Greene 'electric, dominant' early, but loses focus

BOSTON -- 99. 100. 100. 100. 99.

Hunter Greene’s first five pitches at Fenway Park were no surprise to anyone who’s watched the talented right-hander pitch. In fact, the triple digits are what Greene is known for.

Against a talented Boston lineup, Greene dominated for three innings before running into trouble in the fourth frame of the Reds’ 7-1 loss to the Red Sox at Fenway Park. Greene tallied eight punchouts in his 3 2/3-inning outing, giving him a hefty cushion atop the strikeout leaderboard for qualified rookies with 64 over his 10 outings.

“There are a lot of great moments,” manager David Bell said of Greene’s rookie season. “But those three innings were, I don’t know, just electric, dominant, whatever word you can come up with.”

First time through the order
Greene opened the game by striking out the side, as Franchy Cordero, Rafael Devers and J.D. Martinez all went down swinging. Cordero saw six straight fastballs, only one of which he was able to make contact with for a foul. Greene served Devers three fastballs in a row before turning to back-to-back sliders. And Martinez swung on two sliders to end the inning.

“I think what was amazing was he came out throwing as hard as he’s thrown all year for the first few hitters,” Bell said. “Just really blowing it by ‘em, and that’s saying a lot against those guys. Then he went to the slider and it was like they didn’t know what to do. It was really impressive, the stuff.”

Xander Bogaerts, Christian Vázquez and Bobby Dalbec were also retired via the strikeout, with Trevor Story connecting for the only hit off Greene during the first time through with a 104.8 mph double.

“I mean he almost -- pretty much he did -- strike everybody out,” Greene’s batterymate Tyler Stephenson said. “Those first three innings were incredible. Obviously his heater, electric as always. And just the ability to throw the slider, get the swings and misses and hit for strikes.”

Second time through the order
After striking out Cordero for the second time to end the third, things quickly got out of hand for Greene. Devers, Martinez, Bogaerts and Alex Verdugo hammered him for back-to-back-to-back-to-back hits to open the fourth.

Greene briefly regained his early stuff, striking out Story on an 87.4 mph slider and retiring Vázquez on a groundout. The last batter he faced was the No. 8 hitter Jackie Bradley Jr., who singled to center field before righty Luis Cessa took over on the mound.

Greene threw 29 pitches in the fourth inning, compared to the 44 he needed to record his first nine outs.

“Honestly, for me tonight, I lost the focus on staying present. I felt very present in the first three innings,” Greene said. “… I think mentally trying to stay as locked in as possible and trying to stay where my feet are. I was constantly telling myself that and I started slipping away in the fourth. That's going to happen, but trying to lock back in as quick as possible is what I wanted to do.

“Unfortunately that was a little more of a challenge tonight. I don't want to think of it as an excuse, but looking back, I think that was a part of the issue in the fourth, trying to stay as present as possible.”

Beyond the strikeout totals and what the radar gun reads is another important number to consider: Greene is just 22 years old. His 2-7 record and 6.19 ERA paint a different picture than the pitcher who Greene and his team know he can be. The strikeouts are there, he’s established two pitches in his fastball and slider that have shown their effectiveness, now it’s about experience and learning from each outing.

Said his manager: “I think it’s all part of the process. I know he’s out there competing and doing everything he can to help us win a game. I know that’s where his mindset is, but he is great at learning from everything that happens.

"A lot to be learned from tonight, a lot of great things to be taken first of all, then definitely the fourth inning. It was a tough inning. He didn’t walk anybody, it was all hits. Against a lineup like that, next time he faces a lineup like that, he’ll be more prepared for it.”