Where, exactly, the Cincinnati Reds choose to deploy Sal Stewart during the upcoming season remains very much to be seen. The 22 year old took the lineup by storm when called upon late in 2025, but did
so primarily while rotating through 1B and 3B to keep each of Spencer Steer and Ke’Bryan Hayes ‘fresh’ down the stretch.
There’s a good chance the Reds keep said rotation in order going forward, what with the other two respective names fresh off Gold Glove Award and Gold Glove Award finalist finishes at their corner infield positions in 2025, respectively. That may mean that Sal ends up getting ample time at DH to keep his bat in the lineup, though there remains the chance that he could even get some run at 2B – a position where he does have 61 games of minor league experience under his belt.
Said belt is a little tighter these days, too, perhaps even as preparation for those frequent moves around the diamond. As our friends at Redleg Nation noted over the weekend, Sal told the folks on the Reds Hot Stove League show that he’s lost 26 lbs while getting in shape this offseason. He remains listed as 6’1” and 224 lbs on his Baseball Reference player page, but some super complicated advanced mathematics now tells me he’s closer to 200 lbs at the moment.
If the dropped weight means increased mobility – and if the increased mobility means increased defensive range – there’s a real chance we could see Sal deployed all over the infield in 2026, a development that could collectively lift the average output from that roster unit significantly over 2025. Try to recall that the likes of Santiago Espinal, Connor Joe, the rotting husk of Jeimer Candelario, Garrett Hampson (really), former prospect with sheen Christian Encarnacion-Strand, and even Miguel Andujar got time around the infield just last season, and replacing just their production with what’s expected from Sal is a major on-paper improvement.
If his defense comes with any improved aplomb through shedding weight, he could even begin to eat into the playing time of Gavin Lux, too, who now looks completely positionless after the weekend additions of JJ Bleday and Dane Myers to the outfield mix. And if he hits the way we all hope he can, well, he’s going to get 500+ PA in 2026 at the expense of just about everyone else.
That’s as things stand right now, of course, and that’s all very much subject to change. It’s hard to see the moves the Reds made on Saturday and not think there’s an additional deal in the works, as the roster just feels like there’s one too many guys for the spots they’ve got available. That’s normally not a problem for good clubs, it’s just not the kind of thing the Cincinati Reds, of all clubs, typically pay to possess. Relegating Lux, for example, to the final guy off the bench would be a net positive development if it’s because Sal and Ke’Bryan and McLain all hit/play well enough to demand full-time roles, but the Reds aren’t the kind of club to pay $5 million for the last man on the bench – especially if they think that player has some trade value.
As for McLain and 2B, well, it sure seems like the Reds are still very much optimistic about that being ‘2B McLain’ on the scorecard every day for 2026 and beyond. MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon took a closer look at the scenario this morning (with quotes from manager Terry Francona echoing said optimism), and it’s clear that there are still high hopes for their former 1st round pick for now.
The thing about the Sal/McLain dynamic right now, though, is that McLain stands out as the current backup shortstop option on the roster. 2025 saw him get four starts at the position as Elly De La Cruz commanded it pretty much every single day for six months, but as the club looks to get Elly a bit more rest in 2026 there’s a very real chance we see McLain get many more starts at short next season – a development that could open a more clear path for Sal to get time at 2B, should his defense play well enough there.
Though it’s hardly a dream scenario for Reds fans who pine to have the roster built as bulletproof and definable as possible as soon as possible, this even reeks of the kind of thing that may not truly get sorted out until they all get to camp in Goodyear in February. If Sal shows up and all the offseason work he’s putting in truly begins to show out on the fields, maybe it’s then that the Reds front office finally realizes they can move on from Lux and they try to deal him then. If he shows up and it’s just not obviously working, though, the Reds still have ample options on the table – both metaphysically and of the minor league variety, if need be.
In retrospect, it’s a bit funny to realize all of this nebulous position talk in/re Sal is all because the Reds went gonzo with their last best position-player prospect’s position just last July. Where Sal was going to end up was in question then because it was Noelvi Marte who was newly plying his trade at the hot corner at the big league level only for the Reds to toss him to the wolves in RF and bring in Hayes to even further put down roots at the position. And just like that, the franchise that had perhaps the best future prospect depth at 3B of any of them gave itself the exercise of moving both of their best and brightest off the position within a few months.
These are good problems to have, of course. Depth is never a bad thing, so long as enough guys have minor league options – and Cincinnati’s do. Injuries will run their course, as we’ve seen with Steer’s shoulder last year, McLain’s lost 2024 altogether, and the wrist issue CES dealt with along the way, and that’s how you end up remembering that Jacob Hurtubise and Blake Dunn made the Opening Day roster just last year. Still, it’s a puzzle with redundancies that hasn’t quite revealed its perfect fit just yet, and it’s enough to make you wonder just what else is up.
