The Cincinnati Reds have gotten off to an average start in the 2025 season. They are 8-8 and struggling to score runs and have lost numerous games by a score of 1-0. However, one player who has gotten off to a great start is Hunter Greene. While most of the talk around pitchers in the NL Central is about Paul Skenes, one ex-MLB executive says not to forget about Greene.
Hunter Greene Among League’s Best Pitchers
So far this season, Greene has made four starts and thrown 27.2 innings. He has allowed only 12 hits and three earned runs, for an ERA of 0.98. Despite his dominance, Greene has a 2-1 record.
According to “MLB Now,” former MLB executive Dan O’Dowd said, “I do think we need to start talking about Hunter [Greene] in the same way we talk about Paul Skenes.”
"I do think we need to start talking about Hunter [Greene] in the same way we talk about Paul Skenes."
– Dan O'Dowd on the @Reds' young ace pic.twitter.com/Aic5Qpji34
— MLB Now (@MLBNow) April 14, 2025
Greene was drafted second overall in the 2017 MLB Draft. He was selected as a two-way player out of high school but has only been a pitcher during his professional career. Greene has an electric arm reaching up to 100 mph on his fastball. Also, his putout pitch is his slider, one of the best in the sport.
According to the Reds, Greene has thrown his slider 112 times this season, and batters are 0-for-29 against it. He is also the only pitcher in baseball to throw a pitch 100+ times without allowing a hit.
Hunter Greene's slider has been one of the most dominant pitches in baseball:
🔴 Thrown 112 times, batters are 0-for-29 against it
🔴 Only MLB pitcher in 2025 to throw a pitch 100+ times with 0 hits allowed
🔴 13 strikeouts
🔴 54.1 Whiff% pic.twitter.com/2kLqZnxIJD— Cincinnati Reds (@Reds) April 14, 2025
Greene Hoping To Build Off of Last Season
Last season was the first time Greene was selected to the All-Star team while finishing eighth in NL Cy Young voting. He is one of the best strikeout pitchers in baseball, as he has posted aK/9 rate of at least 10.1 each season of his career.
The only issue for Greene is that injuries have cost him time during his career. Across his first three seasons, he has never thrown more than 150.1 innings. To be considered one of the best pitchers in baseball, he has to give more innings each year.
The Reds came into this season with playoff expectations thanks to the addition of legendary manager Terry Francona. He came out of retirement to manage this team, which shows that he thinks his team can compete. The top two players on the Reds are Greene and Elly De La Cruz, but they will need much more if they plan to compete for the division title or a Wild Card berth.
At 8-8, the Reds are currently third in the NL Central, trailing the Chicago Cubs and tying the Milwaukee Brewers.