Cincinnati Reds’ Sal Stewart celebrates after scoring on a sacrifice fly by Juan Brito during the eighth inning against the San Diego Padres on Sept. 1 in Cincinnati. Tanner Pearson / Associated press
AP Photo/Tanner Pearson
Cincinnati Reds infielder Sal Stewart was named the 2026 NL Rookie of the Year, following through on a goal that he set back in spring training.
“In the back of my head, I always knew I could achieve it if I kept my head down and worked hard,” Stewart said on Monday. “Like I always told you guys the whole year, I was focused on winning games. The fans deserve it. The organization deserves it. As much as I wanted to think about it, I really tried not to. But I knew once I hit a certain point where it was really time to get going and make this undeniable, maybe halfway through this year.”
This season, Stewart slashed .263/.330/.457 with 32 home runs, 25 doubles and 112 RBI while appearing in each of the Reds’ 162 games. He said the number of games that he played is the number that he’s most proud of.
Every night, Stewart was a major presence in the middle of the Reds’ lineup.
“I owe it to myself and to my teammates to know that if I’m sick, tired, sore, hurt, I’m going out there to give them the best chance to win. That’s for my teammates. I want them to know that I’m working hard for them, and they reciprocate it to me. This season didn’t go the way we wanted. If I want to be the player I want to be for the organization (playing 162 games) is a stepping stone to show everybody I’m willing to do it.”
In 2026, Stewart became the seventh Cincinnati rookie to earn an All-Star selection, and first Reds rookie position player to do so since Chris Sabo in 1988. Stewart has also been named a finalist for the Silver Slugger and Hank Aaron Awards.
“He’s very competitive,” manager Terry Francona said during the season. “He doesn’t give at-bats away. With two strikes, he becomes probably sometimes even more dangerous.”
Stewart finished with a sizable victory in the NL Rookie of the Year race, beating Carson Benge of the New York Mets and JJ Wetherholt of the St. Louis Cardinals.
Winning the award gave Stewart an opportunity to reflect on his journey.
“So many people didn’t think I could,” Stewart said. “I love that. My whole life, I’ve been doubted. When I got drafted, I had people on MLB Network saying it was a bad decision.”
He has proved himself right.
“I don’t forget any of those things,” Stewart said. “I wanted to prove those people wrong and show them they’ve got me all wrong. I’m a kid from Miami.”
The next step, he said is “1,000%” experiencing postseason success in Cincinnati.
“I don’t like sitting down watching the playoffs,” Stewart said. “I want to be playing in them. I’ve got to figure out a way to help my team continue to do that… I know we’re capable of it. We have the right guy at the helm. Tito knows what the expectation is. Honestly, he’s the first one to make sure I’m living up to it. If I’m not, he’s the first one calling me into his office making sure I live up to it. We know what it takes. We know what the expectation is. Losing is not fun. We do this to win.”