Johnny Cueto has been removed from the Reds’ playoff roster due to his strained oblique, which means he will not start Game 4 of the NLDS tonight and will not be eligible to pitch in the NLCS if Cincinnati advances past San Francisco.
Cueto exited his Game 1 start after just eight pitches and given the typical recovery timetable for oblique injuries the odds were against him being ready for an NLCS start anyway, so the Reds made the move in order to activate Mike Leake for tonight’s start against the Giants.
The alternative was using Mat Latos on short rest after he threw 57 pitches in relief of Cueto in Game 1. Leake has been throwing on the side in order to stay ready if needed, but he was left off the postseason roster and hasn’t pitched since tossing six shutout innings against the Pirates on September 29. And if there’s a Game 5 the Reds will turn to Latos on full rest.
Cueto, who didn’t miss a start in the regular season while going 19-9 with a 2.78 ERA in 217 innings, would be eligible to return for the World Series. Leake had a 4.58 ERA and 116/41 K/BB ratio in 179 innings during the regular season, including a one-run complete game in his lone start against the Giants.