Cincinnati Reds Starting Pitcher Revamped His Pitch Mix For 2026

Following an 83-79 record with a wildcard appearance in 2025, the Cincinnati Reds are gearing up to have another 80 plus win season.

Cincinnati has struggled with their offense over the past half a decade, but made sure to invest on that front by bringing in former red Eugenio Suarez. 

A lineup headlined by Elly De La Cruz and Suarez could make some noise, but they will once again rely on their pitching rotation to carry the load throughout the regular season. 

A top of the rotation trio of Hunter Greene, Nick Lodolo and Andrew Abbott is legit, but they may have a pitcher on their hands ready to breakout in 2026 with his refined pitch mix. 

On November 23, 2024, Cincinnati acquired starting pitcher Brady Singer from the Kansas City Royals in exchange for infielder Johnathan India. 

In Singer's final season with Kansas City, he posted a 3.71 ERA with a career high 170 strikeouts in 179.2 innings of work. 

Cincinnati took notice of Singer's upside, and decided to part ways with one of their team leaders in India. It was a big risk for Cincinnati, but it paid off in 2025. 

Singer posted a 4.03 ERA, 1.24 WHIP with 163 strikeouts across 32 starts for Cincinnati last season. Although it was considered a down year for him, Singer has bigger and better plans for his 2026 campaign. 

On February 24, 2026, Singer appeared on MLB Network's "Foul Territory" TV show, where he shared his refined pitch mix that he's been working on during the offseason. 

Before we dive into what Singer shared, it's important to get a better understanding of what pitches are in his arsenal. Last season, Singer threw his sinker 41% of the time, slider 28%, sweeper 11%, four-seam fastball 10% and a cutter which he only threw 9%. 

However, Singer shared that he has worked on gaining velocity on his slider, and using his sweeper as a slower offering pitch. 

"Mixing the sweeper in and the slider as well just trying to play those two off of each other I feel like helped me a lot," said Singer. 

In 2025, Singer would generate the most whiffs from his slider/sweeper combination, with his slider having a 27.9% whiff rate and his sweeper 34.9%. 

"I want to throw a little bit of a harder slider this year the use the sweeper as kind of a slower, bigger offering," said Singer. 

With a refined arsenal, do not be surprised if Singer breaks out for Cincinnati this upcoming season.