The Cincinnati Reds led early on and held that lead until the middle of the game. That’s when a big error and a big time home run changed the game in the favor of the Los Angeles Dodgers as they scored five runs to take a lead that they never gave back as they took the first game of the series.
| Final | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cincinnati Reds (69-75) | 3 | 7 | 2 |
| Los Angeles Dodgers (87-57) | 6 | 3 | 0 |
| W: Sheehan (5-8) L: Williamson (3-4) SV: Phillips (1) | |||
| Statcast | Box Score | Game Thread | |||
The Reds were in front of this game a mere 93 seconds after it began. Elly De La Cruz, batting second on the night, took the first pitch he saw and deposited it over the wall in center to put Cincinnati up 1-0.
Chase Burns took the mound in the bottom of the 1st with the lead and he held onto it over the next three innings. He had not given up a hit or a run and issued just one walk while striking out five batters in that time. But with his innings climbing he’s on a strict limit of pitches and the Reds went to the bullpen to bring in Brandon Williamson from the bullpen after just 44 pitches by Burns.
Williamson fired off a scoreless 4th inning to hold the lead. In the next inning he found himself in some trouble, though. He would give up a leadoff single and then hit Alex Call with a pitch with two outs. That brought Miguel Rojas to the plate and Williamson got what he wanted – a chopper to third base, but Ke’Bryan Hayes threw the ball wide and in the dirt and it got by Sal Stewart and went towards right field. Both runners would race around the bases to score on the play and put the Dodgers up 2-1.
Cincinnati would threaten in the top of the 6th inning when Carlos Jorge picked up his first MLB hit with a single into right field and then took third base on a single by Hector Rodriguez. Sal Stewart then drew a walk on four pitches to load the bases with two outs. That led to a pitching change as Emmet Sheehan, who had 10 strikeouts in the game, was replaced by Alex Vesia to get a lefty-on-left matchup against JJ Bleday. The move paid off for Los Angeles as he would strike Bleday out to strand all three runners and hold onto the lead.
Things went south again for the Reds in the bottom of the 6th. A leadoff walk was followed up later on by a 1-out walk. Two pitches after that Teoscar Hernandez got a change up that caught too much of the zone and hit it out at 113 MPH for a 3-run home run to make it 5-1 for the home team. Eugenio Suarez would get one of those runs back in the top of the 7th inning with a solo home run just over the wall in center to make it a 3-run game.
The top of the 8th inning began with back-to-back singles by Hector Rodriguez and Elly De La Cruz. De La Cruz would later steal second base with one out and it may have played a role in keeping the inning alive as Dane Myers hit a grounder to third base that had a chance to be an inning ending double play had runners been on the corners, but with runners at second and third the only play was at first and it allowed Rodriguez to score on the play to cut into the lead and make it 5-3.
Brandon Williamson and the Reds found themselves in trouble once again in the bottom of the 8th. Tommy Edman reached on an error by Ke’Bryan Hayes to start the inning. Max Muncy then followed up with a double into right field. An intentional walk followed to load the bases. Cincinnati brought the infield in and for the moment it paid off as Kyle Tucker hit a weak chopper that Elly De La Cruz ranged to his right on and on the run fired a bullet to the plate to get the force out. That ended the day for Williamson as Tejay Antone was called on to enter from the bullpen. A sacrifice fly would follow, though, as the Dodgers got the run back from the top of the inning.
Cincinnati would need a rally in the top of the 9th to keep the game going. They had the bottom of the lineup due up.
Key Moment of the Game
Teoscar Hernandez hitting a 3-run home run in the 6th inning to turned a 2-1 lead into a 5-1 lead.
Notes Worth Noting
Hector Rodriguez, Elly De La Cruz, and Carlos Jorge each had 2-hit games. The rest of the lineup combined to go 1-22.
Rodriguez has had three straight multi-hit games and he’s hitting .367/.415/.650 over the last 15 games, going back to August 20th. De La Cruz has been even hotter in his last 15 games, hitting an absurd .452/.507/.742. He’s had multiple hits in five straight games.
Chase Burns lowered his ERA on the season to 2.73. He now has 176 strikeouts in his 148.1 innings pitched this season.
Reds pitchers issued six walks. Cincinnati hitters managed just one walk and they struck out 14 times.
