CINCINNATI – Thoughts on which role rookie pitcher Chase Burns will have down the stretch this season for the Reds – rotation or bullpen – will be on hold. That’s because Burns was placed on the 15-day injured list on Friday – retroactive to Tuesday – with a right flexor strain.
Burns underwent an MRI exam that showed the arm injury, but the club believed it was not very serious.
“For a while, we were pretty nervous,” manager Terry Francona said. “From listening to [team orthopedic doctors Timothy] Kremchek and [Andrew] Razzano, they say he’s going to be fine.”
Burns, 22, is 0-3 with a 5.24 ERA in eight big league starts during his first professional baseball season. The right-hander last pitched on Aug. 8 vs. the Pirates and got a no-decision during a 3-2 Cincinnati loss. Over six innings, he allowed one earned run and three hits with one walk and 10 strikeouts.
The Reds first learned that Burns was having an arm issue on Wednesday before the series finale vs. the Phillies.
“About an hour before the game is when we found out,” Francona said. “Because we were thinking about bringing him in the game [in relief].
“He said he felt it a little bit in Pittsburgh, but like nothing. He got worked on, on Tuesday, and he said he woke up Wednesday still really feeling it. But he still went about all his throwing and everything.”
Lefty reliever Joe La Sorsa was recalled from Triple-A Louisville to replace Burns on the active roster.
In four of his past five starts (the one exception being the rain-shortened Speedway Classic on Aug. 2), Burns has recorded 10 strikeouts. He’s one of three Major League pitchers since 1893 (Fernando Valenzuela in 1981 and Bob Feller in 1936) with 10 or more K’s in four of their first eight career starts.
Since making his pro debut in April, Burns has totaled 100 1/3 combined innings across stints in High-A, Double-A, Triple-A and the big leagues, already past the 100 collegiate innings he threw in 2024 with Wake Forest before he was made the second overall selection in last year’s MLB Draft.
When Hunter Greene returned Wednesday from a two-plus month stint on the IL with a right groin strain, he took Burns’ spot in the rotation. The club had been contemplating the role Burns might have the rest of the season but knew it wanted him to finish the season pitching in the big leagues. Putting him in the bullpen at some point was viewed as the best way to curtail his innings load while keeping him pitching.
The first day Burns is eligible for activation is Aug. 27, but there is no guarantee he will be ready. Cincinnati will proceed with caution, but the club was encouraged by the diagnosis.
“The idea is to get him back throwing quickly,” Francona said. “When I say quickly, when it’s pain-free. That might be a couple of days. If that’s the case, he probably won’t be down very long. But we’re going to certainly do the right thing. We’re not going to rush this kid.”
