Sal Stewart’s Rookie Crown Sparks Terry Francona’s Reds Reset Plan

Monday night’s televised awards ceremony delivered Great American Ball Park its brightest jolt of November optimism when 22-year-old Reds infielder Sal Stewart was crowned the 2026 National League Rookie of the Year. Five days earlier inside Cincinnati’s riverfront offices, veteran manager Terry Francona had already launched his structural counterpunch to a frustrating last-place campaign by hiring former Cleveland assistant Joe Torres as the club’s new pitching coach.

Pairing Stewart’s emerging middle-of-the-order bat with Torres’ renowned strike-throwing curriculum captures both the promise and the urgency of Cincinnati’s 75-87 fifth-place finish in the NL Central. Across 162 games, the Reds flashed tantalizing raw tools—launching 213 home runs (fourth in MLB) and stealing 112 bases (12th)—while ranking dead last in the majors in batting average (.229), on-base percentage (.305), and walks issued on the mound (668), leaving Francona a clear blueprint for 2027.

Seventy-Five Wins in Baseball’s Toughest Division Demands Discipline

Finishing 75-87 in the cellar of the NL Central—28 games behind World Series champion Milwaukee and 14 back of 89-win Chicago—exposed every flaw in Cincinnati’s high-variance roster construction. Scoring 4.11 runs per game (27th in MLB, 666 total runs) while surrendering 5.10 opponent runs per contest (28th in MLB, 826 runs allowed) produced a minus-160 run differential that drowned out stretches of electric athleticism from shortstop Elly De La Cruz, second baseman Matt McLain, and Rookie of the Year honoree Sal Stewart.

Terry Francona wasted little time diagnosing why games spiraled out of reach before the seventh inning. Cincinnati’s starters and relievers combined to throw 24,742 pitches—second most in Major League Baseball—and faced 6,349 batters (third most), grinding down young arms with marathon deep counts. Bringing in Joe Torres after Torres spent the past five seasons shaping elite command staffs in Cleveland signals an immediate philosophical mandate: stop giving away free baserunners and force hitters to earn their way aboard.

Fourth-Ranked Home Run Power Undercut by MLB-Worst Contact and Walks

Few lineups in recent memory have embodied all-or-nothing volatility quite like Cincinnati’s 2026 offense. On one hand, the Reds blasted 213 home runs (fourth in MLB, homering once every 25.3 at-bats, sixth best), drew 557 walks (tied for 10th), swiped 112 bags (12th), and grounded into just 87 double plays (second fewest in baseball). On the other hand, Cincinnati finished 30th out of 30 MLB teams in hits (1,231), batting average (.229), and on-base percentage (.305) while fanning 1,544 times (29th in MLB) and plating just 636 RBIs (28th).

Pitching breakdowns proved equally self-inflicted at Great American Ball Park. Cincinnati’s 4.83 team ERA (28th in MLB) and 1.44 WHIP (28th) stemmed directly from issuing a league-worst 668 walks (30th in MLB) alongside 87 hit batters (27th) and 214 home runs allowed (26th). Opponents hit .254 (27th), stole 144 bases (29th), and benefited from nine catcher interferences (30th), though veteran backstop Jose Trevino still helped limit passed balls to three (tied for second fewest in MLB) and throw out 25.8 percent of base stealers (10th).

Sal Stewart, Elly De La Cruz, and Emilio Pagan’s $10 Million Exit

Even after an 87-loss stumble, Cincinnati’s young positional and rotation foundation remains the envy of rebuilding clubs. Stewart’s NL Rookie of the Year breakthrough anchors first and third base alongside superstar shortstop Elly De La Cruz, second baseman Matt McLain, defensive wizard Ke’Bryan Hayes at the hot corner, catcher Jose Trevino (backed up by Will Banfield), and infield prospects Edwin Arroyo and Leonado Balcazar. On the mound, electric young starter Chase Burns leads an active group featuring left-handers Andrew Abbott and Nick Lodolo alongside right-hander Rhett Lowder.

Getting key veterans and young outfielders healthy while replacing departed bullpen leverage defines the roster transition into 2027. Right-handed ace Hunter Greene and versatile slugger Spencer Steer both closed the campaign sidelined with out designations alongside relievers Tony Santillan and Julian Garcia, while outfielders JJ Bleday, Hector Rodriguez, Blake Dunn, Noelvi Marte, Carlos Jorge, and Dane Myers ended the season on injured reserve. Meanwhile, veteran closer Emilio Pagan declined his $10 million player option for 2027 on October 31 to test free agency, thrusting hard-throwing Graham Ashcraft and righty Tejay Antone to the forefront of Cincinnati’s ninth-inning plans.

Hunting High-Contact Outfield Bats and Veteran Strike-Throwers

Reallocating the $10 million cleared by Pagan’s declined option gives Cincinnati’s front office immediate flexibility to attack two glaring roster holes before Goodyear camp opens in February 2027. First, Cincinnati desperately needs two high-contact, high-on-base corner outfielders who put the ball in play and cut down a 29th-ranked 1,544-strikeout total. Surrounding De La Cruz, Stewart, McLain, and a healthy Steer with disciplined table-setters who hit .270-plus with gap doubles (after ranking 28th in MLB with just 219 two-baggers) would transform those 213 solo-heavy homers into multi-run rallies.

Second, Torres and Francona need a durable, strike-pounding veteran starting pitcher plus an experienced late-inning reliever to stabilize a staff that logged only 49 quality starts (tied for 19th in MLB) and blew 23 saves in 65 chances. Internal bullpen arms Connor Phillips, Chase Petty, Zach Maxwell, Luis Mey, Jose Franco, Chase Solesky, Duncan Davitt, and Zach McCambley boast upper-90s velocity, yet pairing Ashcraft and Antone with a battle-tested eighth- or ninth-inning free agent is essential so Greene, Burns, Abbott, Lodolo, and Lowder are protected late in tight divisional games.

Climbing Out of the NL Central Cellar Toward Goodyear 2027

Honest 2027 expectations in Queen City start with erasing free passes and climbing back above .500 inside a brutal NL Central paced by 103-win Milwaukee and 89-win Chicago. History shows how quickly high-stuff pitching staffs rebound when walk rates drop: shaving even 120 walks off Cincinnati’s MLB-worst 668 total under Joe Torres—combined with a healthy full season of Hunter Greene alongside Chase Burns, Abbott, Lodolo, and Lowder—can trim nearly three-quarters of a run off that 5.10 opponent scoring average.

When Cincinnati hosts Francona’s former club, the Cleveland Guardians, at Goodyear Ballpark to open Cactus League action in February 2027, the spotlight will shine squarely on Stewart’s sophomore encore and Torres’ bullpen sessions. If the front office pairs its dazzling infield core with contact-oriented outfield bats and reliable ninth-inning insurance this winter, the Reds have the high-ceiling talent to vault from a 75-win disappointment into an 84-to-87-win NL Wild Card disruptor in 2027.