Cincinnati Reds To Be Without Ace Hunter Greene For Significant Period

Cincinnati Reds starting pitcher Hunter Greene

The Cincinnati Reds got bad news on ace starter Hunter Greene on Tuesday, learning that he will have to have "loose bodies" removed from his pitching elbow, and will be out "14 to 16 weeks". That means he'll miss the first half of the 2026 season and hopefully return in July.

Hunter Greene is not expected to pitch for the Reds until July after having bone chips removed from his throwing elbow, per @GDubMLB

Brutal loss for Cincinnati pic.twitter.com/YCzFXueFUn
— SleeperMLB (@SleeperMLB) March 10, 2026

It is indeed a brutal loss, but some around the Reds are breathing a sigh of relief, as Greene avoided the worst-case scenario of full elbow surgery and a year and a half on the shelf.

Instead, the 26-year-old will have an arthroscopic procedure on Wednesday to remove the bone chips and loose bodies from his right elbow.

"It's definitely good news compared to what it could have been," president of baseball operations Nick Krall said. "... He'll be like a trade-deadline acquisition."

Unfortunately, what can't be ignored is the fact that Greene has spent significant time on the injured list in each and every one of his, now, five years in the majors. He made 19 starts last year with 107 innings pitched; 26 starts in 2024 with a career-high 150 innings; 22 starts in 2023, his sophomore year, with 112 innings pitched, and 22 starts in his rookie year in 2022 with 125 innings.

But when he has been on the mound? Absolutely electric. A 2.75 ERA with a 0.98 WHIP over the last two seasons combined, with a 16-9 mark over that time and 10.5 strikeouts per nine innings (11.2 K/9 over his four seasons).

The Reds' rotation won't be a disaster even without him, however, as they do have a bunch of solid No. 2-3 types, in Andrew Abbott, Nick Lodolo and Brady Singer taking up the first three spots, and prospects Rhett Lowder and Chase Burns to hopefully grab the other two spots.