Howard, the Reds' first-round pick in 2014, is pitching in relief at Double-A Chattanooga and has had two good outings so far, hitting 97 mph on the radar while commanding his slider, C. Trent Rosecrans of The Athletic reports.
This is Howard's first game action since 2019, when he was released by the Reds at Chattanooga. Expectations for Howard are pretty low, but it's not out of the question that he could ultimately carve out a role in the major-league bullpen later this summer.
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Reds' Nick Howard: Lands with Reds
Rotowire
Howard signed a minor-league contract with the Reds on Friday, Bobby Nightengale of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.
Howard spent the first five years of his career with the Reds before he was released in June 2019, but he'll return to the team on a minor-league deal. The 2014 first-round pick will report to minor-league camp for the final few weeks of spring training.
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Royals' Nick Howard: Reaches deal with Kansas City
Rotowire
Howard signed a minor-league contract with the Royals on Tuesday and will be assigned to Triple-A Omaha, Jeffrey Flanagan of MLB.com reports.
The 26-year-old Howard has yet to pitch above the Double-A level and made only three appearances with the Reds' Southern League affiliate at Chattanooga this season before he was released by the organization in June. The Royals saw enough potential in the righty -- a first-round pick in the 2014 first-year player draft -- to give him a look, but he'll need to produce quality results before building any serious momentum for a big-league callup.
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Nick Howard: Cut loose by Cincinnati
Rotowire
The Reds released Howard on Sunday, Bobby Nightengale of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.
The Reds will part ways with Howard just over five years after selecting him in the first round of the 2014 first-year player draft. The 26-year-old right-hander never advanced past the Double-A level and made only three appearances in the minors in 2019.
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Reds' Nick Howard: Debuts with Chattanooga
Rotowire
Howard (undisclosed) threw two innings in his debut with Double-A Chattanooga on Thursday, allowing one run on three hits while striking out one.
Howard was sidelined by an undisclosed injury for nearly all of the first two months of the 2019 season. The Reds' first-round pick in 2014 (19th overall), Howard has been a disappointment so far in his career, but he had a decent run at Double-A last season (3.00 ERA in 18 innings) and will look to build on that progress while working out of the Chattanooga bullpen. He's a long shot to reach the majors this year.
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Reds option Juan Duran, Yorman Rodriguez
Rotowire
The Reds made their first round of spring cuts Tuesday, optioning outfielder Juan Duran to Double-A Pensacola and outfielder Yorman Rodriguez to Triple-A Louisville.
The team also re-assigned eight players to minor league camp, including infielder Neftali Soto, outfielders Ryan LaMarre and Jesse Winker and pitchers Jonathon Crawford, Ismael Guillon, Nick Howard, Robert Stephenson and Nick Travieso.
