MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon is in Goodyear, Arizona with the Cincinnati Reds at the moment, and he penned a pair of pitching-centric articles yesterday as pitchers and catchers reported for day one of spring training. While there’s ample information in both (that we’ll touch on in a second), when you connect the dots between them and break down what manager Bryan Price had to say about things, one name in particular becomes of particular interest, especially when you consider where things stood just one year ago today.
First, Sheldon broke down the candidates to claim spots in the rotation come Opening Day, with the predictable quartet of Luis Castillo, Homer Bailey, Anthony DeSclafani, and Brandon Finnegan penciled in for four of the five spots.