The home run by Eugenio Suarez gave him 211 of them in a Reds uniform. That broke a tie he was in with Ken Griffey Jr. and now has Suarez alone in 9th place on the all-time list for the franchise.
Carlos Jorge beat out an infield grounder for a single in the 7th inning. He was called out on the field but it was overturned on replay. Jorge’s sprint speed on the play was 31.2 feet/second. That’s tied with Elly De La Cruz for the fastest sprint speed of the year for the Reds.
Up Next for the Cincinnati Reds
Cincinnati Reds vs Los Angeles Dodgers
Tuesday September 8th, 10:10pm ET
Nick Lodolo (3-3, 5.08 ERA) vs Tarik Skubal (8-7, 2.86 ERA)
My understanding is Chase Burns is going to keep pitching 2-3 innings several more starts? Why not just pitch him a normal 5-6 inning start maybe 2 more times this season? I’m sure there is a reason to all of this, but I was just curious kind of what the thinking is on that. I assume they feel it’s more safe to pitch him these short bursts 40-50 pitches at this point in the season instead of the 90-100 pitch outings. It kind of seems like guessing to me, but I’m just guessing to.
De La Cruz, Rodriguez, continue to hit. I’d like to see Banfield at some point! We need to know what we have in him going into 2026, but doesn’t seem he’s going to get a look really.
The rumors of Reds ownership selling the team are interesting. I think that’d probably bring some excitement to the fan base. I think for Mr. Castellini, he’s made a ton of money. As a businessman, he’s done a good job. I respect him in that regard.
The results on the field overall though haven’t been too good, and I think that’s where I don’t think it would make sense to pass the business down to his kids/family, as there’s not really a great tradition/business heritage, you’re passing down to the next generation to continue. He and his family can use their wealth from a Reds sale to pursue other interesting business pursuits that perhaps they’d be more successful at with. I hope for the sake of the fans, the city, even themselves, they consider that it’d be in their best interest to move on.
I’m reminded Phil Castellini took over ownership earlier this year…so that’d mean it’s Phil considering selling the team right? I’d be a little surprised, but maybe that makes sense that he may not want to deal with the headaches, lack of overall success, and just take the money, and move on.
No one is considering selling the Reds that we know of. That was 100% Bob Nightengale speculating to generate clicks.
I don’t see the Castellini’s selling the team anytime soon. They have become the masters of the promotions and should reach 2 million in attendance again this year with 7 more home games with the dodgers and cubs (notice no major concerts or give aways in these games?)
I just see them focusing more on gabp in the future than the reds. more big name concerts, give aways fire works, 3-2-1 beer nights.
i think they are just getting started with these events and having fun doing it.
The reds remind me of a boxer who is well past his prime but still trying to make ends meet as a club boxer at a casino. It is so sad really. the fans deserve much more but i dont seeing much changing/
They are always whining about money, selling would let them cash in on the tremendous appreciation in the value of the Reds. Do it!
Since a rumor of the Reds may be on the market, there is a multi-millionaire from the Pittsburgh area, went to Indiana University who has tried to buy baseball teams on couple of occasions, maybe he would be interested.
The ownership group consists of about 10-15 entities. So if any of them would step up to take a larger controlling interest who knows. Also don’t know how much of a gain the lettuce people would gain from a sale because of that diverse group.
There are 19 people and or LLC’s in the ownership group.
They own like 40% of the team. That was the number I saw. Even if the team would sell for $2 million, that’s $800 million for them. That’s not all that high of a price to leave the professional sports team owners club.
@Duke>> Since the Reds are a privately held LLC, information is scant and hard to come by. However, unless there has been a major change, the Castellini share level I’ve seen is put at ~15%, not 40%. But their stake represents the managing partner’s “supershare”.
The Williams family is said to own around 20-25% and is considered “principal owners” along with the Castellini stake.
Based on what is publicly known, the combined Castellini/Williams share is enough to block the supermajority required to countermand or dissolve the managing partner arrangement.
Also, I have read that not all of the “owners” hold equity/ voting shares. Some shares are preferred shares, more akin to a bond than typical stock. I would presume they are called “shares” rather than bonds because bonds would imply an indebtedness.
