The Cincinnati Reds and Washington Nationals had to wait on Friday night. Their series opener was delayed by weather and later updated to begin around 7:45 p.m. ET.
That mattered because the Reds were already set up for a bullpen game, with Chase Petty expected to cover roughly two innings after being recalled from Triple-A Louisville earlier in the week. In other words, the delay did not just push back first pitch; it also pushed back the first piece of a pitching plan built around short outings and constant adjustments.
The Nationals said the start of the game had been delayed because of inclement weather, then added that they were monitoring the situation and would provide another update as more information became available. For readers searching Reds game today, the only hard answer on Friday night was that the opener would not begin on time, and the revised start pointed to a long pause rather than a brief one.
Petty was in line for his third start of the season and his fifth big league career start. His last outing as a starter came on May 23 against the Cardinals, when he allowed four runs on six hits over five innings. Since then, he has worked more effectively in relief, posting a 3.72 ERA across 13 relief appearances this season, compared with a 5.91 ERA in his two starts.
That is why the delay carried more than the usual inconvenience. A bullpen game already asks a staff to match innings to the game as it unfolds. When the start is moved back by weather, the timing matters even more, because every extra minute changes how long a reliever may need to stay ready before the first pitch is even thrown.
Cade Cavalli was set to make his second career start against the Reds, with the first coming in his Major League debut in 2022. He arrived in good form, going 4-1 with a 2.52 ERA over his last seven starts while holding opposing hitters to a.215 batting average, striking out 51 and walking nine in that stretch. He last pitched on August 2 against the Braves, when he allowed two runs on six hits over six innings.
The Reds also came in with a record that suggested they were comfortable in tight games. They were 33-19 in contests decided by two runs or fewer, with those 33 wins leading Major League Baseball and those 19 losses the fewest in the league. On a night built around weather and a shortened pitching plan, that kind of margin for error can be the difference between a delay being a nuisance and a game becoming a grind.
So the immediate question was not whether the opener would be played, but whether the weather would leave enough of a reset for the Reds to manage the game the way they intended. The revised start time gave them a window. What it did not give them was any guarantee that the first inning would arrive on schedule, or that the bullpen game would feel orderly once it did.
