Mahle wraps his spring: 'I'm ready to go'
GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- Reds Opening Day starter Tyler Mahle tied a knot on his Cactus League campaign with a mixed bag Saturday night vs. San Diego in a 6-3 victory.
Mahle, who made all four of his Cactus League starts this spring at Goodyear Ballpark, worked four frames with four strikeouts. He allowed two runs on five hits and one walk while throwing 59 pitches, 38 for strikes.
Mahle’s outing began on an inauspicious note, with a leadoff bunt single setting the stage for the Padres’ first run. But the right-hander bowed his neck to strike out the final two batters of the frame.
“[He had a] good fastball; he threw strikes,” manager David Bell said. “Probably the best split that he’s had all spring. He is ready.”
San Diego’s bats delivered some hard hits against Mahle in the innings to follow, as the 27-year-old mixed in his still-developing cut fastball alongside his traditional three-pitch mix. The plan entering the day had been for Mahle to throw from 60-70 pitches.
“I kind of wanted to go out for the fifth,” Mahle said. “I felt good, like I could have gone another one.”
Bell erred on the side of longevity, not feeling the need to force an additional inning of work.
“He got to the pitch count that we wanted him to get to; he’ll be fine,” the skipper said. “He’s going to have plenty of innings this year.”
The next time that Mahle toes the rubber will be at Truist Park in Atlanta on Thursday for Opening Day. The scene will be an unfamiliar one for reasons beyond Mahle drawing his first career Opening Day gig. It also marks the first time that the Reds will play their season opener on the road since 1990.
Mahle also is also on track to start the Reds’ home opener vs. the Guardians on April 12. The prestige of receiving both assignments isn’t lost on him.
“It’s going to be really cool,” he said. “I was hoping that would happen.”
Mahle finished his spring with a 3.38 ERA and 14 strikeouts across 10 2/3 innings. He noted that he hadn’t yet begun preparation for the Braves, but that his sights were now firmly on the reigning World Series champions:
“I’m ready to go.”
It takes a committee to close
Bell has been reticent to name a closer for the 2022 season, but from his vantage point, it’s because of the multiplicity of talent that his relief corps possesses.
Two of the names that he highlighted as candidates -- right-handers Luis Cessa and Art Warren -- threw scoreless frames in the seventh and eighth innings Saturday, respectively.
Cessa worked around a pair of singles to escape unscathed, giving him three scoreless innings during Cactus League play with three strikeouts. Warren looked dominant, snapping off a pair of strikeouts amidst a 1-2-3 inning. Like Cessa, he is yet to allow a run this spring, racking up five strikeouts over four innings.
Warren, who was acquired from Texas in January 2021, was electric last season when healthy, striking out 34 batters in 21 innings with a 1.29 ERA.
Also expected to see ninth-inning work early in the season are lefty Justin Wilson and righties Hunter Strickland and Tony Santillan, although the latter is a prime candidate for multi-inning outings because of his track record as a starter.