The Cincinnati Reds are bringing back a familiar name today, signing left-handed reliever Justin Wilson to a big league deal according to Robert Murray of Fansided. The club has an open spot on the 40-man roster, so there doesn’t need to be a corresponding move to clear a spot for him.

Wilson pitched for the Reds in 2021 and 2022, throwing 19.2 innings and posting a 2.75 ERA in that time. In 2022 he would miss much of the year after undergoing Tommy John surgery. He signed with Milwaukee following that season and pitched in 10 games while rehabbing in their farm system, but he suffered a lat injury while warming up for his season debut in late July and went on the injured list and didn’t pitch again.

This spring he signed a minor league deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers and threw in four games, allowing two runs in 4.0 innings, walking two batters, and striking out nine batters. He had an opt-out clause in his contract and on March 12th he took that option and became a free agent. Now he’s back with the Reds on a big league deal.

The 36-year-old has pitched in parts of 11 big league seasons. In his 527 games as a Major League Baseball reliever he’s posted a 3.41 ERA in 467.0 innings while walking 210 batters and striking out 510. As you would guess, he’s been good against left-handed hitters in his career. They’ve hit just .241/.324/.349 against him. But he’s pitched better against righties, holding them to a .216/.308/.333 line in nearly twice as many matchups.