Pitcher's idleness is set to end soon

[missionhockey21]

Left-hander expected to start Monday or Tuesday

By John Fay
Enquirer staff writer

Game day for Brandon Claussen is like that of any Reds pitcher.

He goes through the pre-game stretch. He takes batting practice. He shags fly balls with the other pitchers.

Then the game starts, and Claussen sits and sits and sits.

Through eight games, Claussen is the only Red not to have played.

"It's definitely strange," he said. "I've been trying to come to the field every day with a positive attitude."

Claussen, a 25-year-old left-hander, is the Reds' fifth starter. Because the club had three off days in the first 11 days, the Reds won't need a fifth starter until Tuesday.

Claussen has been available for bullpen duty, but the Reds' starters have gone at least five innings in all but one game, so few bullpen innings have been available.

That's where the pitching Catch-22 came in. Claussen had a lot of time to work on things because he wasn't pitching, but he could not work on things because he might pitch.

"It's been kind of hard because I didn't know if I was going to pitch that day or not," he said.

As his start approached, the Reds took steps to get Claussen ready. He threw 70 pitches in a simulated game Thursday.

"He looked good," Reds pitching coach Don Gullett said. "He got better the longer he threw. He finished strong."

Claussen is available for an inning of relief today or Saturday, but he basically has been preparing as a starter.

"Now that I've pitched that simulated game, I can get into my routine," he said.

Claussen could pitch Monday instead of Tuesday. The Reds may have Claussen and Ramon Ortiz switch to give Ortiz's strained groin more time to heal.

Claussen is ready to go either day.

"I'm ready to go out and play baseball," he said.

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[redsrbetter]

We may have another good starter on our hands and I expect that he has put last year behind him. We will see how he does his first time out, but he may be shaky due to lack of opportunity so far. Here is to Claussen and a great year!