Cincinnati Reds rookie Sal Stewart is having a special season.
The Cincinnati Reds have had a disappointing season. They are all but mathematically eliminated from postseason contention and nearly every player on the roster has underperformed.
After making a National League wild card series last year, 2026 has been a massive step backward for an organization that had playoff aspirations heading into the year.
The only saving grace in a lost year has been the emergence of rookie corner infielder Sal Stewart. The 22-year-old made his big-league debut last September and immediately showed what he was capable of, dominating in his first month and earning a spot in the middle of the order come October.
It was clear he had the talent to be elite and live up to the hype of being a first-round pick, but the sample size was small enough that questions about sustainability remained heading into this season.
This year he has answered those questions definitively and then some. Across 136 games, Stewart has posted a .265 batting average, .337 on-base percentage, .821 OPS, 30 home runs and 104 RBIs.
He has been the best hitter in Cincinnati's lineup by a significant margin and is essentially a lock to win NL Rookie of the Year as long as he stays healthy, with nobody particularly close to him in the race at this stage of the season.
Stewart has been especially hot this week. On Saturday during a game against the Chicago Cubs, he launched his third home run in his last four games to reach the 30-homer mark.
That milestone put him in elite franchise territory, as he became just the second player in Reds history to reach 30 home runs in a rookie season, joining the legendary Frank Robinson, who accomplished the feat 70 years ago in 1956 (h/t Sarah Langs of MLB.com). To be mentioned alongside Robinson at this stage of his career speaks volumes about the kind of talent Cincinnati has on its hands.
What makes the milestone even more compelling is that Stewart has a realistic shot at breaking Robinson's franchise rookie record of 38 home runs.
With just four weeks remaining in the regular season it will be a tough task, but Stewart is capable of going on an explosive run and ruling him out entirely would be foolish given what he has shown all year.
It will be interesting to see which direction the Reds go after a difficult season, but they will certainly be building around Stewart regardless of what path they choose. He will look to continue his hot streak on Sunday in the series finale at Wrigley Field.