Google it up and pick your poison from the results…… 😉
“Preferred” stock shares are usually non-voting equity shares that pay a higher dividend than “common” shares do. They are on the balance sheet as equity, but in the stock market their share prices behave more like bonds.
@BK, I have read that the Reds have non-voting owner shares and non-equity owners share. I do not know if they are one and the same in a preferred hybrid arrangement or two different classes.
Also, I have read the actual Reds National League franchise is supposedly 100% owned by the LLC for whatever purpose, and the equity and managing partner legally refers to the LLC only.
Jim, it’s not unusual for wealthier individuals to own things through an LLC. In fact, many self-employed people do this even when they may not be on the wealthier side. It helps keep the personal and business arrangements legally separate.
I won’t pretend to know every trick in the book, but a non-equity owner seems like an oxymoron, as the term “owner” implies one with “equity.” So, I’m not familiar with that possibility.
Suarez honestly is putting up the numbers I thought he would . He missed a lot of games earlier in the season and took a while to recover from the injury. If he had stayed healthy he would likely have been at the 30 HR mark by now. I EXPECTED 30-35 homers out of him.
I would not mind if they bring him back next year.
I agree. He is as I expected; not as much as the force he was last year, but worth running out there every day. It’s nice to think about what might have been this season, but here we are. If Geno was DH’ing primarily again next year, that would be ok with me.
If we could bring him back for $3-4 million, sure. $15 million? I’ll pass.
Would have loved to see Burns just go after the Dodgers.
The Dodgers only needed 3 hits and to just get out of the Reds way so they could beat themselves. Easy to hate the Dodgers but they can beat you so many ways and are a smart baseball team.
If this were youth travel ball the Dodgers and the Reds would be a level or 2 away from one another. The baseball IQ, the forgotten component in a stat driven sport.
Hayes back and Arroyo back down, the long term plan is fluid lol. No direction, no plan. No idea who will be here long term. No communication with the fans besides a break room (all time classic) press conference at the deadline.
Fans arguing if a third basemen’s defense can offset being the worst hitter in the last 50 years of professional baseball. We really need to see winning baseball around here soon so we can remember what it looks like. This aint it.
Some seen this roster and predicted 90 wins. Lol.
This season has been a disappointment, the biggest in many years. They took a full step back after a half step forward last year. No idea where they go from here when the seasons over, maybe they win just enough so ol Nick gets to keep his fingerprints on this team another year.
Who Dey!
The Reds are 26 W vs 23 L since ASG. Not great but winning baseball.
The Bengals were 6 W vs 11 L last year.
The Bengals haven’t played this season yet. Chances are their winning percentage will exceed the Reds. The Bengals also have won a conference title and lost a close Super Bowl in the past 5 years. 1995 is a long time ago to most.
I always question a “fan” who questions mlb players IQ. Just silly to me. Mlb players are the best of the best. Period.
I question those who say Some Seen instead of Some Saw.
You know Kevin I always hear fans at Dragons game who think they or their teenage sons are as good or better than the players on the field. They just have no concept of how talented these young men are and what it takes to play as well as they do. That is their game IQ as well..
He questioned the IQ of the organization, and how it’s ran….not the players
@oldtimer. I have 2 master degrees from Xavier and I still have a problem with see and saw. You all out there can make fun of me but don’t make fun of Xavier like the wife does. She is a Bearcat
I really question people who waste everyone’s time grammar-policing a sports comment section.
How fast the negative comments appear after a series opening game lose with two games to go. A similar thing occurred in the Red’s recent series win over the Brewers. The Bengals disastrous season last year was basically due to the early injury to their star quarterback in the same way the Red’s topsy-turvy season has been greatly affected by the injury to their ace pitcher and others. Injuries are a fact of sports.
Their ACE pitcher started last night. HG has never performed well enough or long enough to be considered an ACE
While he has missed a lot of games, so I concede that point, you really should go back and look at Greene’s stats again. Because you are dead wrong. For 2024 and 2025 he pitched every bit as well as Burns is and was undeniably an ACE.
Hunter Greene has the stuff to be an Ace. But an ace is someone you can rely on to take the ball every fifth day. Unfortunately, Hunter has never been able to do that consistently. He has averaged 104 innings pitch in the past five seasons. I am not blaming Hunter. I’m sure he is quite frustrated with not being to contribute more. But the fact he is not been reliable enough to be considered an ace.
