When the Cincinnati Reds opened their preseason camp on July 3, one of the biggest questions was how they’d ramp up for the season without any exhibition games.
Teams play 25-30 games in a typical spring training. The Reds will play two exhibition games against the Detroit Tigers next week before beginning their 60-game schedule on July 24, but otherwise, they’ve turned to controlled intrasquad scrimmages.
The scrimmages have worked much better than expected. Anthony DeSclafani, who pitched four innings Monday, chatted afterward with Mike Moustakas about how they approached their at-bats against each other.
“We talked as a staff that it's kind of cool to be able to face our hitters multiple times because now you can get that feedback,” DeSclafani said.