The Reds Bullpen Went From 5th Best to 29th in a Month, and That Collapse Is Getting Hard to Ignore

Alright, Emerald City! You gotta see what's happening out there in the MLB, and it ain't pretty for some teams right now. The Cincinnati Reds, who were looking all kinds of hot a month ago, are in a full-blown freefall, and honestly, the numbers on their bullpen are gonna make your jaw drop. They couldn't snap out of their spiral on the road, so they're hoping a six-game homestand can fix things, starting with another struggling club, the Arizona Diamondbacks, tonight.

Cincinnati's Unbelievable Plunge

The Reds are in serious trouble, amigos. They've lost six of their last seven games, including a tough 5-4 defeat against the San Diego Padres just this past Wednesday. Think about this: at the end of April, these guys were riding high, nine games over .500. Now? They're three games *under* .500. Reds manager Terry Francona isn't sugarcoating it either. He said, "The results are not what we want. There's no getting around that. I'm not going to sit here and say a month ago, 'I love these guys,' and now we've lost some games that I hate them, because that's not how I feel. We're going to struggle, and we're going to struggle together. We're going to figure it out together." He's right, they need to figure it out, and fast. The biggest culprit? That bullpen. At the end of April, their relievers boasted the majors' fifth-best ERA at a stellar 3.44. Today? They rank a horrifying 29th, with a 5.13 ERA. That's a collapse, plain and simple. Reliever Caleb Ferguson is trying to stay positive, saying, "Just got to keep making pitches. It takes a really long year to have a bad year, and it takes a really long year to have a good year. 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 believes they're "really, really close," saying they're "two to three pitches from winning all these games." Are they *really* that close, or is that just what you gotta say? This plummet needs fixing, and fast, if they wanna turn their season around.

Diamondbacks Aren't Shining Either

It's not just the Reds hitting the skids. The Arizona Diamondbacks might not have started as hot as Cincinnati, but they're stuck in a slump too. They were shut out in back-to-back games this week by the Miami Marlins on Wednesday and Thursday. Ouch. They've dropped five of their past six overall, pushing them back to .500 for the first time since May 18. The D-backs haven't even won a series since they swept the San Francisco Giants way back on May 25-27, a stretch where they looked decent at 31-24. Arizona's sending lefty Eduardo Rodriguez (5-2, 2.52 ERA) to the mound for the opener tonight. He still ranks fifth in the National League in ERA, which is solid, but he took the loss in his most recent outing. He gave up four runs and six hits in 6 1/3 innings during a 6-1 loss to the Washington Nationals last Saturday. After a rough first inning where he allowed two runs, he actually threw five scoreless innings before heading back out for the seventh. But then Dylan Crews tagged him for a solo homer and Jacob Young hit a one-out triple, who then scored after Rodriguez left the game. Manager Torey Lovullo admitted, "Maybe I could have clipped him an at-bat 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, going 1-1 with a 3.00 ERA. For Cincinnati, left-hander Nick Lodolo (2-1, 5.51 ERA) gets the ball. He didn't get a decision in his last outing, allowing four runs and 10 hits in five-plus innings against the St. Louis Cardinals last Saturday. He's got one career start against Arizona, a no-decision where he gave up three runs in six innings back on June 6, 2025. This series kickoff could be a chance for one of these squads to snap out of it, or dive even deeper. Will Lodolo get the Reds back on track at home, or will Rodriguez dominate despite his last outing? Tonight is gonna be telling for both these struggling clubs, so get ready!

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