Hunter Greene’s 2026 season has been such a mess that one odd little stat says almost everything about the Reds’ year.
Backup catcher Jose Trevino made his sixth appearance as a pitcher on Wednesday in Cincinnati’s blowout loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers. That means Trevino has taken the mound more times this season than Greene, the Reds’ ace, who was limited to just three starts before his year was shut down for good.
Greene’s problems started early. He was sidelined barely a week into spring training after elbow discomfort flared up, and additional testing led to surgery.
Cincinnati went without him for the first three months of the season, and when he finally came back on Independence Day, it went about as poorly as possible. He lasted only 3⅓ innings and was tagged for eight runs.
His next outing offered a glimpse of what the Reds hoped to see. Greene worked seven innings against a strong Chicago Cubs lineup, allowed only three hits on 93 pitches, didn’t give up a run and struck out 12 in what stood as his best start of the season.
But that momentum never lasted. Greene made three more starts, then landed back on the injured list with another elbow issue, this time done for the year. He tore his UCL and had Tommy John surgery in August, with a return to the Reds’ rotation not expected until 2028.
All told, Greene logged just 27⅔ innings, the lowest total of his career, and finished with a 6.83 ERA.
Trevino’s pitching appearances also underline just how far the Reds have fallen. Cincinnati has lost 34 games by five runs or more this season, according to Lance McAllister of 700 WLW, and position players only pitch when a team is trailing by eight or more. That leaves the Reds with the third-worst run differential in the league at minus-122.
Lance McAlister put it bluntly on Wednesday: “Understand how noncompetitive and non serious you have to be to lose 34 games by at least 5 runs. And hey, they have 16 more shots to add to it.”
Greene’s absence also forced a chain reaction through the rotation. The Reds had planned to use a six-man staff in March and April, but Nick Lodolo missed a month with a blister. Brandon Williamson was then pushed onto the 60-day IL after a shoulder injury, and Rhett Lowder also spent time on the IL.
Chase Burns delivered an All-Star caliber season, which at least kept the pitching picture from getting even uglier. Even so, Cincinnati leaned on Kent Emanuel, Lyon Richardson and Chris Paddack for meaningful starts on a team that entered the year with postseason hopes.
Instead, the 2026 season has become a disappointment, and with Greene already expected to miss 2027, there isn’t much excitement around what comes next when Opening Day rolls around next spring.
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