Cincinnati Reds designate Kevin Gregg for assignment

The Cincinnati Reds finally designated Kevin Gregg for assignment on Monday, ending the soon-to-be 37 year old's tenure with the club after 10.2 awful innings.

Reds designate for assignment RHP Kevin Gregg, recall from Louisville RHP Pedro Villarreal (#62).

— Cincinnati Reds (@Reds) May 11, 2015

Despite his lackluster recent history and late addition to the Reds' Spring Training on a minor league signing, Gregg improbably made the 25-man roster at the start of the season over the likes of Sam LeCure, among others, and doing so earned him a tidy $1.5 million guaranteed salary.  Since breaking camp, however, he's been nothing short of a disaster, posting a 10.13 ERA and 1.69 WHIP in his 11 appearances and doing enough damage late in games to prompt some Reds fans to start a petition to have him sent to AAA.

So far, there's been no official word as to whether the petition is behind said DFA.  So far.

While Gregg's performances haven't been the only rough ones from the Reds' bullpen - here's looking at you, Burke Badenhop - they've certainly added to the group's league worst 5.56 ERA and 62.6% strand rates.  And, it now appears his miserable 0.2 IP, 3 H, 2 BB, 3 ER performance against the Pittsburgh Pirates on May 7th will be his final one for Cincinnati.

Pedro Villarreal will take Gregg's spot in the bullpen for now, as he'll rejoin the Reds after having served as the 26th man during the second game of Saturday's doubleheader against the Chicago White Sox, a game in which he allowed 3 ER in 0.2 IP to bring his 2015 season ERA to an eerily Greggian 10.13.  Villarreal has tossed 24 innings for the Reds in several short stints dating back to the 2012 season, and he owns a career 6.75 ERA in that small big league sample.  The former 7th round draft pick owns a not-much-more-inspiring 4.26 ERA in 644.2 minor league innings, though it is worth noting that his numbers since being converted from a starter to a reliever are at least a bit more promising.