PITTSBURGH \u2014 The message to Sal Stewart has been pretty consistent throughout the first half of his rookie season. He calls it the best advice that he has received.<\/p>\n
He\u2019s often reminded to be himself. His passion, energy and edge have been as consistent as anything about the Reds in 2026.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you try to be someone else, you stick out like a sore thumb,\u201d Stewart said. \u201cI\u2019m grateful that I can be who I am and the guys on this team allow me to be who I am. I enjoy coming to the yard and playing with this team. I love the game. I love what I do. I\u2019m grateful for what I do. I try not to take it for granted and go out there and play hard and play to win.\u201d<\/p>\n
Entering Sunday, Stewart is hitting a solid .252 with a .795 OPS that ranks third among qualified rookies in the National League. His 57 RBI this season are tied for fourth-most by any NL rookie before July since the stat became official in 1920, and Stewart\u2019s 57 RBI rank tied-for-fifth in MLB this season.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m still getting better,\u201d Stewart said. \u201cI\u2019ll always get better. I haven\u2019t played to the best of my ability. It\u2019s been good, but I feel like there\u2019s a lot more in there that I have to tap into for the rest of the season. I make adjustments. They make adjustments. It goes back and forth. Every day is a new day.\u201d<\/p>\n
Francona has seen a knack for RBI in Stewart, and the 22-year-old has been a presence in the middle of the Reds\u2019 lineup all season.<\/p>\n
Stewart has had his waves of success and struggles this season, but on the whole he\u2019s having a very positive year.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think I\u2019m in a good spot,\u201d Stewart said. \u201cYou\u2019ve got to stay focused. Once you keep your focus on winning, everything pans out. I\u2019d like to play better. I also understand that halfway through, I\u2019ve had a good year so far. I know there\u2019s better for myself in there, but I just want to go out there and give it my all.\u201d<\/p>\n
His RBI are one example of Stewart\u2019s ability to deliver winning plays, and his reliability on defense is another example. His ability to play a solid third base following Ke\u2019Bryan Hayes\u2019 injury is one of the more important developments of the Reds\u2019 season, and Stewart\u2019s versatility allows Francona to put the Reds\u2019 best nine hitters into the lineup on a given day.<\/p>\n
Stewart is a great competitor, and he\u2019s one of those guys who has a way of being extremely confident even when he\u2019s in the middle of a cold stretch at the plate.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you know you\u2019re a good hitter, and he does\u2026 I\u2019m not saying he\u2019s arrogant, I think he knows he\u2019s a good hitter,\u201d Terry Francona said. \u201cWhen it doesn\u2019t go well, he gets mad, but he knows he\u2019s a good hitter.\u201d<\/p>\n
***<\/p>\n
Eugenio Su\u00e1rez and Chase Petty got the headlines on Saturday, but Edwin Arroyo quietly played the best game of his young big league career.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe went the other way with a double, which is always good,\u201d Francona said. \u201cHe got the bunt down to third. That was after we had talked to him about it. I thought the other night, he tried to do a little too much (when he bunted against the Brewers in the ninth inning). We said, \u2018Slow down, here\u2019s all you\u2019ve got to do.\u2019 He did. The intent was there, and he executed it. When you play the game right, then other good things happen.\u201d<\/p>\n
He needs to keep driving the ball like he did on Saturday, and the consistency of his defense is a critical area for him to develop. Overall, he\u2019s getting better.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s a good hustler,\u201d Francona said. \u201cThe other night, he hit that ball and ended up going to second. I said, \u2018I never want to take away your hustle because I love it, but that was awfully close. We\u2019re down three.\u2019 He looks at you and goes, \u2018Ok, I\u2019ve got you.\u2019 He listens, which is really good.\u201d<\/p>\n
***<\/p>\n
Through the first half of his rookie season, Rhett Lowder has a 4.81 ERA through 12 starts.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m on the right path process wise over the last couple of games,\u201d Lowder said. \u201cI\u2019m trending the right way. There are some things I want to get better at. I\u2019m learning a ton. There\u2019s always stuff I feel getting better.\u201d<\/p>\n
