The Red Report 2018 — Jared Hughes

Fast Facts

• Born on July 4, 1985 in Stanford, CT.
• Pitched his first six major league seasons with the Pittsburgh Pirates before pitching last year with the Milwaukee Brewers.
• First free agent signing by the Reds this offseason, inking a *smacks alarm* TWO YEAR CONTRACT worth $4.5 million, with a club option for a third season.
• Has been worth 4.3 bWAR over the past four seasons.

Organization History

• Drafted by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in the 16th round out of high school in the 2003 Draft. He opted to go to college, and was drafted again in the fourth round of the 2006 Draft by the Pirates.
• Debuted on Sept. 7, 2011 (age 26) vs. HOU (1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 K, 0 BB, 0 ER).
• Exceeded rookie limits during 2012 season.
• Free agent after the 2019 season.

Career Stats

Scouting Report

Hughes is essentially a two-pitch hurler at this point, relying primarily on a 94 mph bowling ball of a sinker that has shown to be near-impossible to elevate and sometimes even make contact with, along with a slider that sits in the mid-80’s. He’ll also mix in a four-seamer and a change-up, but only rarely.

2018 Projections

Outlook

As Wick succinctly put it here, the Reds were in need of a guy like Jared Hughes. Since 2015, nobody has given up home runs like the Reds have, and few pitchers have prevented home runs like Jared Hughes has. His ERA+ of 157 and HR/9 of 0.7 over the past four seasons made him an attractive option to any one of the 30 teams in Major League Baseball, and the Reds being able to snatch him up was no small thing.

Hughes was one of two free agent additions the Reds made to their bullpen, with the team also bringing in another home run-stingy pen piece in David Hernandez. He fits in as a sturdy middle relief/seventh inning option, since he’s not overpowering enough to qualify as a shutdown, late-inning reliever, but he has been consistent and durable enough to be something of a proven quantity.

The Reds have plenty of arms in their organization that can throw hard enough to rack up strikeouts, but also have a lack of command that can get them into trouble with both home runs and walks. In Hughes, the Reds have a pitcher who should just now be exiting his prime, and who has a proven track record of preventing runs. Since honest-to-god proven talent and durability is something this team has been in short supply of lately, the presence of Hughes is a welcome sight.