I considered Hunter Greene the Red’s ace at the beginning of this season before injury became apparent. Burns brilliant year has emerged DURING this season.
True however you have never liked Hunter Greene when he has pitched well or dominant. Your personal bias shows.
When healthy Hunter Greene is the ace of the Reds. It is pretty simple to see if one opens their eyes.
Problem though he has struggled to stay healthy.
I’ve seen this brought up multiple times, Doc, and honestly, it’s a really poor point.
Hunter Greene in 2024: 150.1 innings, 96 hits, 57 walks, 169 strikeouts, 2.75 ERA/160 ERA+.
Chase Burns in 2026: 148.1 innings, 118 hits, 51 walks, 176 strikeouts, 2.73 ERA/154 ERA+.
To sit back and say that Burns is an ACE, but that Hunter Greene “has never performed well enough or long enough to be considered an ACE” is absurd. Greene’s 2024 season had more innings, fewer baserunners, and a better ERA+.
And Greene followed that season up with one that was just as good, but with far fewer innings (107.2).
I would also add that our Reds struck out 14 times and walked only once. We’re 0 for 5 with runners in scoring position. And Hayes had a brutal night in the field. He obviously should have been sent on a rehab assignment and not out in field immediately after having been off for 11 days.
Sheehan has an era over 5. We made him look like Cy Young.
I’m encouraged by Hector. I think he will stick if he keeps working.
I’m not sure what to think of Williams outing. Let’s see what Lodolo does.
That’s a good point. A couple rehab games would have helped a lot, I think.
Thought the Reds 3B was acquired due to his excellent defense. When you can’t hit a lick, your glove better be excellent all the time.
Doubt there’s one MLB team besides the Reds who would still have KBH on their roster.
Nobody is excellent at anything ALL THE TIME.
With that OPS, trade and contract, I would expect KBH to not have a multiple error game. unacceptable.
Yes anyone can have a bad game defensively but considering Hayes and his chronic bad back along with the fact that his defense has already taken a hit from what it was last year is NOT a good sign. It could be that his defense is headed in the same direction as his offense. It’s just taken longer. The poor guy is trying but……
Carlos Jorge didn’t have to make an exceptional play but watching him move and track the ball seemed so effortless, precise and fluid.
With his speed and instincts, his defense is unreal. Best defensive CF I have seen come through Dayton, and that was his first full year as a CF. Carlos would routinely catch balls in the power alleys on the fly that you would think were going for extra bases off the bat.
I would prefer to see the Reds start an opener, then bring Burns in for a 3 inning relief. That way he would still be eligible for the win. He can’t get the win as a starter unless he goes five.
It seems H-Rod and Carlos Jorge could help the Reds in near future and Brito could be a useful bench guy…Lodolo is looking for rebounding after a really bad outing , he hasn’t been effective against LHH but I think the Dodgers will have at least Ohtani, Freeman, Muncy and Tucker as lefties in the lineup and of course Reds killer Teoscar being the most dangerous righty…the bullpen had a rest day…
Mr Gold Glove, 2 errors and 0-3 with 2 SOs. Yeah, sure glad we have a couple of more years watching this All-Star. It’s time to DFA Krall and fix this team. And time for Castellini to live up to the insiders’ predictions and sell the team.
Amen.
Even Gold Glovers make errors sometimes.
Come on @OT, you’re being generous. Brooks Robinson, as far as I can find, had exactly one game in his career with more than one error (3 in one game). Hayes is so bad that he makes Denis Menke’s time with the Reds look like Mike Schmidt.
Hayes ranks 2nd ALL-TIME in best fielding % by 3B. Brooks Robinson ranks 5th all-time. Your turn.
@OT, and if it were possible, which would you prefer to have starting on your team? Brooks with an OPS+ of 105 or Hayes with a career 81 (26 this year). Brooks was 40 years old before he was as bad as Hayes.
Better example would be Mark Belanger, an all glove no bat SS for the Orioles.
204 errors in 2016 games.
Dumb question. Brooks, of course. But Hayes has a higher (better) career fielding % at 3B.
https://www.baseball-reference.com/leaders/fielding_perc_ss_career.shtml Belanger is #44 ever as SS based on fielding % only.
