Former Notre Dame of Sherman Oaks stand-out Hunter Greene has been a key contributor to the Cincinnati Reds. During his third season with the club, he has played in 12 games as a starting pitcher and has pitched for 70.2 innings.
As of Sunday, he has three wins and two losses; He is tied at 16th in the MLB in strikeouts with 76. He also had a career-high of 14.2 scoreless innings.
“Trying to stay focused and stay on my routine and try and stay present, that’s the biggest thing,” Greene said. “My best game is when I’m fully present and I’m locked in. It’s not easy to do but when I’m able to do it, I’m usually in a pretty good place.”
His ERA of 3.44 places Green in the top 50 in the MLB in that category. In three of his starts, he pitched at least seven innings.
Related Stories
The Black Student Athlete Summit Provides Professional, Personal Development
Clark Records Double-Double; Fever Defeat Sparks 78-73 In 1st Win of the Season
“It means a lot when you’re able to stay in the game that long,” Greene said. “It means a lot, not just for yourself but for the team, for the bullpen to show the manager that you’re still able to go out there and get outs and keep the team in it. It’s always nice when you get past that six-inning mark.”
Greene got his third win against the Los Angeles Dodgers in a 3-1 victory on May 25. He struck out five batters while allowing five hits and one run in six innings. The win helped the Reds commit a sweep of their three-game homestand series against the Dodgers.
“When you beat teams like [the Dodgers], it gives you a lot of confidence going forward,” Greene said. “The approach of playing all nine innings, playing each pitch, not taking a pitch off, it’s draining … I feel like we were able to do that.”
Greene was the first-round pick of the 2017 MLB Draft; he also pitched in the 2018 All-Star Futures Game. He played for several teams in the minor leagues, including the Billings Mustangs and the Triple-A Louisville Bats.
In 2022, he made the Opening Day roster for the Reds. His major league debut resulted in a 6-3 victory over the Atlanta Braves.
“My debut was amazing, being able to get a win on my first game, pitch against the former World Series champs and it’s against the Braves in 2022 was really special,” Greene said. “Throwing the no-hitter in Pittsburg was cool in my first year.”
Greene also was a finalist for the Lou Gehrig Memorial Award for his philanthropic efforts. Greene created a scholarship fund for African American students at his Alma Mater Notre Dame. For the MLB Dream Series, Greene invites youth to his house to teach them about playing in the MLB.
“There’s about 100 to 110 kids and staff members that come to my house and I host them for the night,” Greene said. “This year, we did a Q&A, so we had a little bit of an educational component.”
