenzen in the outfield? Price says yes, if needed

Michael Lorenzen was the starting pitcher Sunday. But Reds manager Bryan Price would not hesitate to use Lorenzen as a outfielder if the need arose.

"Defensively, I'd still trust him out there," Price said. "He was a really good college position player."

Lorenzen played center field and was the closer for Cal State-Fullerton in 2013. Lorenzen was torn between pitching and playing outfield when the Reds drafted him 38th overall in 2013.

"When he was drafted, he had to make that full commitment to pitching," Price said. "He's done that. The next step is going from being a closer in the college — an All-American closer — to becoming a starter in basically a year and a half."

Lorenzen was close to making his debut as a major league outfielder in Chicago.

"We had a four-man bench and someone who couldn't play," Price said. "He was our next line of defense as a position player. I would have put Lorenzen out in the left field before Tucker (Barnhart).

"He's out there a everyday running down balls in batting practice. At this point in his career, anything he does is going to be an emergency. We'll use him as we use Mike Leake. He can be an offensive weapon, an early bench pinch-hitter. I have a lot of faith in him."

SS SUAREZ: Eugenio Suarez hasn't been tearing it up at the plate since taking over for the injured Zack Cozart at shortstop, although he did have three hits on Sunday. But Suarez, 23, has done a nice job of fulfilling the No. 1 requirement of the position.

"The most important thing that he's doing is defending," Price said. "It's a short sample size on the offense, getting settled in. I think he'll be fine. I think he'll be a very, very good offensive player and an outstanding defensive player. The defense has shown up everyday.

"He looks very comfortable out there."

Suarez drove in a run with a suicide squeeze bunt in the 8-4 win over Detroit on Wednesday.

"It wasn't an easy pitch," Price said. "Breaking ball. But he got it down. Those are things he'll need to do — getting bunts down and be a good situational player. He's got enough power to be seduced by the home run. We've got to keep him off that thought process. He can be a good situational hitter. He's going to hit some home runs."

Suarez hit 14 home runs last year between the minors and the Tigers.

"I think more than anything understanding what type of player you are takes a bit of time to figure out," Price said. "He was signed at 17. He's still trying to figure out at 23 what type of player he is from an offensive standpoint. He's always been a defender. I think that's what got him to Detroit so quickly. I don't think he came to States until 2011 and he was the starting shortstop for the Tigers in 2014.

"As you mature and get stronger, you realize you can hit the ball out of the ballpark. That can be seductive. It's great. I wasn't disappointed with Cozart's nine home runs. However, if you're chasing the home run. It can be dangerous.

"I think he's going to be a really nice player."

BAILEY GOOD: For Homer Bailey, the good news about coming back from Tommy John surgery is he can still hunt. That wasn't the case last offseason when he was coming back from surgery to repair a flexor mass tear.

"I'll be throwing before the season's over," Bailey said. "I can do everything. This is easier than the flexor mass (surgery)."