Greene among Reds added to 40-man roster

CINCINNATI -- Starting pitcher Hunter Greene is the Reds’ top prospect, and one of the most exciting prospects in all of baseball. As expected ahead of Friday's 6 p.m. ET deadline, Greene was among the organization’s Minor Leaguers that were protected from the Rule 5 Draft by being added to Cincinnati’s 40-man roster.

That means Greene will be in big league Spring Training for the first time. General manager Nick Krall had previously said that the right-hander -- who frequently throws over 100 mph -- will get an opportunity to compete for a spot on the Major League roster at camp.

Players who are not on 40-man rosters are deemed eligible for next month’s Rule 5 Draft if they were signed at age 18 or younger and have been in pro ball for five seasons or more, or if they were signed at 19 or older and have been in pro ball for four seasons or more.

Also added by the Reds were outfielder Allan Cerda and right-handed pitchers Alexis Diaz, Daniel Duarte and James Marinan.

Ranked No. 1 in the organization and No. 26 overall by MLB Pipeline, the 22-year-old Greene went 10-8 with a 3.30 ERA in a combined 21 starts and 106 1/3 innings with Double-A Chattanooga and Triple-A Louisville during the 2021 season.

The second overall selection in the 2017 Draft, Greene missed 2 1/2 seasons from 2018-20 because of Tommy John surgery and the COVID-19 pandemic.

Beginning at Chattanooga this year, Greene went 5-0 with a 1.98 ERA, a 1.00 WHIP and 60 strikeouts in 41 innings over seven starts. At Louisville, he went 5-8 with a 4.13 ERA and a 1.29 WHIP in 14 starts while working 65 1/3 innings.

Cerda, who turns 22 on Monday, is ranked No. 17 in the organization by MLB Pipeline. In a combined 87 games for Low-A Daytona and High-A Dayton, he slashed .250/.361/.523 with 17 home runs, 55 RBIs and a 136 wRC+. He’s also considered to have an above-average arm in right field.

Diaz, 25, was 3-1 with a 3.83 ERA, a 1.18 WHIP and two saves over 35 relief appearances for Chattanooga last season. He can rack up a lot of strikeouts, having recorded 70 over 42 1/3 innings in 2021.

Duarte, who turns 25 on Dec. 4, opened the season at Dayton and finished at Louisville, spending the most time at Triple-A in between. Combined, he went 2-2 with a 4.56 ERA and a 1.39 WHIP in 19 relief appearances.

A 23-year-old starting pitcher, Marinan was acquired from the Dodgers organization in the July 4, 2018, trade for reliever Dylan Floro. In 15 games between Daytona and Dayton -- including 12 starts -- Marinan was 2-6 with a 4.31 ERA and a 1.39 WHIP while pitching 64 2/3 innings.

The Reds currently have Marinan pitching in the Arizona Fall League.

Among the eligible players not protected for the Dec. 9 Rule 5 Draft were right-handed pitcher Michael Byrne, infielder Alfredo Rodriguez, catcher Chris Okey, left-handed pitcher Brandon Finnegan, outfielder Narciso Crook and left-handed pitcher Jacob Heatherly.