Cincinnati Reds Opening Series Preview: Washington Nationals

The Reds host the Nationals for a three game series start on Thursday.

Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz (44) runs to third base in the fifth inning of the MLB / Albert Cesare/The Enquirer / USA TODAY

CINCINNATI – Baseball is officially back and the Reds are preparing for the most important day on the Cincinnati calendar: Opening Day. With spring training over and the weight of lofty expectations weighing down on the Reds, they shift their sights on the Washington Nationals to start the season. Let’s preview the first series of the year. 

GAME 1 – Opening Day

WHERE: Great American Ball Park

WHEN: Thursday March 28, 4:10 PM

STARTING PITCHERS: Josiah Gray (WAS), Frankie Montas (CIN)

When David Bell tapped Frankie Montas as the Reds Opening Day starter, it raised some eyebrows in Cincinnati. Most thought Hunter Greene would be making his second consecutive Opening Day start, but the newly-acquired veteran Montas got the nod. 

He’ll be opposed by a former Reds draft pick, right-hander Josiah Gray. The Reds drafted Gray in the second round of the 2018 MLB Draft. He made his MLB Debut in 2021 with the Dodgers after the Reds traded him to Los Angeles in the Homer Bailey trade prior to the 2019 season. He was then traded again in 2021 to the Nationals in the Trea Turner deal. 

Gray was good for the Nats in 2023, posting a 3.94 ERA and making his first All-Star team. He pitched 159 innings and posted a 20.5% strikeout percentage. He is 1-1 with a 3.27 ERA in two career starts against Cincinnati. 

GAME 2

WHERE: Great American Ball Park

WHEN: Saturday March 30. 4:10 PM

STARTING PITCHERS: Hunter Greene (CIN), Patrick Corbin (WAS)

Greene doesn’t get the Opening Day nod, but he does get it in Game 2 on Saturday.

“I told him, look at this as motivation," Bell said on Monday. 

Greene has handled it well, and kept the conversation based on the success of the team and not just his personal goals, but he did speak about being an “ace” when he met with the media on Monday.

"I love the idea of it and I want to be that guy."

Hunter Greene was asked if he wants the role of "ace." He spoke for nearly 90 seconds about it. pic.twitter.com/da3005vycA

— Joe Danneman (@FOX19Joe) March 25, 2024

In his Opening Day start last year, Greene pitched just 3 1/3 innings, gave up five hits, three runs, walked three batters, and struck out eight. He finished the season with 22 starts and a 4.82 ERA, pitching just 112 innings. 

He will be opposed by left-hander Patrick Corbin, who gets the ball for the Nats. Corbin has been in the big leagues since 2012 and has a career ERA of 4.40 in 292 starts. 

The Reds faced Corbin twice in 2023, on July 4 when they scored six runs on 10 hits and struck out just twice in a 8-4 win at Nationals Park. On August 4, Corbin tossed 6 1/3 innings and gave up just three runs in a 6-3 win over the Reds at Great American Ball Park. 

GAME 3

WHERE: Great American Ball Park

WHEN: Sunday March 31, 1:40 PM

STARTING PITCHERS: Jake Irvin (WAS), Nick Martinez (CIN)

Another newcomer gets the ball for Cincinnati in game three, when Nick Martinez will make his first start. Coming off of an impressive spring in which his role as a reliever or starter was up in the air, Martinez notched himself as the No. 3 guy to start the season. 

Despite missing some time due to a rib injury, Martinez pitched 8 2/3 innings in Spring Training, posting a 3.12 ERA and striking out 11 batters. 

Martinez spent 2023 with the Padres and had 3.43 ERA in 63 games, while striking out 106 batters in 110 innings. He faced the Nats three times last season, all of which were one inning appearances out of the Padre bullpen. He gave up three total earned runs in those appearances. 

On the other side, 27-year old Jake Irvin will take the ball for Washington. He made his MLB Debut last May against the Cubs, and gave up just two hits in four innings in that game. He started against Cincinnati on August 6 last season, and the Reds scored three runs on five hits in a 6-3 loss at Great American Ball Park. 

WHAT ELSE?

The Nationals will come to town with three former Reds on the roster: Reliever Derek Law, who spent the last two years in Cincinnati, where he posted a 3.72 ERA in 69 games. Former Reds outfielders Nick Senzel and Jesse Winker will also make the trip back to Cincinnati. 

Senzel was the second overall pick by the Reds in the 2016 MLB Draft and signed with the Nationals in December. 

Winker was also a first round pick of Cincinnati in the 2012 MLB Draft, and spent five seasons in Cincinnati, making an All-Star appearance in 2021. He played for Seattle in 2022 after being traded by the Reds, and spent the 2023 season with the Milwaukee Brewers.

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