Andrew Abbott shows win-now value of Cincinnati Reds promotion of Chase Burns in another win
ST. LOUIS – That upper-90s fastball, sure. That nasty slider, no doubt. And that extra competitive gear, fuhgeddaboudit.
But here's another big reason the Cincinnati Reds pulled the trigger this week on one of their top two or three most anticipated big-league debuts in decades:
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Andrew Abbott.
After allowing a run-scoring single in the second inning Sunday, June 22, Andrew Abbott retired the final 18 batters in a seven-inning start and 4-1 Reds win. Abbott improved to 7-1 with a 1.79 ERA in 13 starts.
Because Abbott keeps doing things like he did Sunday, when he retired the last 18 batters he faced to beat the Cardinals 4-1 with seven powerful innings on an oppressively hot afternoon in St. Louis.
Because Abbott keeps pitching like an ace. And the Reds keep avoiding long losing streaks. And because the brass says it believes they have a playoff caliber team that top prospect Chase Burns can help get over a tough midseason hump.
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'He can help us win,' veteran starter Nick Martinez said. 'He's got that dog in him.'
With Hunter Greene sidelined until maybe the All-Star break or beyond with an aggravated groin strain, can the powerful, poised right-hander make a sudden impact the way guys like Elly De La Cruz did when he debuted in 2023 or Rhett Lowder last year?
And what does that mean for a rotation that already has one of the hottest left-handers going in the game right now in Abbott – who improved to 7-1 with a 1.79 ERA through 13 starts Sunday, just ahead of a gauntlet homestand featuring the Yankees and Padres?
Matt McLain, batting in the second spot in the order, gave the Reds an early lead with his ninth home run in the top of the first inning. McLain extended his hitting streak to 10 games and is batting .305 in 18 June games.
'It's going to be a boost while we're missing Hunter and we're trying to figure things out with bullpen guys being overused maybe,' said Abbott, who got more efficient as Sunday's start progressed to give that pen a much-needed breather.
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'We know who he is as a pitcher, why he got drafted so high,' Abbott added. 'What he did in college was outstanding.'
Never mind what he did in his first professional season so far this year after getting drafted second overall out of Wake Forest less than a year ago: 7-3 with a 1.77 ERA and a truckload of strikeouts across three minor-league levels.
'If he's remotely close or somewhat similar to what that was, then he's going to be a boost to us,' Abbott said. 'He's going to pick us up in ways that we might have been missing in some games.
'I think he's ready. It's going to be a little bit of an adjustment for him,' Abbott said, 'but he's got the stuff and he's got the grit to come up and do well right from the get-go.'
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Burns, whose debut comes on the heels of the elbow injury that landed Wade Miley back on the injured list, gets his first-big league taste Tuesday against the Yankees.
'We want to be in the playoffs. We want a shot at this thing,' said second baseman Matt Mclain, whose resurgence at the plate the last two weeks included a first-inning home run Sunday. 'So adding him obviously is going to help those chances.'
Burns is Baseball America's No. 8 overall prospect and MLB Pipeline's No. 11 prospect. His debut ranks alongside De La Cruz's and Lowder's among the three most anticipated Reds debuts in more than a decade.
The Reds opened the week with 10 wins in their last 15 games to push their record to 40-38 and get to within three games of a playoff position.
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Thanks to Abbott's effort Sunday, they remain the only team in the majors that hasn't been swept in a series this season.
'We all believe we have a good team here,' first baseman Spencer Steer said. 'The record is what it is, but we have a good team. We have a team that can make the playoffs.
'So however we get there, whatever the moving pieces are – obviously I don't have any say in that – but hearing the front office say (the Burns move is about winning now), that gives us an extra little confidence, like we have what it takes.'
And if Burns performs? And Abbott keeps pitching like this? And Greene gets healthy for a second-half run?
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"It just adds weapons," Abbott said.
For now it's about riding Abbott's win into the Yankees series. And Tuesday's big day for Burns.
But even ahead of the homestead, the news resonated in the Reds clubhouse before they headed home.
'I think it's something (the front office is) telling us they believe in us,' catcher Jose Trevino said. 'They believe in our team, and it's just going to help us.'
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Andrew Abbott shows win-now value of Reds call to promote Chase Burns
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