Cincinnati Reds Continue Looking to Add Starting Pitching
By Dylan Smith
The Cincinnati Reds are reportedly targeting Derek Holland, a 31-year old left-handed starting pitcher who got his career back on track in 2018.
The Cincinnati Reds have been aggressive in their pursuit of adding starting pitchers. The Reds lacked pitching depth in 2018 and they are looking to change that in 2019.
First, the club made an underrated move by acquiring the always reliable Tanner Roark from the Washington Nationals. Next, we saw the club pull off a blockbuster trade with the Los Angeles Dodgers, which included left-handed starting pitcher, Alex Wood. Now, the Cincinnati Reds are looking to add another lefty, Derek Holland.
Holland reportedly told Jon Morosi of MLB Network that he has been in contact with the Reds throughout the offseason. The 31-year-old also noted that he prefers to play for a National League team because he enjoys being more involved in games. Holland, an Ohio native, should have plenty of opportunities to hit and run as a member of the Cincinnati Reds as he should fit nicely at the back end of their starting rotation.
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Derek Holland was once a solid starting pitcher but injuries derailed his career. After spending eight seasons with the Texas Rangers, the lefty spent 2017 as a member of the Chicago White Sox and 2018 as a member of the San Fransisco Giants.
2018 served as a “revival” year for Holland as he threw more than 130 innings for the second time since 2013. The lefty recorded a record of 7-9 with an ERA of 3.57 and a WHIP of 1.29 over 171.1 innings pitched.
Holland led the Giants in innings pitched and finished with the third best ERA among the team’s starting pitchers. He trailed Madison Bumgarner and Dereck Rodriguez, who both only pitched in 21 games. Holland appeared in 36 games, making 30 starts.
When healthy, Holland has proven that he can be an effective pitcher. If the Reds decide to bring him into their organization, he should bring a quality arm and a valuable veteran presence.
The lefty’s underlying statistics seem to point in a positive direction, which could tremendously help the pitching-hungry Cinncinati Reds. In 2018, Holland’s K’s per nine were at an all-time career high (8.9), while his hits per nine were at an all-time career low (8.1). The veteran’s BB’s (3.5) and HR’s (1) per nine were also significantly down from the year before.
Pitching in Great American Ballpark is a totally different animal when compared to pitcher-friendly AT&T Park, but Holland could still prove to be an effective, low-cost addition. I would be confident in Holland’s ability to acclimate to Cinncinati due to his reasonably close home/road splits in 2018.
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Signing Derek Holland should prove to be an interesting move for the Cincinnati Reds as they are looking to make waves in 2019.