The Reds have Emilio Pagán, Tony Santillan and Graham Ashcraft, who were the top three in the bullpen last year. The team added steady veterans in Pierce Johnson, Brock Burke and Caleb Ferguson. Connor Phillips stands above the rest of the young guys. Phillips hasn’t been guaranteed anything, but he was one of the Reds’ best pitchers last September and has one of the best arms on the roster.
“You don’t give guys jobs,” Francona said. “But we certainly hope, because what he did really made our bullpen different. He was a big part of that.”
Assuming Phillips makes the team, that leaves one spot left for the other eight relievers in camp.
Nicolas has a career 4.68 ERA. He has some of the best velocity in the game, and he’s good at getting hitters to chase pitches outside of the strike zone. Walks and command have been issues for him in the past. He split time last year between Triple-A and MLB. In 2024, he was a dependable piece of the Pirates’ bullpen for most of the year with a 3.95 ERA in 51 appearances.
Zach Maxwell is the one who ended last season on the big league roster and was a standout prospect before his debut. With the nickname “Big Sugar,” Maxwell throws hard and is extremely comfortable in high-pressure situations.
“Overpowering stuff will be really effective in that short burst bullpen role,” assistant pitching coach Matt Tracy said. “It’s about how consistent can he be and how much we can control the count. They’re each their own unique person. We encourage them to be themself and express that. Any time you see someone 6’7, 300 pounds out there, it brings its own presence.”
Lefty Sam Moll has the most experience. When he’s healthy, his slider can frustrate elite hitters. But last year, he wasn’t throwing with as much zip and spent a lot of the season in Triple-A.
He’s the only pitcher in this group who’d go on waivers if he didn’t make the team. He isn’t paying attention to the roster battle.
“I don’t really care to know. I’m just going to do my thing,” Moll said. “They can think what they’re thinking. I don’t even ask. I don’t care. Just do what I do. I’m relatively happy go lucky.”
Luis Mey’s sinker is a special pitch that can hit 103 mph. He had one outing this spring that was electric, but in others command issues have popped up.
Similar to Maxwell, Mey had a stretch of success in the big leagues last year but also had ups and downs.
“The stuff is there,” Tracy said. “He can compete at this level and be elite. The consistency is what we’re looking for.”
Richardson, a talented young arm who was a notable role player on the Reds for a few months in 2025, brings a combination of versatility, velocity and steadiness.
His struggles last year began when he started to get fatigued, and he’s a former starting pitcher who’s getting used to coming out of the bullpen.
“People forget how big Lyon was for us in May and June,” Pagán said. “He was eating a lot of innings and pitched his way into leverage. Lyon is just now learning the type of pitcher he needs to be.”
Antone has one of the best stories on the team and is fighting to become what’s believed to be the third pitcher to make it back to MLB following three Tommy John surgeries.
He’s writing a book about his journey.
“What he has done is incredible,” Santillan said. “You hear about three (surgeries), and that doesn’t happen. Actually witnessing it, he looks really good. Watching him, you’d have never guessed he was on his third (Tommy John). I’m very happy for him. It hasn’t been an easy road for him. I have nothing but respect and love for him.”
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