Cincinnati Reds pitcher Chase Petty earned his first Major League win on Saturday, and it may not have come the way he may have expected.
May 23, 2026; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Cincinnati Reds pitcher Chase Petty (61) throws against the St. Louis Cardinals in the first inning at Great American Ball Park. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-Imagn Images | Aaron Doster-Imagn Images
Petty has been a starter his entire career, prior to his most recent promotion back to Cincinnati. The Reds' bullpen has been awful since the beginning of May, and he has done a solid job in his new role.
"It's a blessing to actually be here," Petty said. "No matter what they need me for, no matter what situation it is, I just really need to be grateful for being here because it's just an opportunity that everyone wants. Every time that phone rings, I just make sure I was ready and prepared the best I could and just try to help the boys win."
He returned to pitch for the Reds in San Diego on Wednesday. He threw the ball well, but unfortunately gave up a walk-off home run to Fernando Tatis Jr. He threw 10 of his 17 pitches for strikes, but ultimately, Tatis was able to make a hit on a hanging slider up and away that just cleared the left field wall. Petty rebounded in a big way on Saturday against the Diamondbacks . Petty came in with inherited runners for the first time in his career. It was rough at first; he hit the first batter to load the bases, but was able to strike out Nolan Arenado and get Pavin Smith to fly out to end the inning and keep the game tied. He pitched the eighth inning and faced some adversity; Tommy Troy reached on a throwing error from Sal Stewart and allowed a double to Ryan Waldschmidt. He forced a groundout to escape the inning again to set up Tony Santillan in the ninth.
Cincinnati Reds pitcher Chase Petty (61) delivers a pitch in the third inning between the St. Louis Cardinals and Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati on Saturday, May 23, 2026. | Albert Cesare/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
The 23-year-old has an electric fastball and sinker combination that has reached triple digits and a new changeup grip that he has debuted this season. That combination, along with his slider and sweeper, can generate swings and misses. His fastball has a 20 percent whiff rate, and his sweeper is at nearly 29 percent, but his slider, statistically, is his put-away pitch.
"That was interesting with Petty," Terry Francona said postgame . "We gave him one outing where we said 'no dirty inning' and then that went by the wayside. He holds runners real well and he actually threw the ball really well. He misfired on a breaking ball that he hit a guy with that could've been disastrous, but other than that he really threw the ball very well"
With Nick Lodolo back and pitching well over his last few starts, only allowing one walk in each of his last two starts, and Hunter Greene possibly returning within the next month, there isn't really a spot for Petty in the rotation. Petty has the makeup to be a great reliever if that's what the Reds decide to do with him.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/mlb/reds/onsi as After Earning First Big League Win, Chase Petty Strengthens Case for a Bullpen Role .
