Callihan expected to have surgery on broken left forearm

ATLANTA -- A near no-hitter? A scoreless defeat to the Braves? That took a backseat for the Reds on Monday night after a gruesome injury for rookie left fielder Tyler Callihan.

During the 4-0 loss at Truist Park, where Cincinnati notched one hit, Callihan suffered a broken left forearm from a hard crash into the wall while trying to catch a fly ball near the foul line in the bottom of the third inning.

"They got him splinted now," manager Terry Francona said. “He has a couple of broken bones there in his forearm and he’s going to have to have some surgery.”

Callihan, the organization's No. 29-ranked prospect according to MLB Pipeline, is scheduled to return to Cincinnati on Tuesday morning to see the doctor.

Atlanta was leading, 2-0, with two outs when Braves first baseman Matt Olson hit an opposite-field drive near the left-field corner. Callihan covered 78 feet and appeared to catch the ball when his momentum took him a couple of more steps before slamming into the side wall.

“Obviously, not a fun play to watch," Reds starting pitcher Brady Singer said. "It just sucks for him. I feel bad for him. But the effort, I can’t thank him enough for the effort. I’ll take guys like that on the field every single day, fighting for the play and wanting to make that play."

Replays showed Callihan's left glove hand and arm bending in an awkward direction before the ball rolled out of his glove onto the warning track as he hit the ground. Lying down on his back, he tossed his glove while clearly hurting.

Fans gasped at the play as center fielder TJ Friedl ran over to Callihan while Austin Riley scored from first base.

"I got over there and didn’t know what happened. He was just in a lot of pain," Friedl said. "I just wanted to make sure he was all right. I didn’t see his glove or where the ball was. I was just worried about him and making sure he was OK.”

As Reds trainers were already running onto the field, Olson finished circling the bases for an inside-the-park home run.

"I saw him dive and go into the wall," Olson said. "Then I kind of looked away for a sec because I saw it go in his glove. Then, I picked it back up, and the ball was on the ground. Saw the safe ball, so I kept rolling.

"Obviously, it was a pretty tough situation for him. It was a nasty one. You don't want to see something like that happen."

Callihan, 24, was holding his arm walking off the field with two trainers. Blake Dunn replaced him in left field.

Although Francona could not see the play in real time from his vantage point in the dugout, Cincinnati challenged the ruling on the field. But the call was confirmed as no catch, and Olson scored on what stood as a two-run home run.

According to Rule 5.09(a)(1), the play can't be ruled a catch "if simultaneously or immediately following his contact with the ball, he collides with a player, or with a wall, or if he falls down, and as a result of such collision or falling, drops the ball."

"It’s disappointing. I get it though," Francona said. “That’s not the best luck, but that’s the rule. I understand it.”

Friedl still vented his frustration.

"Because it just doesn’t make sense from my perspective," he said. "The guy catches the ball. His glove hand breaks. The fact that he can’t transfer the ball from his glove hand to his throwing hand is the reason that that’s a hit is a bit ridiculous."

The Reds, who dropped their third straight game, were held hitless for seven innings by Braves starter AJ Smith-Shawver. Santiago Espinal led off the top of the eighth inning with a clean single through the middle into center field for Cincinnati's lone hit.

Singer allowed all four Braves runs in the third inning with seven hits over six innings with two walks and two strikeouts. But he was more concerned with Callihan.

“For sure it overshadows that," Singer said. “I wish I could have that third inning back for numerous reasons. I was not able to put away guys and made some bad pitches late in the count over the plate, and they did damage to it.”

Callihan, who was promoted to the big leagues for the first time from Triple-A Louisville on Wednesday, will go on the injured list when the Reds make a roster move. In four games, he was 1-for-6 -- including a groundout in the top of the third inning.

"In the short time he was up here, he played the game hard and played the game the right way," Friedl said. "To kind of see that, it’s tough.”