Bad seasons make cynics of us all, so when the Reds announced Friday that starting pitcher Tyler Mahle would make his big-league debut on Sunday, the yawn was collective. Ten rookie pitchers have done that here in this misbegotten year; six of them have been starters. All are in various stages of Figuring It Out.
Figuring It Out isn’t as beautiful as watching a butterfly metamorph. It’s not time-lapse photography – wow, look at that flower! – but rather an arduous, laborious process that makes you want to scream and comes without a money-back guarantee.
Very recently – so recently you’re afraid to suggest it out loud – a few of the Reds kid pitchers have inched up the Figuring It Out growth chart.