We had the pleasure of sitting down for a conversation with the Cincinnati Reds’ 13th-round selection in the 2022 MLB Draft, pitcher Johnathan Harman. Harmon pitched with the Dayton Dragons before an elbow injury required Tommy John surgery, causing him to miss the rest of the 2024 season and a chunk of the 2025 season.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Roger Straz and I talked with Harmon about the recovery process, how it felt being a part of the Dayton Dragons during their winning streak to end the season.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt’s the most fun baseball, the best atmosphere I’ve ever played in.\u201d Harmon said. “7,000 people every night. It’s pretty cool. When you’re fighting in there, like fighting the fourth and fifth inning, and the crowd gets behind you, it pushes you a little bit further. It’s pretty cool\u201d<\/p>\n
The Dayton Dragons had a rough season overall, but they ended the season winning 18 of the final 19 games, including a 15-game winning streak.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy first two weeks there, it was not good.” Harmon said. “I mean, we almost got swept against Lansing. To see the turnaround from those first two weeks I was in, to finish up the last three weeks, losing one game, you know, it was pretty special.”<\/p>\n
“You know, like, you go back, winning 15 games in a row. I don’t think I’ve ever done that in Little League, you know? I don’t ever, like, you don’t do that at an early age, but to do that in pro ball, that’s something special. That’s what we talk about too, is like, we can’t take this for granted. You know, we’re probably never going to run like this ever again. You know, so we actually enjoyed being at the field, enjoyed being around each other.\u201d<\/p>\n
We asked him if he had any stories to tell while on the winning streak, he mentioned an addition of a player as a good luck charm.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo we actually got this kid from the Yankees, Alexander Vargas,\u201c Harmon said. “And the fun fact about him is that we only lost one game with him as a Dayton Dragon. We lost one game. So on this streak, we would just, every time we won, we would go up to Vargas and say, ‘thank you, Vargas’. And like give him a hug after every win. Because during that stretch, when he was on the team, we didn’t lose. So we were saying, like, Vargas is the reason why we’re winning. You know? So it was just like after every win, we just go up to Vargas and give him a hug and say, thank you.\u201d<\/p>\n
Harmon was selected by the Reds in the 13th round in the 2022 MLB Draft out of Northwestern State of Louisiana. In his return from Tommy John surgery in 2025, he was 1-0 with a 3.45 ERA in seven starts in High-A. The 25-year-old looks to potentially start this season in Double-A.<\/p>\n
Pitchers and catchers reported to camp this week. On Monday, the first full-squad workouts begin on February 16.<\/p>\n
You can watch the full interview here: <\/p>\n
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