Homer Bailey hadn’t pitched for the Cincinnati Reds in over a year. His slow and steady rehab from Tommy John surgery ended Sunday with a win all the way around.
Bailey threw 89 pitches and lasted 5.2 innings in his winning effort. The 30-year-old showed solid command of his split-finger fastball and clocked up to 95 mph on his four-seamer. Combined with a sharp curveball and decent slider, Bailey struck out six and surrendered just four hits in the game.
Bailey did give up two earned runs and walk three, but he flourished after giving up three hits in the first inning. He retired 14 straight batters after the first inning before he was touched for a sixth-inning single.
The start by Bailey is an especially encouraging one for the Reds. Bailey is expected to be the anchor of the Reds’ young rotation for the next three years.
Bailey won’t live up to his $18-million salary for 2016. He’s earned $28 million for just three starts so far in two years. But the fact that he’s back and looks healthy is worth more than millions of dollars right now to the Reds.
Bailey still does have the chance to soften the sting of the six-year, $105-million deal he signed in 2014. He is set to make $19 , 21 and 23 million in the next three seasons before reaching his option year in 2020.
Bailey is poised to consume at least a fifth of the Reds’ payroll going forward. This year the Reds’ opening day payroll was almost $90 million.
Between Bailey and Joey Votto, the small-market Reds will commit $41 million to just two players in 2017. Brandon Phillips will account for another $14 million. Even if Votto wins the MVP and Bailey the Cy Young, the Reds will be hard pressed to justify the salaries of either given how much of the total payroll the pair consume.
Still, a healthy Bailey on top of his game can be a sight to see. He has two no-hitters under his belt to show just how much of a sight he can be.
Robb Hoff writes about the Cincinnati Reds for OutsidePitch MLB. You can follow him on Twitter and Facebook.
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