Will Chase Burns Face An Innings Limit in 2026? Cincinnati Reds Have Tough Decision Ahead | MLB News

Greg Kuffner and Austin Layton discuss the growing conversation surrounding Cincinnati Reds rookie phenom Chase Burns and whether the organization could place an innings limit on him later this season. The guys react to comments from Reds broadcaster Jeff Brantley, who warned fans that Burns may not be available for a full season workload, and they break down Terry Francona’s response when asked about the team’s plan for their young ace.

They debate what a realistic innings limit could look like, whether shutting Burns down would make sense if the Reds are in playoff contention, and how modern MLB teams balance protecting young pitchers while still trying to win. Plus, they dive into just how dominant Burns has been in 2026 as he ranks among the league leaders in ERA, WHIP, strikeouts, batting average against, and innings pitched despite not even being a full year into his MLB career.

The guys also discuss the Cincinnati Reds’ start to the 2026 season, what has gone right so far, areas that still need improvement, and they preview the Reds’ upcoming series against the Atlanta Braves.

Is Chase Burns already becoming one of the best pitchers in baseball? And how should the Reds handle one of the toughest decisions of the season?

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Earlier this week, Reds broadcaster Jeff Brantley shared a message that fans weren't ready to hear about Chase Burns, who has been their best pitcher this season.

"You better get a ticket and watch him now, because there is only so many innings that this kid is going to be able to pitch this year," Brantley said. "I don't know how the Reds are going to manipulate it as the season goes along."

"You just let him go, but there is going to be an innings limit. We don't really know what that is at this point. I'm going to say somewhere from 150 back towards 100, but he's getting there in a hurry."

While it's certainly fair to expect the Reds not wanting Burns to throw 200+ innings, Brantley suggesting his innings limit could be closer to 100 feels like a stretch.

On Wednesday, Reds manager Terry Francona was asked about Burns and what the organization's plan is for him.

“I don’t have an answer for you right now," Francona told Charlie Goldsmith. "If we ran into an issue, in a way that’d be good (because he’d be deep into the season healthy). There will be a lot of opinions on this. I would certainly be open to listening to the trainers and certainly DJ. I also think guys show you if they need a blow or if they don’t. If you see pitchers losing range of motion, or if their delivery is lower — with analytics you can really track that stuff now— that’s more important than a hard pitch count or a hard innings limit. It’s how guys are doing.”

“Everybody is different.”

That’s a refreshing answer from Francona, and honestly, he’s spot on. There’s no perfect answer when it comes to innings limits. Guys with limits still get hurt, and guys without them sometimes stay healthy all year. You just never know.

Francona saying they’ll work with the training staff and make the best decision as things go is the right approach. Obviously, the Reds want to protect Chase Burns long term, but completely shutting him down halfway through the season would feel like an overreaction too.

Innings limit or not, the Reds have to be thrilled with what Burns is doing this season, not even a full year into the major leagues.

Here is where he ranks amongst all pitchers in MLB:

Strikeouts: 9th
Average Against: 3rd
WHIP: 6th
ERA: 6th
Innings Pitched: 17th

The kid is a special talent and he's shown that to start the 2026 season.