Price: Wright 'best suited' to make start for Reds
ATLANTA -- Daniel Wright will make his second major league start Monday night as the Cincinnati Reds open a nine-game road trip with the first of four contests with the Atlanta Braves.
How long Wright stays in the rotation is very much up for question.
The move to start the rookie right-hander against the Braves was as much about getting veteran Alfredo Simon out of the rotation as getting Wright in.
"Alfredo really needed to go to the bullpen and get things ironed out," Reds manager Bryan Price said in Cincinnati in announcing the switch Saturday. "We needed a starter and I think Dan's best suited right now with what we have currently to make that start."
The Reds, winners of seven of their past 11 games, have top pitching prospects Robert Stephenson and Cody Reed at Triple-A Louisville and at least one of them will eventually settle into a rotation spot.
Meanwhile, Wright gets to show what he can do and Simon will have to get back on track in the bullpen.
The 25-year-old Wright made his major-league debut against the Dodgers in Los Angeles on May 24 and went 5 1/3 innings while allowing seven hits and four runs (three earned).
Wright, who started the season with Double-A Pensacola before being promoted to Triple-A Louisville, has made two relief outings since then, giving up five runs and 12 hits in 4 2/3 innings.
It has been a breakthrough season for Wright, who was 2-0 with a 0.45 ERA in eight games (two starts) for Pensacola and 1-0 with a 1.29 ERA for Louisville in two starts.
Simon made 10 starts and one relief appearance for the Reds, going 2-6 with a 9.11 ERA. He pitched more than five innings in just three of his starts.
The Braves also made a rotation change for the series, pushing back Aaron Blair and Julio Teheran to start Monday and Tuesday, respectively.
Each were given an extra day of rest, with John Gant making his first major league start Sunday against the Chicago Cubs.
With Williams Perez (rotator cuff tendonitis) going on the disabled list, the Braves originally had a hole in the rotation for Tuesday.
"I will just give the other two guys an extra day, which I think is a good idea," Braves interim manager Brian Snitker said of Blair and Teheran.
Blair, acquired from Arizona as part of the Shelby Miller trade, goes into his ninth start still seeking his first major league victory. He is 0-4 with a 7.13 ERA.
Blair, ranked as the Braves' No. 2 prospect, was 3-0 with a 1.64 ERA in four starts for Triple-A Gwinnett, but has mostly struggled with Atlanta. He has pitched as many as six innings just once in eight starts.
The Braves have a 40-25 edge over the Reds at Turner Field going into their final series at the 20-year-old ballpark that was built as part of the 1996 Olympic Games. The Braves are moving into a new stadium in suburban Cobb County next year.
The Reds split a four-game series in Atlanta last season and took the season series 4-3.
Cincinnati went 5-4 in a homestand against Washington, St. Louis and Oakland, although the Reds remain last in the National League Central with a 24-39 record.
Atlanta has the worst record in the majors at 18-44, including 7-25 at home.
