After a heart-breaking ninth inning loss on Opening Day and a long Friday with no baseball due to the off day, the Reds (0-1) seek their first win of the new season against future Hall of Fame pitcher Justin Verlander and the San Francisco Giants (1-0). First pitch from Great American Ball Park happens at 4:10 PM EDT.
Lineups
San Francisco Giants
|
Cincinnati Reds |
| LF Heliot Ramos | CF TJ Friedl |
| SS Wily Adames | 2B Matt McLain |
| CF Jung Hoo Lee | SS Elly De La Cruz |
| 3B Matt Chapman | LF Gavin Lux |
| 1B Wilmer Flores | DH Jeimer Candelario |
| RF Luis Matos | 1B Christian Encarnacion-Strand |
| C Patrick Bailey | 3B Santiago Espinal |
| DH Casey Schmitt | RF Jake Fraley |
| 2B Tyler Fitzgerald | C Jose Trevino |
Starting Pitchers
| Pitcher | IP | ERA | WHIP | BB | K |
| Nick Lodolo | 115.1 | 4.76 | 1.20 | 37 | 122 |
| Justin Verlander | 90.1 | 5.48 | 1.38 | 27 | 74 |
| Links: Nick Lodolo’s Stats | Justin Verlander’s Stats |
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Nick Lodolo
Left-hander Nick Lodolo makes his 2025 debut this afternoon. He started 21 games a season ago and though he had four different IL stints, he still threw 115.1 innings last year, the most in his short MLB career. Lodolo will look to build on that number this season. Lodolo’s curveball is his signature pitch. With an above 40% whiff rate on that pitch every single year, it’s always devastating for opposing pitchers.
Last year, Lodolo pitched better on the road, with a 3.94 ERA in 19 games away from GABP compared to a 4.96 ERA in 28 games at home. Most pitchers are probably going to pitch better on the road, given that GABP is a hitter-friendly park, but what is significant about Lodolo’s numbers is that he pitched many more innings at home, almost 40 more innings to be exact. When you’re pitching more innings at a hitter-friendly ballpark, you have a better chance of your splits being greater.
2024 Splits
| Split | PA | H | 2B | 3B | HR | BB% | K% | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| RHH | 401 | 80 | 24 | 0 | 13 | 7% | 25% | .225 | .309 | .402 |
| LHH | 92 | 21 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 10% | 24% | .259 | .348 | .284 |
Pitch Usage (2024)
| Sinker | 4-Seam | Curve | Change | |
| Velo | 94.1 | 94.2 | 81.7 | 88.1 |
| Usage | 29% | 28% | 27% | 16% |
Justin Verlander
What’s the phrase: “Father Time is undefeated”? 41-year-old Justin Verlander has been learning that over the last year. While it’s impressive that he’s still pitching at the highest level, he just hasn’t been the same dominant pitcher he once was. He was on the IL for most of the season with the Astros last year and came back to pitch 90.1 innings in 17 games. He ended up with a 5.48 ERA/4.78 FIP, well above his career average. The Astros left him off their postseason roster in 2024. Verlander became a free agent in October and he signed with the Giants for $15 millions in January. The Giants are hoping he is healthy and can give their rotation a boost this season.
Verlander’s slider has always been his signature pitch. He’s consistently gotten whiff rates on it above 30 percent, and at his peak, close to 40 percent. However, last year, it was not as effective. He used it less and his whiff% was only 21.5%. Batters still weren’t able to get hits against the slider (.195 BAA), but they weren’t swinging and missing as much. Verlander used his curveball as his secondary pitch in 2024 and batters hit .340 against it. This year in spring training, he has tried a new curveball grip to make it more effective by giving it more horizontal movement.
2024 Splits
| Split | PA | H | 2B | 3B | HR | BB% | K% | AVG | OBP | SLG |
| RHH | 194 | 54 | 10 | 0 | 5 | 6% | 16% | .303 | .361 | .444 |
| LHH | 202 | 44 | 4 | 2 | 10 | 7% | 21% | .244 | .302 | .456 |
Pitch Usage (2024)
| 4-Seam | Curve | Slider | Change | Sinker | |
| Velo | 93.5 | 77.6 | 86.7 | 84.0 | 92.2 |
| Usage | 48% | 22% | 19% | 10% | 0.4% |
Game Details:
- Time: 4:10 PM EDT
- Place: Great American Ball Park, Cincinnati, OH
- Weather: 75 degrees, mostly cloudy, slight chance of rain
- TV: FanDuel Sports Network Ohio, MLB.tv
- Radio: 700 WLW (Cincinnati area)
News and Notes
Spencer Steer gets the day off
Francona has Steer off today with a tough righty in Justin Verlander pitching. He is scheduled to DH on Sunday vs. lefty starter Robbie Ray.
— Mark Sheldon (@msheldon.bsky.social) March 29, 2025 at 1:34 PM
Reds Notebook: Pitching Injuries
The Reds have several pitchers on the IL to start the season. When will they be back?
The Reds Closer Situation
We all knew the Reds’ closer situation coming into the season, and it was magnified with the decisions made on Opening Day. ICYMI, this article sums up quite nicely what fans are wondering when it comes to the thought processes behind Gibaut pitching the 9th inning.
Kids Opening Day
Today is Kids Opening Day at GABP and it’s honestly one of the best things the Reds have ever done, turning the second game of the season into a day for kids. It’s always a good idea to include and celebrate the kids, i.e. the next generation of baseball fans.
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