Reds void contract with Jeff Manship

UPDATE (Feb. 15): Cincinnati has voided its contract with Manship after he failed his physical, according to Zach Buchanan of the Cincinnati Enquirer. Manship will once again hit the free-agent market.
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ORIGINAL: The Reds have signed right-handed pitcher Jeff Manship to a minor-league deal, a source told our MLB Insider Chris Cotillo.

Manship comes to Cincinatti after spending last season with the NC Dinos of the Korea Baseball Organization as a starter. Manship went 12-4 with a 3.67 ERA and a 1.29 WHIP in 112 ²⁄₃ innings pitcherd across 21 starts.

Before last year, Manship spent eight seasons in the majors, mostly as a reliever. His last action was in 2016 with Cincinatti’s in-state rival Cleveland, where he spent two seasons. With the Indians, he posted the two best seasons of his career coming out of the bullpen, posting a 0.92 ERA in 32 appearances in 2015 and following that up with a 3.12 ERA in 53 appearances.

Manship should be able to compete for a spot in the Reds’ rotation after they ranked near the bottom of every major statistical category. The Reds ranked last in home runs allowed (248), OPS (.810) and quality starts (54), and ranked 29th in both ERA (5.17) and walks (631).

However, the Reds had to throw eight young starters into the fire after Anthony DeSclafani missed the entire season, Brandon Finnegan missed nearly all of it and Homer Bailey also was sidelined for a good portion of the season before finishing with 18 starts and a career-worst 6.43 ERA. The Reds have said they wanted to add veteran arm, but they don’t want to interrupt the growth of young starters such as Luis Castillo, Sal Romano and Robert Stephenson.

If he doesn’t crack the rotation, Manship could still be a nice arm coming out of the bullpen.