His rookie season was interrupted by a shoulder injury that kept him out for about a month.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve been staying in the fight really well, especially after missing so much time,\u201d Lowder said. \u201cThat can tough, staying in the fight after not being in some situations for a while. I\u2019ve had outings where it might not go my way early, but I can find a way to keep us in it and give us a chance to win in the long run.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lowder sees a few positives with his pitching. His slider has been a good putaway pitch against righties, and the changeup has been a good putaway pitch against lefties. He\u2019s able to freeze hitters with fastballs to end and at-bat, which is a testament to his command and the variety of ways that Lowder can defeat a hitter. He\u2019s a very good mixer and matcher.<\/p>\n
On the negative side, his walk rate has been higher than expected this year, and he\u2019s allowing more line drive contact than you\u2019d want. There have been games where he had poor execution on a pitch over the plate that cost him as he allowed a game-changing swing. In each of his last two starts, Lowder has been undone by one big inning.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was struggling to find the zone and searching for the pitch to get be back in (the zone),\u201d Lowder said. \u201cIt\u2019s non chases and getting into a deep count. You see across they game that hitters are trying to wait pitchers out because the zone has shrunk a bit. Swing percentages are down across the league. You have to fill it up, be on the attack and not waste too many to put them away.\u201d<\/p>\n
Lowder, who made his big league debut in his first year pitching professionally (2024) and then missed the 2025 season due to injury, is still so early in his career.<\/p>\n
He\u2019s learning as he goes, especially with his approach to game planning for specific opponents.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou read into what these teams do to different (pitchers), but the approach for one (pitcher) may be completely different from how they approach you,\u201d Lowder said. \u201cYou have to do a bit of self-reflection. What are teams going to do against me? You have to be humble. You can\u2019t think you\u2019re really good at this. You have to be honest with yourself, and you might not be doing great and what teams may try to target.\u201d<\/p>\n
***Before this weekend\u2019s series against the Pirates, a big talking point was how the Reds had the worst OPS in MLB versus pitches 95 mph+. The Reds\u2019 lineup was the worst in the league against velocity. Then, the lineup went out and had big games against two flamethrowers in Paul Skenes and Jared Jones.<\/p>\n
The offense has made an adjustment.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re trying to be aggressive to the fastball,\u201d Francona said. \u201cNot chasing. Seeing it and hitting it. Sometimes, that helps you lay off the other stuff, if you\u2019re committed to something that\u2019s over the plate.\u201d<\/p>\n
***<\/p>\n
Nick Lodolo isn\u2019t quite vintage Nick Lodolo yet.<\/p>\n
After missing the first six weeks of the season due to a blister issue, Lodolo has a 5.59 ERA across his nine starts in 2026.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt hasn\u2019t been clean by any means,\u201d Lodolo said. \u201cI wish I was throwing the ball better. It\u2019s getting better. I\u2019d like to see it turn around ASAP, but that\u2019s not how the game works. I\u2019m showing up every day and doing the stuff that I\u2019ve had success doing, getting back to that stuff mechanically. Mindset wise, it\u2019s the mindset of whatever it takes that day to win. That\u2019s where I\u2019m at.\u201d<\/p>\n
His biggest gift is a unique breaking ball for a left-hander that gets huge swings and misses when he\u2019s rolling. That pitch is typically the bellwether for Lodolo. It hasn\u2019t quite been humming this year, so his chase and whiff rates are way down.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I\u2019m going, (my breaking ball) is my calling card,\u201d Lodolo said.<\/p>\n
Because he was coming back from the blister, the Reds capped the number of breaking balls that Lodolo was allowed to throw when he ramped up toward his season debut back in May. Lodolo is a long pitcher with a lot of moving pieces. He says that repeatability is key with that pitch. He\u2019s just not at the point yet where that pitch is rolling.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou expect yourself to go out there and instantly start spinning it great,\u201d Lodolo said. \u201cThat hasn\u2019t been the case. It\u2019s been getting better. I\u2019ve been working every day on it. You want it to turn immediately.\u201d<\/p>\n
