Cincinnati Reds’ coach Bryan Price impressed by Dontrelle Willis – MLB News
Dontrelle Willis has managed to impress the Cincinnati Reds’ coach Bryan Price during the recent workout sessions being held before Spring Training starts. The 29-year-old left hand pitcher is hoping for a spot in the roster with the Reds.
As Spring Training is about to start, Willis has been working out during the off-season period to improve his pitching accuracy and variety. He was recently invited to the workout session as a free-agent as is looking to impress the Reds.
Willis has had a decent career as he earned the Rookie of the Year Award in 2003 with the Florida Marlins. He managed to get 14 wins and a World Series win during the 2003 season with the Marlins. During 2005 he managed an ERA of 2.63 with a 22-10 Win-Loss
record. Willis moved to the Detroit Tigers before 2008 where he signed a $29 million three year contract. He is now currently looking to make a comeback with the Reds.
Price said, "He doesn't look like he lost anything. I'm scratching my head on why he struggled in Detroit.”
Willis is hoping to put in a good performance during the spring session to somehow land a spot in the final rotation for the Reds. The will be looking at his performances carefully to gauge the level of his pitching accuracy. Currently it seems that the
Reds are pleased with his performance.
After watching his promising abilities, Price said, "I like what I see. It's tough to evaluate just watching bullpens, but he is a dynamite young guy with a good approach. He's a unifying type of guy that brings people together with his great personality."
The Reds are looking for a pitcher that can be brought in to pitch effectively for two to three innings. Cincinnati is well balanced team on both the pitching and batting departments, however adding another pitcher can always be accommodated to help the
team achieve some measure of success.
The team understands the importance of entering into Spring Training with a line-up at full strength and match ready. The Reds will be looking to win as many games as possible during Spring Training. The goal is to build momentum into the team that can be
carried into the regular season. The Reds are desperate to have a successful regular season and a possible place in post-season play.
It will be interesting if Willis manages to get a spot in the rotation during Spring Training. He will be looking to perform at his highest level to help the team take on some of the top tier squads in MLB. Only time will tell what impact Willis have on
the pitching depth of the Reds.
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