Ex Reds Freddy Galvis and Jose Iglesias are both in Top 10 in that category.
No question in my mind that Omar Vizquel is best fielding SS ever. 24 seasons. 11 Gold Gloves. Simply the best ever.
If he cant hit over 150 who cares. Just admit that Krall made a terrible trade. You can’t,so you keep telling us about his fielding%. He is not a starting MLB player, period. If he is so valuable as you say, name 1 team that would take him today? the answer none.
The Reds have a winning record (more W than L) in 2025 and 2026 so far when Hayes is in the lineup.
Good outing for Burns. Expected the rest, sorry to say.
Burns was really shoving as the kids say. Crazy how effective he is with just 2 pitches.
Jorge and Rodriguez (with the usual caveats) could go a long way toward fixing this 3 outcome offense into something that could better compete day in day out. Their aggressive approaches will surely help improve a team that’s 29th in hits. That approach could also lower our worst in baseball strikeout totals. I would also strongly consider using Alfredo Duno as the primary DH and backup catcher because the bat is ready. The rest of the offensive revamping will have to come in free agency—-2B, 3B/1B (Sal could move wherever the need is), and some more dumpster diving in hopes of finding more Bleday and Myers types.
“Burns was really shoving as the kids say.”
And to think I haven’t even got used to “Raking” yet.
4 homers and 5 walks in 14 innings for Williamson so far. I know we’ve been waiting on this guy forever, but the Reds have DFA’d guys for less. For me, it’s that his misses aren’t even competitive, so hitters can eliminate pitches more easily and sit on what they want. In that sense he’s very similar to Maxwell and Phillips.
Yes because their starting pitching depth is enough to warrant a that out DFA. He’s going to be here next year and if they are smart enough to sign a FA pitcher and trade for another. Just be there for depth.
Exciting to see the young guys perform well. Jorge and HRod especially . Arroyo needs another year at AAA. I like Brito as a bench piece as well. Agree that they should see how Duno does in ST but at a minimum he starts year in AAA. He is definitely the future at catcher. With ROY at 3B we can definitely try and find a Free Agent 1B. Bleday and McCain will continue to start.
Then there are the pitchers. Singer will be gone. Lowder has not been impressive. Lodolo even less so . No one even close in the minors. So another area where help is needed.
The problem with Hayes being an everyday 3rd baseman is not only his horrible BA but that he playsa power bat position with absolutly no power. There is no way his glove (and occasional great play) makes up for his total ineptitude at the plate…..let’s just move on
The only excitement around Hayes is wondering if he’ll be able to make it to 10 RBI’s this season
27 walks and 28 strike outs on the year. 5.97 ERA. 1.673 WHIP. Burns will dominate and then Wiliamson will follow and decimate
Brandon seems too tentative with his pitches to me.
Accepting that there are no good options, I would go with Chase and Chase – Burns and Petty.
2 errors from Hayes aside, walks have been a problem all year. LÀ had more runs than hits and the game
Before that Brewers had more runs than hits. It’s a big issue that needs serious attention in off season.
Reds have had some nice stories in this disappointing season
Fire:
Sal Stewart odds-on favorite for ROY with 31 HR/107 RBI and more to come.
Chase Burns- Likely will finish top 5 Cy young and likely will make all MLB 2nd team.
Elly- Elly is having his finest season. He will likely win the Silver Slugger award at shortstop in the NL and likely will finish all MLB 2nd team behind Bobby Witt. He is 4th in bWAR in all of MLB for position players and 2nd behind PCA in the NL. He’s 6 home runs and 5 stolen bases away from the Reds 4th 30/30 season, joining Davis, Larkin, Phillips.
Elly De La Cruz is unquestionably an MLB superstar.
Thank you for breaking down the facts regarding EDLC. I’m not sure why it takes so much convincing around here, but for some reason there are those who just refuse to believe.
