Reds invite six minor leaguers to big-league camp, including top prospect Nick Lodolo

The start of spring training is an open question because of the ongoing Major League Baseball lockout, but the Cincinnati Reds added to their list of players who will be in camp Wednesday.

The Reds announced they invited six minor leaguers to big-league camp: pitchers Nick Lodolo, Graham Ashcraft, Phillip Diehl, Joel Kuhnel, and catchers Chris Okey and Chuckie Robinson. It’s technically Ashcraft’s first invitation to big-league camp, but he was around the big-league club and coaches last spring before minor-league camp began.

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Lodolo, the No. 7 overall pick in the 2019 MLB Draft, was rated as the 36th-best minor league prospect by Baseball America. The 6-foot-6 left-hander was limited to 50 2/3 innings last year because of a blister on the pointer finger of his pitching hand and shoulder fatigue. He was dominant, however, in those innings with a 1.84 ERA in 10 starts at Double-A Chattanooga with 68 strikeouts and nine walks.

He advanced to Triple-A Louisville at the end of the 2021 season before he was shut down with a left shoulder strain. He allowed seven hits and four runs (two homers) in 6 2/3 innings (5.40 ERA), striking out 10 and walking two. He will turn 24 in two weeks.

Nick Krall, the Reds’ general manager, said earlier this offseason he expected Lodolo, Hunter Greene and Reiver Sanmartin to compete for the fifth starter spot in the rotation after the Chicago Cubs claimed Wade Miley off waivers. Tony Santillan, who spent most of last year in the bullpen, could receive another look in the rotation.

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Ashcraft had a breakout 2021 season at High-A Dayton and Double-A, highlighted by a seven-start streak where he didn’t allow an earned run (43 innings). He finished the season with a 3.00 ERA in 22 starts at the two levels, striking out 129 and walking 37 across 111 innings.

The 6-foot-2 righty features an upper-90s cut fastball and an elite groundball rate. Ashcraft will turn 24 in February, originally a sixth-round pick in the 2019 draft. He will likely begin the upcoming season at Louisville as he works on developing a reliable third pitch to pair with his fastball and slider.

Diehl, a Cincinnati native who graduated from Moeller, pitched in 16 games for the Colorado Rockies in 2019 and 2020 before the Reds claimed him off waivers last year. The 27-year-old Diehl, a lefty reliever, had a 2.47 ERA in 58 appearances at Louisville with 71 strikeouts and 12 walks across 54 2/3 innings.

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Kuhnel, who will turn 27 next month, made 14 relief appearances with the Reds from 2019-20, but he missed most of last season recovering from a torn capsule in his right shoulder. A high-velocity right-hander, Kuhnel struck out 11 and walked one in eight innings at Louisville last year.

Okey hit .237 with seven doubles, five homers and 23 RBI in 169 at-bats at Triple-A last year, posting a .330 on-base percentage. He was a second-round pick in 2016 and has been invited to big-league camp since 2019.

Robinson was a minor-league phase Rule 5 pick in 2020 after playing four seasons in the Houston Astros’ organization. Robinson hit .248 with eight doubles, eight homers and 24 RBI in 210 at-bats at Chattanooga last season, recording a .352 on-base percentage.

The Reds, at this point, have 57 players invited to big-league camp and 38 players on their 40-man roster.

NON-ROSTER SIGNING: The Reds signed 29-year-old infielder Juniel Querecuto to a minor-league contract with an invitation to spring training last week.

Querecuto, a switch-hitter, had a .301 batting average with 15 doubles, seven triples, 13 homers and 79 RBI in 96 games for the Arizona Diamondbacks’ Triple-A affiliate in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League. He added nine steals in 11 attempts.

Listed at 5-foot-9, 195 pounds, he is a versatile infielder. He made 45 starts at shortstop, 22 starts at second base, 14 starts at third base, eight starts at first base and he played two innings in left field last year.

He made his MLB debut in 2016 with the Tampa Bay Rays, playing in four games, but hasn’t returned to the big leagues. He had one hit (a triple) in 11 at-bats.

Playing in the Venezuelan Winter League this offseason, Querecuto has a .231 batting average and .306 on-base percentage in 156 at-bats with 10 doubles, zero homers and 16 RBI.

INDIA SWITCHES TO BORAS: Jonathan India recently hired Scott Boras as his agent, the agency announced Wednesday.

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India, the 2021 National League Rookie of the Year, isn’t eligible for arbitration until 2024 and remains under team control through the 2026 season under the rules from MLB's previous collective bargaining agreement.

He now shares an agent with former Reds outfielder Nick Castellanos, one of his workout partners this offseason.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Cincinnati Reds invite Nick Lodolo, Graham Ashcraft to big-league camp