Reds infielder makes surprise move to mound to become a knuckleballer

After signing a minor-league deal with the Cincinnati Reds this offseason, infielder Alex Blandino is now looking to reinvent his career as a knuckleballer.

“Blandino debuted in MLB as an infielder,” according to a translated post from Fernando Rayo, a reporter with a television station in Nicaragua, Blandino’s home country. “After a retirement and reappearing in the WBC (World Baseball Classic) with Nicaragua, he’s now become a knuckle pitcher and will start in Double-A.”

Blandino has been serviceable across several infield positions in the majors, sporting a career .976 fielding percentage in 107 total games for the Reds across the 2018, 2019 and 2021 seasons. For reference, the league fielding percentage across that span was .981.

But he’s struggled at the plate in MLB, slashing .226/.339/.291 in 234 at-bats over those three seasons. He returned to Triple-A in 2022 and played in the WBC in 2023, but then remained unsigned until his latest agreement with the Reds.

Blandino will now try to build on some limited pitching experience — 4.2 innings’ worth with the Reds in 2018 and 2021 — to reinvent his career.

Blandino won Pitching Ninja’s 2018 award for best pitch by a position player for his knuckleball. And he has displayed a 90 mph fastball as well. If he can emerge as an effective knuckleballer, he will certainly have a path back to the big leagues.

“Knuckleballers are a unique breed and don’t always need strong velocity to succeed, but Blandino’s ability to hit 90 mph doesn’t hurt,” MLB Trade Rumors noted. “But on the other hand, it’s unclear if he could maintain that kind of velocity while pitching on a regular basis over a full season.”

It’s increasingly common to see position players take the mound here and there as pitchers reduce their volume. But a full conversion from an infield position to full-time pitching is rare. Very early on in their careers, though, high-caliber hurlers like Sean Doolittle, Jacob deGrom and Kenley Jansen all transitioned from position roles.

It seems unlikely that Blandino would be able to make a similar transition, but the Reds are certainly hoping he breathes new life into his career by taking the mound.