If only the Reds could perform a miracle, and figure out a way to resign him.
the miracle might be, if the reds could actually win something while they do have Elly on the team….or his time in Cincinnati will be just a waste
And, for the analytics-oriented
Hitting
xwOBA, .368, 92nd percentile
xBA, 279, 90th percentile
xSLG, .488, 91st percentile
Ave Exit Velo, 94.4mph, 99th percentile
Barrel %, 15.1, 95th percentile
Hard Hit %, 52.6, 95th percentile
LA Sweet Spot %, 36.0, 59th percentile
Bat Speed, 75.9, 92st percentile
Squared Up, 25.0, 48th percentile
Chase %, 26.1, 72nd percentile
K%, 27.3, 14th percentile
BB%, 10.9, 71st percentile
Batting Run Value, 27, 94th percentile
Baserunning Run Value, 1, 76th percentile
Fielding Run Value, 5, 76th percentile
Field
Range, 7, 93rd percentile
Arm Strength, 91.7, 92st percentile
I haven’t looked at the defensive metrics for Witt, but his offense has been trending down some since his breakout year two years ago. Still one of the best SS, but average is down some 40 points since 2024, SLG percent is set to be the lowest since his rookie year
Let me give you a counter argument. For the Reds, when the game is on the line and the Reds trailing by a run, you want Elly or Sal in the last at bat? On defense, in the 9th inning of a tie game, do you want to see a ground ball hit to Elly? Elly is a star at best, not a super star by any stretch of imagination
If the guy who is the 4th best position in baseball isn’t a superstar then the definition you have for it is broken.
I’d say that’s not much of an argument.
The Reds need a cleanup hitter.
I would change the lineup to:
Myers CF (2nd best OBP on team)
Rodriguez RF (LHB that’s hitting)
De La Cruz SS (very hot now)
Stewart 1B (better chance of RBI)
with Bleday LF/Stephenson (C or DH)/Suarez 3B at 5-7
then Trevino (when QB1 is DH)/Jorge (CF w/Myers in LF v LHP, sit Bleday) & Brito/McLain 2B
I cannot for the life of me make sense of these pro-Hayes posts. That is simply defending the indefensible. How well Ke’Bryan Hayes was able to defend in prior years matters not at all in the year 2026. Some people love to argue. That is all it can be. Fangraphs has 352 players that had over 200 PA as rated bye f(WAR). Hayes is ranked #343 at -.9. In other words, overall, he has been putrid. There is one sad fact although in that he is not the worst Cincinnati player in 2026. There have been two others that have performed more poorly if that is believable. TJ Friedl is ranked #347 at -.9. And he still is not the worst Reds ballplayer this year. That dishonor belongs to Noelvi Marte, who is rated as dead last with an f(WAR) of -1.4.
I was going to do a Reds fire and ice post, but stopped at Fire. But since you brought it up…..
The ice yes- Reds OD starting lineup had 4 of the worst players in MLB starting at 3b/cf/rf/ and 2b
Hayes, Friedl, Marte bottom 5 in fWAR in all of MLB. McLain OPS + awful which means Reds had 4 position players in their Opening Day starting 9 all having worst seasons of career with 3 of them potentially not on MLB rosters in 2027.
I agree 100% DWCT. People just argue for the sake of arguing. They try so hard to convince you that you just don’t get it. They try to convince you that the Ke’Bryan Hayes trade has been brilliant for the Reds. The guy is hitting .151!! Brooks Robinson wouldn’t play if he was hitting that poorly.
Agree 1000%
I can understand those who make a case for defense being more important than some believe it is, but making a case to keep Hayes overall is not a good argument.
I remember when the trade was made how harsh fans were against it, and my thought was, give it some time. This is one case where the fans were mostly right, and the GM totally overthought the move. Every GM does have those misses of course I’ll say.
The Mets are paying Bo Bichette 42 million…Dodgers, Tucker, 60 million right?
Money wise, and prospect wise, Hayes isn’t a huge miss in the grand scheme of things. But the continuing to try and make it work, and just the overall lack of continuity, plan with the everyday 9 in the lineup is the bigger problem for Krall.
If you had Ohtani, Freeman, Betts, Pages, and then Hayes hitting 9th at .150 you don’t notice it a whole lot. He’s not bringing the team down with his hitting by himself, but certainly not helping.
These guys are pros, but when you have multiple bad hitters, like when they had Hayes, McLain, Friedl all in the lineup, I think that psychologically kind of takes a toll on the rest of the team in some ways too.
It may be the last 20 games we see Hayes. But also, I could almost see them trying one more time to have him be in 2027 at least a platoon 3B off the bench going into spring training.
