CINCINNATI — Cincinnati Reds manager Bryan Price did not get much of an opportunity to evaluate right-hander Homer Bailey during spring training due to a strained right groin which limited him to just three starts. But, Price does not put much stock in the exhibition season anyway, at least not for veterans.
“I don’t use that to make decisions,” he said.
Stormy weather put Bailey’s season debut in jeopardy Thursday afternoon, but after a 3:42 rain delay, the 27-year-old made his much anticipated first start, giving up four runs, two on Johnny Peralta’s two-run homer in the second, on seven hits. He walked three and struck out three in a 7-6 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals.
“It just means the two and a half weeks without stepping on the mound came back to bite me,” said Bailey, who went 11-12 last season with a 3.49 ERA in 32 starts including a no-hitter on July 2.
Price believes Bailey is fully recovered from the groin injury and had no reservations about sending him out to the mound amid damp conditions in Thursday’s series finale against the Cardinals.
“We feel like Homer’s healthy,” Price said. “You’d always like to have pristine conditions to play on.”
Despite a limited sample size, Price, who served as the club’s pitching coach for four seasons prior to taking over for Dusty Baker in Novemeber, likes that Bailey has refined his slider.
“He had a real good slider this spring, which is a pitch that’s been evolving for him the past few years,” Price said. “He just wasn’t as sharp (on Thursday).”