JOHNNY CUETO DOESN'T IMPRESS IN HIS SPRING DEBUT

3.6.10
BY: MEH
TAKING CUETO STEPS
JOHNNY CUETO DOESN'T IMPRESS IN HIS SPRING DEBUT

(Photo: Mark Duncan/AP)
Johnny Cueto pitched two innings and allowed all four of the Cleveland Indians' runs during Saturday's game is Goodyear Ballpark. The first two runs were scored in the first inning after first baseman Joey Votto was charged with a throwing error. Cueto was not responsible for those runs, but in the second inning Andy Marte blasted Cueto's first pitch out of the ballpark with former Red Austin Kearns on first base. The Reds answered in the sixth when Miguel Cairo hit a two-run shot of his own. Neither team produced any more offense after that and the Reds ended up losing 4-2. Dusty Baker had this to say about Johnny Cueto's progression:

"He threw the ball good. After we made the error, that opened the gates. He was working on his change and his cutter. He made some quality pitches, but he got some balls in the heart of the plate."

"I hope he keeps taking steps. I can't judge how big the steps are. There are a lot of guys around the league that got here early. Everybody is not Tim Lincecum. Look at guys like Matt Cain in San Francisco. They're still learning, but they're only 23 years old and have two years in the big leagues already. We're helping to get this finished product. We all want this finished product. Sometimes you have to let the product finish. It's like that story about the little kid that plants a seed and the plants started growing and he pulled on it to help it grow and killed it. Sometimes you've got to let it grow - just water it sometimes."

After Cueto left the game, the Reds' pitching staff allowed only two hits in the following six innings. Kip Wells and Francisco Cordero both allowed one hit while veteran Arthur Rhodes, AA phenom Travis Wood, and first-round pick Mike Leake all looked impressive throwing hitless ball.

Dusty Baker on Travis Wood's two innings of work:

"He knows what he's doing. He'll cut the ball in on you. He'll run it away from you. He has a pretty good changeup."

The Reds signed all 26 of their unsigned players to one-year deals today.

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