The silver lining is that even without his best breaking ball, Lodolo has scratched and clawed to give the Reds some solid starts recently. A couple of his starts over the last month weren\u2019t good enough, but six innings of one-run baseball against the Mets, 6 \u2154 innings of three-run baseball against the Braves and 5 \u2153 innings of two-run baseball against the Diamondbacks were positive nights.<\/p>\n
He was on track for another positive start last week against the Brewers. He threw four shutout innings but exited the game with a wrist contusion (the swelling went down, and his wrist is in a good spot entering his start on Monday). Against the Brewers, Lodolo got three whiffs on three swings against his breaking ball.<\/p>\n
Lodolo has a huge ceiling, and he posted a 2.82 ERA across his final 14 starts last season. He\u2019s working to get back to that level.<\/p>\n
\u201cI want to hit that stretch where I go on a run and it\u2019s a good quality month to boost you to where you want to go,\u201d Lodolo said.<\/p>\n
***<\/p>\n
Blake Dunn, who had the fourth-highest WAR among Reds\u2019 position players despite being in Triple-A or a big league bench player until late May, landed on the injured list on Sunday with an elbow injury. He\u2019s heading back to Cincinnati for further evaluation, and the Reds will need more information before setting a timeline for Dunn to return.<\/p>\n
In a corresponding move, the Reds called up TJ Friedl from Triple-A.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s never easy for a guy to be told you\u2019re going to Triple-A,\u201d Francona said. \u201cHe handled it like you\u2019d expect Friedl to handle it. When he walked in today, I don\u2019t know that I\u2019ve ever seen that many people that excited to see somebody. That\u2019s pretty cool.\u201d<\/p>\n
In 18 games in Triple-A, Friedl hit .271.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a blessing to be back here (in MLB),\u201d Friedl said. \u201cI\u2019m grateful that God opened the door for me to be back here with these guys. It\u2019s incredible to be back in this clubhouse.\u201d<\/p>\n
It seems like Francona\u2019s preference is to keep Noelvi Marte and JJ Bleday in corner outfield spots. As a result, it looks like Friedl and Dane Myers are the Reds\u2019 options in center field (I didn\u2019t see Matt McLain working out any more in center field this weekend in Pittsburgh). Friedl and Myers platooned in center field back in April, and it could make sense to go back to that now.<\/p>\n
The other center field candidate in Triple-A before the Reds called Friedl was up was Will Benson, who was optioned last week (H\u00e9ctor Rodr\u00edguez is a corner outfielder). Prospect Carlos Jorge is in Double-A and is a name to know down the road.<\/p>\n
***<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s the most interesting storyline of the next week for the Reds: What happens in the rotation when Hunter Greene returns from the IL?<\/p>\n
If all goes well for Greene today in his rehab game in Triple-A, he expects to be ready to return to the Reds\u2019 rotation this week. July 3 is a likely return date for him.<\/p>\n
The Reds\u2019 rotation right now is Chase Burns, Andrew Abbott, Nick Lodolo, Brady Singer and Rhett Lowder.<\/p>\n
The Reds could go in a few different directions when Greene is ready. They haven\u2019t publicly revealed what the plan is going to be.<\/p>\n
Do you go with a six-man rotation through the All-Star break, or even the trade deadline? Do you try a piggyback system? Do you option a starting pitcher to Triple-A? Do you move a starting pitcher to the bullpen? Do you skip a start of one of the young starting pitchers (Burns or Lowder) to help manage their inning totals for the season?<\/p>\n
It\u2019s an interesting and fascinating decision.<\/p>\n
Also, there will need to be a corresponding move in the bullpen when Emilio Pag\u00e1n is activated next week.<\/p>\n
***<\/p>\n
Ke\u2019Bryan Hayes (back) has made it through the \u201cWatkins program,\u201d and he\u2019s set to face pitchers on Wednesday and Thursday as he ramps up toward a rehab assignment.<\/p>\n
Graham Ashcraft (elbow) will be re-scanned on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
Brandon Williamson hurt his finger working out recently, which Francona said set him back by about 10 days.<\/p>\n
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