Surpassing icons like Mark McGwire, Cincinnati’s power-hitting phenom just claimed the MLB lead in RBIs while fueling a late-season playoff push and a surging Rookie of the Year campaign.
Sal Stewart is having not only one of the best rookie seasons in Cincinnati Reds history but also one of the best in Major League Baseball history. After another stellar night in which he went 2 for 5 with four RBIs and virtually single-handedly beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, fans are lobbying for him to win the National League Rookie of the Year Award.
Before Friday night's game, Stewart was listed at +300 to win the NL Rookie of the Year Award, according to BetMGM. You have to believe that after a night in which he took the major league lead in RBIs, those odds have improved.
Stewart hit a long two-run home run off Pirates starter Paul Skenes in the fourth inning to give the Reds a 5-3 lead. Then, in the eighth inning, after reliever Pierce Johnson allowed Pittsburgh to retake the lead, Stewart laced an opposite-field line drive into the right-center field gap, scoring both Noelvi Marte and Matt McLain to tie the game at 7.
The Miami native advanced to second on the throw home and promptly screamed expletives toward the Reds' dugout to celebrate the big moment. His ability to display both power and the ability to use the entire field is why he is one of, if not the best, hitters on the Reds' roster. The argument against Stewart being the Reds' best hitter continues to weaken by the day.
I recently wrote about the possibility of Stewart going on a hot streak after he showed signs of breaking out shortly after the All-Star break, and we could be witnessing the beginning of that hot streak now. He is hitting .316 over his last five games and has recorded hits in four of those five games, including eight RBIs and two home runs.
Stewart now has 84 RBIs on the season, 19 more than the next rookie, Kazuma Okamoto, and 36 more than the next Reds player, Elly De La Cruz. Stewart also has more than double the RBIs of current NL Rookie of the Year favorite J.J. Wetherholt, who has 41. No rookie has led the MLB in runs batted in at the end of the season since Walter Dropo did so in 1950, and Ted Williams in 1939.
Stewart's 84 RBIs by July 31 are the most by a rookie through that date in the past 75 years, according to Just Baseball, surpassing players such as Jose Abreu, Mark McGwire, Jose Canseco, Albert Pujols and Alvin Davis. Unsurprisingly, however, Stewart deflected attention and praise after the game, saying his only goal is to win. If he keeps up this rate of offensive production, the Reds should continue to win. They are 9-5 since the All-Star break and have a chance to complete a sweep of the Pirates. Cincinnati is 4½ games behind the final National League wild-card spot.
