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Journal-News, Hamilton, Ohio
Cincinnati Reds: Tony Santillan and Luis Mey are bolstering the Reds’ bullpen
- Story byJournal-News, Hamilton, Ohio
- Cincinnati Reds: Tony Santillan and Luis Mey are bolstering the Reds’ bullpen
The Cincinnati Reds ' bullpen, which has been performing pretty well over the last two months, has two more impact relief options now than it did even a week ago.
First, Triple-A call-up Luis Mey leveled up and proved that he was ready for high-leverage opportunities.
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Then, on Friday, Tony Santillan returned from an oblique injury that has kept him out since June.
With closer Emilio Pagán on the best run of his career and with the Reds getting strong overall seasons from Tejay Antone and Brock Burke , the back of the Reds' bullpen is in good shape right now.
Mey has had a fascinating arc this year. He was coming off of a 2025 season where he made his big league debut and showed some really exciting flashes during his limited opportunities in the Reds' bullpen. Competing for a spot in the bullpen in spring training in 2026, Mey didn't show immediate improvement.
He went on to have a tough first half of the season, most of which was spent in Triple-A.
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"Things didn't go his way in the first half of the season," Mey said. "The walks. Four pitches can ruin an outing. A leadoff walk can lead to a run in any situation."
From that challenging first half of the year, Mey now sees a silver lining.
"I looked at it as the process," Mey said. "If I didn't have the struggles to start the year, I wouldn't be here. I wouldn't have found what's better for me. It's a process. You've got to believe and go through it."
Mey met with the Triple-A pitching coaches in late July and decided to
exclusively pitch out of the stretch. The change led to immediate results. After being called back up to the big leagues in early August, Mey has demonstrated tangible improvement and has worked his way up the depth chart.
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"It's his fastball command," Terry Francona said. "It starts there. And it ends there. It has so much movement. He doesn't have to always locate it. If he just throws it over that white thing, he'll be ok."
Santillan was one of the most valuable relief pitchers in all of baseball in 2025. He started the 2026 season strong, but then between May and early June he went into the worst rut of his career. Later in June, he worked his way out of it and got back to being himself. As soon as that happened, he suffered an oblique injury.
"I finally had figured out what I had to figure out (on the mound)," Santillan said. "It took a lot longer than I had wanted it to. But I figured it out and was getting back to who I was. The timing of it wasn't ideal. But I looked at it as, now I know what was out of whack so when I come back it should instantly click."
He pushed himself through the rehab process to make it back ahead of schedule. Santillan was successful.
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"I was very stubborn in certain areas," Santillan said. "Pushing myself when I probably shouldn't have. I was smart with it. No one knows their own limitations but themselves. I was very confident. I made it a point to push it."
Now, he teams back up with Pagán at the back of the Reds' bullpen.
