“It’s exciting,” Littell told reporters at a press conference Monday. “Obviously this is a moment that you dream of as a kid just to get to a playoff baseball game. To come over here, help these guys, make this push and get here and hopefully continue to help them moving forward, it’s been awesome. I can’t ask for anything else.”
The Reds acquired Littell, 29. from the Tampa Bay Rays at the trade deadline in July. He was 8-8 with a 3.58 ERA in 22 starts with the Rays and is 2-2 with a 4.39 ERA in 10 starts with the Reds.
Littell will pitch in the postseason with his fourth different team. He made two relief appearances with the Minnesota Twins in the 2019 playoffs, two appearances with the San Francisco Giants in 2021 and one appearance with the Rays in 2023. He allowed five runs on six hits in five innings in those five appearances.
“The moment is different, whether we want to admit it or not,” Littell said. “It’s a different game. And learning how to deal with those emotions was an adjustment the first couple of times. In that regard, I think I’m definitely better suited than I was four or five years ago.
“Just go out there and compete. I’ve had the opportunity to play the Dodgers in the playoffs. It will be fun to go out there and see some of those same guys. But this group, it’s got a really nice mix of guys who have been around and done this before as well, with Nick Martinez and Emilio Pagán and some guys that have had some experience in the postseason.
“The young guys have been awesome. They ask the questions you want them to ask. And I think everybody’s really ready for the moment.
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