Reds to develop Greene as pitcher and 'keep door open to playing the field'

With the draft still underway, the dust is still settling after the results of the first two rounds on Monday, but the Cincinnati Reds have formulated a plan on how to develop their first-round selection and two-way star, Hunter Greene.

"We think Hunter's got a great chance to be a major leaguer as a pitcher ..." president of baseball operations and general manager Dick Williams told C. Trent Rosecrans of the Cincinnati Enquirer. "I think at first we will focus on pitching and allow him to take at-bats."

Williams added the caveat that the Reds believe Greene has the abilities of a position player as well, so the team will "keep the door open to playing the field."

The 2017 draft yielded a pair of elite two-way players, and the Tampa Bay Rays have already proclaimed that their first-round selection, Brendan McKay, will be groomed as both a pitcher and first baseman.

Greene graced the cover of Sports Illustrated and was considered a threat to go first overall in the draft. The Minnesota Twins instead went with high school shortstop Royce Lewis, allowing the Reds to take Greene with the second overall pick.

While the Rays are typically deemed a forward-thinking organization, relying on analytics to compete with limited payroll flexibility, the Reds may be in a unique position to groom an athlete such as Greene. They currently employ a two-way player on their roster, and are the only team in the major leagues that actively chooses to run one out on a semi-regular basis.

Michael Lorenzen - a reliever for the Reds - has had seven plate appearances so far in 2017 with one home run. The San Diego Padres - owners of the third overall selection in the draft - appeared to be converting catcher Christian Bethancourt into a reliever as well, though a rough start to 2017 and a minor-league stint may end his two-way chances.