Andrew Abbott is a lock for the Opening Day rotation of the Cincinnati Reds, isn’t he?
The former 2nd round pick out of the University of Virginia had a truly good rookie year in 2023, valued at 2.7 bWAR (and 2.2 fWAR) in just over 109 innings of work. A high draft pick who performed admirably as a rookie - you’d think that was enough to qualify as a lock, right?
The numbers game for how the Reds manage their rotation is going to be the story of the spring, I think. Despite Abbott’s relative awesomeness for the Reds in a year when the rest of the rotation was hurt and/or struggled, there’s now a glut of healthy options for the Reds to choose from.