Notes: Miley's spring debut; Farmer OK at SS

PHOENIX -- Every other starter in the Reds' rotation already had one start, and Luis Castillo had two, before Wade Miley finally took his turn to pitch in Sunday's 5-4 loss to the Brewers. Miley didn’t mind how everything lined up and was enjoying it.

“I get excited before every game I ever pitch in,” Miley said. “I could be in the backyard. You’ve got to get the jitters. It was fun to get back out there and get one under the belt.”

Miley gave up three earned runs and four hits with no walks and two strikeouts over 1 1/3 innings. He had some bad luck with one out in the first when a slow grounder got through, followed by a blooped double just inside the right-field foul line.

Logan Morrison made it 3-0 when he slugged Miley’s 2-2 pitch to right field for a three-run homer. That didn’t dampen the left-hander’s enthusiasm, however.

“I felt really good,” Miley said. “I was actually really happy with how the ball was coming out of my hand. A couple of softer hits, and then I made a mistake to LoMo and he got me. I was really excited about how the ball was coming out of my hand, and I hope to keep improving.”

Cincinnati signed Miley to a two-year, $15 million contract in December to join a strong rotation with Castillo, Sonny Gray, Trevor Bauer and Anthony DeSclafani.

“I thought he looked good,” manager David Bell said. “There were really three hits that could have gone the other way for him. When you have to throw extra pitches against Major League hitters, that can happen. Other than the one pitch, I thought he looked really good. A very encouraging outing.”

Farmer handling shortstop OK
Bell noted at the start of spring games that he would want to see utility player Kyle Farmer get more opportunities at shortstop. The Reds are low on shortstop depth behind starter Freddy Galvis and Farmer played the position in college.

So far, Bell is pleased with the results.

“I was pretty confident going into this spring that he could cover that role,” Bell said. “Everything I’ve seen helps me be more confident in his ability to do that. Also, just talking to him, it’s the most natural position on the field for him. He sees him himself as shortstop more than any other position. Because it’s what he’s done his whole life. His confidence gives me confidence. We believe he can play that position. He’s shown it. I have no concerns there.”

Farmer can also serve as the third catcher behind Tucker Barnhart and Curt Casali.

“It’s a great skill set to be able to do both. With Tucker and Curt, I don’t know how much he’ll end up catching,” Bell said. “Hopefully, we’ll keep them all healthy. But having a third catcher on the bench really increases Kyle’s value to our team; being able to serve in both of those roles is really valuable.”

Worth noting
• Second baseman Mike Moustakas and his wife, Stephanie, welcomed a baby girl on Saturday. All were healthy and doing well.

“He’s probably not going to be back until [Wednesday] after the off-day," Bell said. “He went home because it was getting close. Good thing he did."

Corner infielder Matt Davidson, who left Saturday’s game after being hit on the hand by a pitch, was OK on Sunday.

• Outfielder Travis Jankowski, who left the same game against the Padres after pulling up lame running out a double, has a left hamstring strain.

“It’s being called a mild strain, which is good,” Bell said. “I would not anticipate him back before a week. But you never know.”

Up next
With an off-day on Tuesday, Gray and Bauer will be pitching in tandem at 3:05 p.m. ET on Monday when the Reds play the Dodgers at Goodyear Ballpark. It will be both pitchers’ second spring outings. Watch live on MLB.TV or listen to Gameday Audio.