'Pretty proud of it': Junis goes 5 innings for first time since '22

NEW YORK -- The Reds have been in need of starting pitching lately, because most of the players who started the season in the rotation, led by Hunter Greene and Nick Lodolo, have been on the injured list.

So Cincinnati ended up using a handful of relievers in the series-opening loss to the Mets on Friday. It was no different Saturday at Citi Field. The opener for the Reds was right-hander Jakob Junis, who hasn’t been a true starter since his days with the Giants in 2022. Junis did more than just open the game for Cincinnati -- he gave the Reds five stellar scoreless innings in a 4-0 loss to New York.

The way the contest was going, it looked like Junis might go even deeper into the game. He retired the first 11 hitters he faced and then walked Mark Vientos to break up the perfect game. The Mets didn’t collect their first hit until the fifth inning, when Jose Iglesias doubled with two outs. Pitching a no-hitter never crossed Junis’ mind, however.

“If I were to get through six or seven [innings], the no-hitter would start creeping in my head,” said Junis, who struck out five. “I was in the zone trying to throw strikes.“

Junis was pounding the zone, putting pressure on the hitters by getting ahead in the count and being unpredictable. He relied heavily on his slider, but kept the hitters honest with his four-seam fastball.

“Just trying to do what I do -- throw strikes, attack guys and make things happen,” Junis said. “Kind of put pressure on the hitters and get into some pitcher's counts and that’s what I did. I got good results.”

Junis is fine with starting the rest of the season as long as the Reds handle him the right way.

“Not pushing it too much,” Junis said. “Hopefully, we can stay where we are at now and maybe even go out for another inning if it’s good to go out for a sixth and see what happens. Every game is different. You never know how each outing is going to go. But I’m really happy with how today went. Going five full innings was definitely an accomplishment. I’m pretty proud of it.”

Junis hopes to keep pitching well until the end of the season. He is expected to become a free agent and he hopes he doesn’t have to wait until Spring Training to sign a deal. Junis was a free agent after the 2023 season, but he didn’t sign with the Brewers until Feb. 7 of this year.

“I went through that process last year. It was pretty wild. I didn’t sign until right before Spring Training in February,” Junis said. “Kind of being through it one time, I kind of know what to expect a little bit. Also, I’m not thinking about free agency right now. We still have 19, 20 games left. I just want to do what I can to finish on a strong note and leave a good impression.”

But Junis ended up with a no-decision. Left-hander Sam Moll replaced him in the sixth and didn’t record an out. Harrison Bader highlighted the scoring when he led off and hit his 11th home run of the season. The hit snapped an 0-for-15 skid for Bader and ended up being the game-winner.

“So in that situation, just the way [Moll] was delivering the ball, I just tried to get on top of it and stay short, and I just popped one,” Bader said. “… But I don't care where it goes, as long as it goes over the fence for my team, that's all that matters.”

Moll was later replaced that inning by right-hander Carson Spiers, who pitched the rest of the game and allowed one run in three innings.

“He is doing it all for us. He started some games and pitched out of the bullpen. We like him a lot,” Reds manager David Bell said about Spiers. “He has good stuff. He mixes his pitches and has a lot of different pitches that he can get outs with. He is doing well. We are controlling the workload a little bit by not starting him. He can go back to the starting role if needed this year.”