Back in 2018 and ¡¯19, left-hander Brandon Finnegan pitched himself off of the Reds¡¯ 40-man roster. In ¡¯21, Finnegan will be trying to get himself back on it.

Part of Cincinnati¡¯s early Minor League camp, Finnegan was summoned for a big league Spring Training start on Monday vs. the A¡¯s. He worked two perfect innings with one strikeout during a 13-5 Reds loss.

? Keep Blandino on that list of SS options

¡°Getting off the game mound and being able to compete again felt really great,¡± Finnegan said from Hohokam Stadium in Mesa, Ariz. ¡°I was really happy with the movement on everything. Not a ton of swing-and-misses, but at the end of the day, I got a lot of weak contact.¡±

Finnegan, who will turn 28 on April 14, has made nine Major League starts in the regular season since 2016 because of myriad arm injuries -- and no starts since ¡¯18, when he was 0-3 with a 7.40 ERA in five starts after he opened that season with a left biceps strain.

At Triple-A Louisville, it only got worse for Finnegan, as he went 2-10 with a 7.05 ERA in 28 games (nine starts) while allowing 90 hits and 40 walks over 67 2/3 innings. During Spring Training 2019, he cleared waivers and was sent outright to the Minors.

Instead of assigning him to a team, the organization sent Finnegan to the Seattle area to work at Driveline, Kyle Boddy¡¯s data-driven baseball performance center, where he reworked his mechanics and tried to find velocity that had been missing.

¡°I¡¯ve just been working. It did suck pretty much missing three-quarters of the year in ¡¯19 to go to Driveline. I can¡¯t state how it helped me. I came back, my velo was back up,¡± Finnegan said.

At Double-A Chattanooga to finish 2019, Finnegan had a 6.60 ERA in 13 relief appearances but felt good about his stuff. With no Minor League season last year because of the COVID-19 pandemic, he was eventually added to the group at Cincinnati¡¯s alternate training site and kept working with Eric Jagers, who is now the club¡¯s assistant pitching coach. He also returned to Driveline in the offseason to keep working on pitches and added a curveball to his fastball, changeup and slider repertoire.

¡°I¡¯ve tried to keep my blinders on and keep moving forward realizing that the only thing I can control is how hard I work and what I do on the mound is to go out there and just attack,¡± said Finnegan, who was throwing 93-94 mph on Monday.

Reds manager David Bell believed that Finnegan -- the final player left among three pitchers acquired from the Royals in the 2015 trade of ace Johnny Cueto -- could still help the organization.

¡°He has a lot of pitching ahead of him,¡± Bell said before Monday¡¯s game. ¡°He¡¯s still young, and he can pitch for a long, long time. To his credit, he¡¯s really been open-minded and learned new things. There¡¯s a chance he can be better than he¡¯s ever been, so we have to see it in a game setting. I know I¡¯m looking forward to seeing where he is.¡±

Winker out as precaution
Reds left fielder Jesse Winker was scratched from the lineup Monday because of a sore right hip and replaced by Mark Payton. Bell said the decision to rest Winker was precautionary.

¡°He¡¯s come into Spring Training and really ramped up fast. Not his fault or anything like that. I think that¡¯s a good sign that he was feeling so strong and really excited to be here and was getting a lot of work in, maybe more than anyone else. Sometimes you do have to be a little bit careful. We¡¯d rather him attack his work like he has, and it¡¯s only going to cost him a couple of days.¡±

Naquin competing for a spot
One of the more recent additions, non-roster outfielder Tyler Naquin, made his Reds debut as the designated hitter vs. Oakland on Monday. Naquin, who was 0-for-3, signed a Minor League deal on Feb. 18 after he spent the past five seasons with Cleveland.

As a rookie in 2016, Naquin posted a .296/.372/.514 slash line with 14 home runs in 116 games but hasn¡¯t approached that production since because of injuries to his left hamstring, right hip, left calf and a torn ACL in his right knee. In ¡¯20, he spent time on the injured list with a hairline fracture of his big right toe and batted .218 with four homers in 40 games.

Despite a crowded outfield picture, Bell looked forward to seeing the 29-year-old Naquin battle for a spot. He has a 281-game errorless streak that dates back to 2016, a Cleveland club record for an outfielder.

¡°We¡¯ve had great reports; we¡¯ve all seen him play,¡± Bell said. ¡°He¡¯s had a few injuries that have set him back, but we know when he¡¯s healthy, he¡¯s a really talented good player. Good outfielder, good athlete, can run well. Swings a bat.¡±

Rolling along
A common sight in games on back fields will be part of Spring Training games in the stadiums this year under new rules. Teams are allowed to ¡°roll an inning¡± -- or stop it before the third out if a pitcher reaches his pitch limit after a minimum of 20 pitches. Bell had to do it for the first time Monday, stopping an inning twice, and nearly did it on Sunday.

¡°It was a little weird [Sunday]. I think everyone was hesitant to roll an inning, which is probably good,¡± Bell said. ¡°It can be a tool if we need it, not just soon as we get to 20 pitches, we¡¯re rolling it. I think it¡¯s nice to know. The big benefit is not having to get anyone up in the bullpen. That¡¯s huge.¡±