At all levels in the minor leagues, there was a lot of uncertainty among teams on how to handle pitching staffs to keep arms healthy.
There was no 2020 season. The 2021 season was delayed by a month. There were various approaches to how teams handled it. Some went with a six-man rotation. Some had strict low pitch counts. Some kept relatively normal operations.
The Cincinnati Reds dealt with their share of pitching injuries last season, generally using a six-man rotation at Low-A Daytona and a five-man rotation at the other affiliates. The Reds had four minor-league pitchers throw more than 105 innings (Riley O’Brien, Carson Spiers, Graham Ashcraft and Hunter Greene) and none threw more than 113.