Johnny Cueto exited his start Sunday after three innings with arm soreness and was placed on the disabled list Monday with a strained elbow. After winning a rotation spot during spring training, Cueto debuted with 10 strikeouts over seven one-hit innings and turned in a solid second outing, but then had a 6.11 ERA over his next dozen starts. He recovered to post a 3.82 ERA and 74-to-27 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 13 starts since mid-June, but may now be done for the season.
An ugly 8-12 record likely masks what's been an impressive rookie season for a 22-year-old who logged a grand total of just 83 innings between Double-A and Triple-A before being thrust into the Reds' rotation. His 146-to-58 strikeout-to-walk ratio and .258 opponent's batting average are both very solid and his 4.65 ERA is right around the NL average after accounting for the Reds' hitter-friendly ballpark.
Based on his minor-league track record, Cueto's extreme fly-ball tendencies combined with a power-boosting home ballpark figured to be his biggest weakness. Sure enough, his fly-ball rate ranks as the sixth-highest in the NL and he's served up 26 homers in 155 innings, including 16 long balls in 80.1 innings at home. Keeping the ball in the ballpark may always be a struggle for Cueto, but he does enough other things well to develop into a solid No. 2 starter long term.
While Cueto and Edinson Volquez help make up for Homer Bailey's discouraging decline by giving the Reds an extremely promising young 1-2 punch, here are some other notes from around baseball .
* Cleveland acquiring Anthony Reyes from St. Louis just before last month's trading deadline got lost in the shuffle with the various big moves, but as discussed in this space at the time it struck me as an excellent example of buying low. At 26 years old Reyes still projected as a solid mid-rotation starter despite some initial struggles in the majors, but the Indians were able to pick him up for pennies on the dollar because he fell out of favor with the Cardinals' coaching staff.
It's a month later and Reyes held the high-scoring Rangers to one run in seven innings Monday, improving to 2-1 with a 2.22 ERA in four starts with the Indians. His career ERA is now below 5.00 ERA and he's secured a spot in the rotation for the remainder of this season while likely emerging as part of the Indians' plans for next year and beyond. Like Cueto, Reyes is an extreme fly-ball pitcher who'll struggle to keep the ball in the ballpark, but he'll still be an AL-only asset.
* Reports last week suggested that the Rangers were asking teams for a top pitching prospect in exchange for Eddie Guardado, but watching him cough up runs in four of his last five games must have convinced them to lower their demands. Instead of getting a top pitching prospect in return, the Rangers sent Guardado to the Twins for an undrafted rookie-ball reliever Monday, deciding to cash in the impending free agent for something before he left for nothing.
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Guardado returns to Minnesota, where he spent the first 11 years of his career before leaving as a free agent following the 2003 season. He was the Twins' closer in both 2002 and 2003, saving 86 total games between the two seasons, but Guardado's second go-around will involve setting up the man who replaced him at closer, Joe Nathan. "Everyday Eddie" joined the Twins in Seattle just hours after the trade and pitched a scoreless eighth inning Monday, lowering his ERA to 3.58.
Meanwhile, with Guardado out of the picture in Texas and C.J. Wilson done for the season after elbow surgery, Frank Francisco will likely get first crack at saving games for the Rangers. With a mid-90s fastball Francisco has traditional closer "stuff" and he's pitched well this year with a 3.78 ERA, 65-to-22 strikeout-to-walk ratio, and .218 opponent's batting average in 52.1 innings. Wilson is expected to be healthy for spring training, but Francisco may have the job locked down by then.
AL Quick Hits: Hyped in this space yesterday as a must-grab in AL-only leagues, Nelson Cruz went 3-for-5 with a three-run homer in his season debut . Grady Sizemore joined the 30-30 club Monday by smacking his 30th and 31st homers to go with 34 steals . Despite going 2-for-16 on a minor-league rehab assignment, Joe Crede (back) came off the shelf Monday and pushed Juan Uribe back to the bench . Carlos Guillen left Monday's game in the fifth inning with back spasms and Ryan Raburn replaced him at third base . Jim Thome hit his 535th career homer Monday, moving past Jimmie Foxx into 15th place on the all-time list . Travis Hafner (shoulder) had a setback while rehabbing at Triple-A and is now unlikely to return this week . With Ian Kinsler (hernia) out, manager Ron Washington said Sunday that Joaquin Arias will play regularly despite a .697 OPS in 231 career games at Triple-A . Joba Chamberlain (shoulder) threw a 35-pitch bullpen session Monday and is slated to throw again Thursday . Jeff Clement (knee) missed his third straight start Monday, but grounded into a game-tying double play as a pinch-hitter.
NL Quick Hits: After homering twice and driving in six runs Monday, Carlos Delgado is hitting .303 with 17 homers and 55 RBIs in his last 54 games . Brett Myers racked up eight strikeouts in seven scoreless innings Monday, improving to 4-1 with a 1.66 ERA since returning from Triple-A last month . One day after delivering a pinch-hit homer for his first long ball since July, Kosuke Fukudome went 3-for-4 and drove in four runs Monday . Jimmy Rollins broke out of his 4-for-46 slump with three hits Monday, coming up a homer short of the cycle . Manager Bruce Bochy said Sunday that Jonathan Sanchez (shoulder) is unlikely to come off the disabled list before this weekend . Nate McLouth returned to the lineup Monday after missing five straight starts with a stomach virus . General manager Jim Bowden said Sunday that the Nationals are hoping to get Dmitri Young back in 10-14 days after "getting him into baseball shape" . According to the Denver Post, the Rockies will "shop both" Matt Holliday and Garrett Atkins this winter, with Atkins likely being "the odd man out" thanks to Ian Stewart's emergence at third base.
