Nick Lodolo is healthy, and the Reds' young starter is hitting his stride

PITTSBURGH — Cincinnati Reds starting pitcher Nick Lodolo drew such a big crowd because everyone in the organization knew how much he meant.

During spring training in late February and early March, Lodolo was trying to take the final steps in his comeback from left calf tenosynovitis, which forced him to miss nearly the entire 2023 season. He was coming back from a rare injury, and Lodolo was taking everything day-to-day.

Whenever he threw out of the bullpen during that stretch, a group of 30-plus players, coaches and executives stopped what they were doing to watch him pitch. The Reds were counting on Lodolo to be a frontline starting pitcher in 2024, and everyone wanted to see whether or not he’d be healthy enough to step into that role.

Lodolo wasn’t just ready for that responsibility. He has ended up exceeding expectations.

On Tuesday, in a 2-1 win for the Reds over the Pittsburgh Pirates, Lodolo allowed just one run in seven innings with eight strikeouts. He finished the game with a 2.76 ERA and an 8-2 record, but this performance didn’t even feel like anything out of the ordinary for the young left-hander.

"We knew this going in," Reds manager David Bell said. "If he would stay healthy, that was going to be the key. He's talented. I'm just happy for Nick to be out there competing. He hasn't been able to do that for an extended period of time yet. He's going to. He's settling in now. He's still early in his career. He has a lot of improvement ahead."

Reds earn lead, shut down Pirates

Reds third baseman Santiago Espinal put the Reds up by two runs with a two-run homer in the fifth inning, and Lodolo was on the attack the entire way.

It was another efficient, workmanlike start from a 26-year-old who has been the most valuable player for the Reds so far in 2024. Even though he missed the first two weeks of the season as he completed his ramp up progression and even though he missed two weeks in May with a groin strain, he has still been the Reds’ most reliable player this season.

This is what the Reds dreamed of in February in March, when the entire organization was hoping that he’d be able to stay healthy. Every time he pitched out of the bullpen, he put on a show. But Lodolo had to build up confidence in his left leg. Every pitch was a testing ground to see what Lodolo would be capable of this year.

On the day that Lodolo checked the final box in his rehab process, second baseman Jonathan India yelled “(heck) yeah” as he watched from the dugout. The Reds have playoff aspirations this season, and Lodolo has always represented the type of high-upside starter that can win a team a playoff game.

But Lodolo hasn't thought much about the bigger picture of the season.

"Especially with the way last year went, I'm taking it five days at a time," Lodolo said. "If you start looking ahead, you never know. You have to stay present and do it again in five days. What I did today, in five days, that doesn't matter."

Nick Lodolo's top-of-rotation potential

All year, Lodolo has been living up to his potential.

He delivered another standout start on Tuesday, making the most of an adjustment that he has worked on in between starts. Over the last month, Lodolo has pitched well in spite of an inconsistent breaking ball. That’s usually his best pitch, and Lodolo has had to work around that in most of his outings in June.

Occasionally, Lodolo would try to do too much when he threw his breaking ball. In two strike counts, as he tried to put batters away, he’d hit them and give them a free base.

On Tuesday, Lodolo’s breaking ball was as good as it has been all year. He generated a swing and miss on eight of the Pirates’ 14 swings against that pitch. Lodolo left one breaking ball over the plate on the solo home run that he allowed to Pirates third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes, but Lodolo got what he was looking for from the pitch against every other batter that he faced.

"Overall," Lodolo said, "I just felt in control."

Lodolo has a unique profile on the mound. He’s a 6-foot-6 left-hander with a very wide arm angle and one of the spinniest breaking balls in baseball. On top of that, he has built up his fastball velocity to 96 mph and seen his changeup go from a pitch that he didn’t have confidence in to a pitch that can put batters away in two-strike counts.

"He's a guy who's in complete control of his game," Reds catcher Luke Maile said. "Right away, we were speaking the same language with pitches. It's one thing to have me call a changeup. It's another to have him picture what I'm picturing. He just does a really good job in an under-the-radar way of executing pitches and being a pitcher."

The key for Lodolo has always been health. In 2022, he posted a 2.92 ERA over the final 13 starts of his rookie season. Last year, before the calf injury started impacting his performance, he had a 2.12 ERA through his first three starts of the season.Lodolo has been healthy in 2024. And his results have been as good as they’ve ever been for him in the big leagues.

"He's not a young guy anymore," Reds starting pitcher Frankie Montas said. "He doesn't remind me of anyone I've played with. It's an enjoyable day when he's on the mound. It's crazy."

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Reds pitcher Nick Lodolo 7 inning start leads to win over Pirates