The Cincinnati Reds suffered a devastating blow Tuesday night at Wrigley Field, as veteran reliever Emilio Pagán collapsed in pain after throwing a single pitch, clutching his left hamstring before being carted off the field. For a team already navigating a storm of pitching injuries, this loss stings deeper than just the stat sheet.

"It's a tough pill to swallow," catcher Jose Trevino said, summing up the mood in the clubhouse. "He's one of our leaders, one of our captains. He cares about this team more than a lot of us. He's a huge piece of what we do."

Pagán, who emerged as the Reds' closer last season and posted a career-high 32 saves with a 2.88 ERA, was expected to undergo an MRI Friday morning to determine the severity of the injury and a timeline for his return. The setback follows a brief absence last month due to tightness in the same hamstring, though manager Terry Francona noted Pagán reported no discomfort leading up to the fateful pitch against Chicago Cubs' Nico Hoerner.

This latest injury adds another name to a growing list of sidelined Reds arms, including ace Hunter Greene, who is recovering from March elbow surgery and isn't expected back until around the trade deadline. But what makes Pagán's absence particularly painful isn't just his on-field production—it's the intangibles he brings to the bullpen and clubhouse every day.

"He's our head guy back there," setup man Tony Santillan said. "He's our voice. He's our leader. When you see somebody like that go down, it never feels good for anybody. Especially when you see him come in, how upset he was, the tears. That does something to everybody."

The Reds invested heavily in Pagán's leadership last winter, signing him to a two-year, $20 million contract—the largest free-agent deal they handed out. For a team leaning on its pitching staff to compete in a tough NL Central, losing that anchor—both on the mound and in the clubhouse—is a tough blow to absorb.

"He's such an integral part of what we do," Francona said. "He's struggling right now, and we've got to be there for him."

As the Reds prepare to reshuffle their bullpen yet again, the message is clear: this team will need to rally together, because the road ahead just got a lot harder.