Zach Buchanan

zbuchanan@enquirer.com

Before the team broke camp in spring training, Cincinnati Reds manager Bryan Price had a heart-to-heart with all his young pitchers. They’d all likely get some major-league time, he told them. But none of them were poised to make the jump to a full-season load of 200 innings.

That would mean some trips to the minors, regardless of performance. Sunday, the Reds made their first such move, optioning left-hander Amir Garrett to Triple-A in order to lighten his workload. With two off days in the next eight days, the Reds will go with a four-man rotation. Right-hander Barrett Astin was called up to serve as an eighth reliever.

Garrett pitched 144 2/3 innings in the minors last year, but was on pace to hit 192 this season if he made 32 starts in the majors.

“’It’s really innings management, first and foremost,” Price said, “and being able to make sure that he’s able to pitch the entire month of September as a starter and not have to go, ‘Oh well, he’s at 165 innings on September first, so we’ll pitch him as reliever the rest of the year.’ We don’t want to do that.”

If the move stings more than expected, it’s because Garrett has been the team’s most reliable starter to date. An apocalyptic outing against the Milwaukee Brewers has warped his numbers a bit, but the 25-year-old lefty has pitched at least six innings in all but one start. Outside of the Brewers start, he has a 2.20 ERA.

At times, Garrett has been the only starter reliable enough to eat innings, but the rotation has stabilized in the last week around Rookie Davis, Scott Feldman, Bronson Arroyo and Tim Adleman.

“I’m sure he’s not happy about it, but it will be part of the process for these guys,” Price said of Garrett.

In the minors, Garrett will throw a bullpen in the next couple days and make an abbreviated start likely on May 12. Another bullpen will follow a few days after that, after which the team will assess whether he should be called back up. He must remain on optional assignment for at least 10 days, unless he’s recalled to replace a player going on the disabled list.

A fringe benefit is that the Reds will likely gain an extra year of control over him, assuming he remains in the minors for 21 days over the course of the season. That means the Reds will be able to delay Garrett's free agency by a year.

The Reds stress the focus is on Garrett’s innings, however.

“In the day and age now, we pay an awful lot of attention to how many innings these guys throw,” Price said. “I don’t know if it’s right or wrong but it’s an industry-wide deal. And we’re paying attention to it.”

Makeup game scheduled

The Reds will head to St. Louis on June 26 to make up the game that was rained out back on April 28. The game will immediately follow a three-game weekend road series against the Washington Nationals, and will precede the start of a six-game home stand against the Milwaukee Brewers and Chicago Cubs.