One Early Indicator Suggests the Reds Offense Could Be Legit

Reds have great quality of contact and bat speed to begin the season.

Cincinnati Reds second baseman Matt McLain (9) looks on after striking out in the first inning of the MLB Interleague game between the Cincinnati Reds and the Boston Red Sox at Great American Ball Park in downtown Cincinnati on Sunday, March 29, 2026. The game was scoreless after three innings. | Sam Greene/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The way-too-early returns on the Cincinnati Reds lineup in 2026 are very encouraging.

Sure, there is Sal Stewart and his “Ted Williams, who?” batting average leading the charge, as well as a resurgent Matt McLain, but across the board, the Reds are vastly improved in their quality of contact.

Currently, the Reds lead all MLB teams in exit velocity at 91.5 MPH. This is the point where I will say that sample size is a bit of a tough sell, but at the same time, it is encouraging to see such a marked improvement. These types of numbers feed into improved production at the plate.

Last season, the Reds were 27th in MLB in average exit velocity at 88.6 MPH. They just didn’t get the bat on the ball well enough, and we can think of plenty of examples. Data further backs up the lack of quality of contact for Cincinnati in so many ways, though.

The Reds were horrible at barreling up the baseball. They did so just 4.9% of the time. You don’t need to know anything about analytics to know that you want to hit the baseball with the fat part of the bat…Cincinnati just did not do that last year.

Then there’s the loud contact, the hard-hit rate. The amount of time a baseball was hit harder than 95 MPH. They were 28th in MLB at that with a rate of 38.2%.

These are all stats that back up the weak performance from the lineup last year. The good news is, that’s all looking up early.

On top of the increase in quality of contact is the barrel rate. The Reds are up to 7.7% in that category.

This is all due to the fact that the Reds are just swinging the bat better overall. Last year, the Reds were 25th in MLB with an average swing velocity of 71.1 MPH. This year, that’s jumped to 72 MPH, putting them at 12th.

The difference isn’t large in number, but we see it in the results. A lot has to do with the fact that both McLain and Spencer Steer have increased their swing speed significantly. Both being healthy and strengthened, we will continue to see them produce well.

The Reds you’d expect to see on top of bat speed leaderboards, Elly De La Cruz and Eugenio Suarez, are there, but the company they now have with McLain, Steer, and even Stewart is an encouraging sign for the long haul of the season.