It is a shame or a crime that in Elly’s first 4 years that the front office has not put a chamionship caliber team around him. 2026 was the biggest farce in that management somehow though an OD lineup with Benson, Friedl, McLain, Hayes, and Marte was an offensive threat. Think 3-4 of the 5 ended up spending time at Louisville. Say no more. How can they be so clueless? A saving grace may be that it should be crystal clear to management that you can’t compete with the Brewers with this offense.
Back to Elly. I truly believes he likes his stay here. But. But. How can he not want to play for a playoff competitive, championship level team in his prime? Geez, ask for a trade Elly. It is not on you if they choose to not put a 90 win team around you in the last 4-5 years. In another environment, you will also probably find yourself making $30M a couple years earlier than you thought. Just let it be known that you want to play for a winner. I doubt it but maybe they will try to put more talent out there to keep you around and make it better for all of us fans.
I think the Reds actually have a little more positive momentum going towards the end of the season than I thought after the Trade Deadline.
Rodriguez really shows promise. Burns has stayed healthy. Stewart is a real Run producer they haven’t had in years, has potentially great leadership ability, De La Cruz the last few weeks is showing potentially that elite Offensive capability we think he hadn’t quite tapped into yet. If they moved EDC off SS (I don’t think they’ll do this, but if), McLain shows he can play a good SS.
Brito looks like potentially a Major League infielder for the Reds, maybe platoon, but perhaps a good trade there. Lodolo has been better. Lowder has been solid. Abbott not great a times, but you assume he’ll be solid in 2027.
I see some positives going forward.
But…on the negative…. I think they put themselves about 6 months behind not trading Stephenson, Singer, Burke, others, who could have brought different prospects, and started perhaps playing younger guys even earlier if they had done that, given looks to players like a Brito that maybe would just be part time players, but at least some different players in the pipeline.
I fear too the Reds are going to think their collection of current talent is going to just happen to turn into a good Offense in 2027 like they’ve hoped for years now without too many big changes. They thought Steer, McLain, Stephenson, Marte, Benson, Myers…now I think you add Bleday in that camp, and others would all as a collection be good enough to support De La Cruz and Stewart, along with the addition of Suarez.
I think like last year they will need a bigger upheaval than they probably suspect…not just adding a player like Suarez to an already not good Offensive group.
Steer may not have much trade value with his injury…but I think I’d consider trading Bleday, and possibly Steer for the right price.
Bleday’s not good versus left hand pitchers. Rodriguez not great vs. lefties. You’re pigeon holing your self once again like previous years with platoon situations similar to Jake Fraley, Steer, Myers, etc. If one side of the platoon has a down year, or is bad, then most nights the Offense is scattered and unpredictable.
The Reds need 1-3 more impact players, less players like Steer, Bleday, McLain, Stephenson (although good this year). Not saying those players aren’t valuable and important in many ways, but the Reds lineups usually feature about 5-6 players who are inconsistent, can’t hit lefties or righties, go cold for days, etc.,
Bleday has a cycle, and then may not get a hit for several games. McLain shows power, but then may not get a hit for days.
I think Stewart, EDC, and Rodriguez would be the only definites for the 2027 going into the offseason I’d have, and everyone else I’d be open to trading or considering a bench player.
I know I sounds a little harsh . I wouldn’t mind if Steer, Bleday, or McLain are starting opening day…but all 3 of them, especially if a few are hitting 4th, 5th, etc.? It sounds like the same old plan that has not worked.
Nail on the head. Management is at a crossroads. Based on 2026, they clearly know that many of these 13 offensive players are ineffective and they can not win with these guys. That is the crossroads. Roll with several of them again and hope that the offense will improve to top 10 and that will be enough to catch the Cubs and Brewers. More probably, 4th or 5th place again. I realistically don’t know though that management has any chance to sell this approach to the fans who have patiently awaited on the rebuild to materialize. “What else are you going to do?” I would guess there is about an 80% probability of this actually happening though. More of Hayes, Marte, MM, Arroyo, Bleday, Brito, etc. The other cross roads is we bring in 2-3 pieces of 800 OPS talent. Seems unlikely as we have already given up on positive offensive pieces like Lowe and Stephenson, but yet to cut ties with underperformers like Hayes, MM, Arroyo, Marte, Bleday, etc.