Cincinnati's Bullpen Just Fell Off a Cliff, And It's Dragging the Whole Team Down

Alright, you gotta see this mess unfolding in the NL Central. The Cincinnati Reds, who looked pretty hot a while back, are absolutely spiraling, and it feels like their bullpen is just watching the world burn around them. They just couldn't snap out of their losing ways on the road, capping it all off with a 5-4 loss against the San Diego Padres on Wednesday. That loss pushed them to three games under .500, a truly wild drop considering they were nine games *over* that mark at the end of April. This team is straight-up stumbling into a six-game homestand against another struggling squad, the Arizona Diamondbacks, starting Friday. You feel for 'em, but dang, what happened?

What Happened to Cincinnati's Elite Bullpen?

Reds manager Terry Francona isn't sugarcoating it. He told the media, "The results are not what we want. There's no getting around that." He's trying to keep the faith, saying, "We're going to struggle, and we're going to struggle together. We're going to figure it out together." But the numbers tell a brutal story, especially for his relievers. Through April, Cincinnati's bullpen boasted the fifth-best ERA in the majors, a rock-solid 3.44. Fast forward to now, and they've cratered to 29th, with a painful 5.13 ERA. That's not a slump, folks, that's a full-blown collapse! Reds reliever Caleb Ferguson is trying to stay positive, saying they "just got to keep making pitches." He mentioned that "You're allowed to have skids in this game and they're going to happen. You just got to get out of them." He even tried to rally the troops, adding, "The beauty of it is, I think we're really, really close. In a lot of these games, we're two to three pitches from winning all these games." Close, or just cursed by late-game meltdowns? Six losses in seven games tells you which one feels more accurate right now.

Diamondbacks Aren't Exactly Sparklin' Either

Look, the Reds are hurting, but the Diamondbacks are definitely feeling the pain too. They got shut out back-to-back on Wednesday and Thursday by the Miami Marlins, and they've dropped five of their last six games overall. Arizona is now back to .500, a place they haven't seen since May 18. Their last series win? A sweep against the San Francisco Giants back on May 25-27, which had them sitting pretty at 31-24. Now? Not so much. For Friday's opener, Arizona plans to send Eduardo Rodriguez (5-2, 2.52 ERA) to the mound. He's still ranked fifth in the National League in ERA, which is solid, even after his last outing. He took the loss against the Washington Nationals, giving up four runs and six hits over 6 1/3 innings. D-backs manager Torey Lovullo thought about pulling him earlier, "but I wanted him to work through it and just get him back in the dugout with a chance to win the game." Rodriguez has faced the Reds three times in his career, holding a 1-1 record with a 3.00 ERA. The Reds are countering with left-hander Nick Lodolo (2-1, 5.51 ERA), who allowed four runs and 10 hits in five-plus innings in his last start against the St. Louis Cardinals. He's made one start against Arizona before, giving up three runs in six innings on June 6, 2025, in a no-decision. This series is a battle of the bruised, and it'll be interesting to see who can finally climb out of the basement.

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.