Tony Santillan’s struggles have left him with some unsightly numbers.
Sent in to preserve a 2-2 game in the ninth, Cincinnati Reds reliever Santillan threw 22 pitches Wednesday night, June 3, against the Kansas City Royals. A single, sacrifice bunt, home run and walk later, he was yanked from the game with the Reds eventually losing 5-2.
Seven times this season, Reds manager Terry Francona has inserted the 6-foot-3, 285-pound reliever in the ninth inning. The result?
Try 10 earned runs, four home runs, four walks and a robust ERA of 18.00.
With closer Emilio Pagan out since May 6, Santillan has just one save, May 19 against the Phillies. His last save before that was April 18 against the Twins. At home, he’s thrown 12.1 innings, allowing 20 hits and 16 runs. On the road, it’s 10 innings, 12 hits and 10 runs.
After his royal implosion against Kansas City, Santillan has Major League Baseball’s worst WAR (wins above replacement) among relievers at -1.1.
Guess what Tony Santillan is throwing?
While a layperson can’t touch a mid-90s fastball, big league baseball players can slam them with regularity. In the ninth inning against the Royals, Santillan at one point threw 12 consecutive four-seam fastballs to Michael Massey, with the last being hit for a run-scoring single to break the tie and give Kansas City the lead.
Against Nick Loftin, he tried a couple of off-speed breaking pitches that missed the mark, giving him a hitter’s count of 2-0. Loftin then deposited the 13th fastball of the last 15 pitches thrown by Santillan in the left-field seats for the 5-2 lead the Reds wouldn’t overcome.
Do they continue running Santillan out late in games?
“We’re at a point where we need some stability so much, and he’s the guy that − so, we’re gonna have to figure that out,” Reds manager Terry Francona said in the postgame press conference. “Do we pick our spots a little bit? I mean, we tried to do that before, but with everybody going down, that’s been a little bit more difficult.”
Cincinnati Reds starter Chase Burns is among MLB WAR leaders
Burns remains 7-1 with a 2.05 ERA after getting a no-decision against Kansas City June 3. Coming off an illness, Burns went six innings, allowing four hits, two runs (first inning two-run homer to Vinnie Pasquantino) and struck out nine.
While Santillan’s WAR rating is terrible, Burns has been proficient. His WAR rating is No. 2 in all of baseball at 3.2. The only player ahead of him is Christopher Sanchez of the Phillies, who is 7-2 with a 1.46 ERA, at 4.7.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Cincinnati Reds reliever Tony Santillan at bottom of MLB WAR ratings
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