Cincinnati Reds Call Up Prospect Robert Stephenson

By Eric Roseberry |

Feb 18, 2016; Goodyear, AZ, USA; Cincinnati Reds pitcher Robert Stephenson (55) throws during workouts at Cincinnati Reds Development Complex. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

Due to a rash of injuries to their starting rotation, the Cincinnati Reds have promoted top prospect Robert Stephenson earlier than expected.

Yesterday the Cincinnati Reds announced that they were adding top pitching prospect Robert Stephenson to their roster. Prior to last season, Baseball America ranked Stephenson as the top prospect in the Reds farm system. MLB Pipeline currently rates Stephenson as the Reds’ #2 prospect and the #34 prospect in all of baseball.

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As Mark Sheldon notes, this will likely be a short-term promotion while the Reds wait for other starting pitching options to get healthy. Having Stephenson start for the big league club was not the plan just a few weeks ago. The hope was that he could spend more time at Triple-A Louisville, but mounting injuries made that impossible.

Currently, starters Anthony DeSclafani, Homer Bailey, John Lamb and Jon Moscot are all on the DL. Bullpen option Michael Lorenzen, who started for the Reds last season, is also on the shelf. The Reds signed veteran starter Alfredo Simon to help limit the load their young pitchers would have to carry this season, but the amount of unavailable starters grew to a point that they had few other options.

As soon as the Reds can send Stephenson back down they likely will. Even if he was ready to pitch in the majors this season, it’s likely worth keeping him down for service time considerations. That being said, Bryan Price admitted (per Zach Buchanan) that a strong showing by Stephenson could earn him more starts this season. While he’s unlikely to stay on the big league roster, he could return sooner rather than later.

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Dan Farnsworth of Fangraphs notes that Stephenson’s fastball sits in the low-to-mid 90s. His curveball is “devastating,” and is a major weapon in his repertoire. What will determine Stephenson’s ceiling are his command and the development of a third pitch. Those sound like skills that are better developed away from the major league spotlight, but if injuries continue to mount the Reds might be forced to throw their highly-touted prospect into the fire.

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