Reds Made Mistake, Should've Moved on From Key Member of Coaching Staff

The Reds announced on Monday that they've invited the whole coaching staff to return in 2026. While the Reds making the postseason can be viewed as a success, their future goals should be bigger.

Bringing back hitting coach Chris Valaika is a questionable decision at best. Valaika is Terry Francona's guy, and it would have been surprising to see him let go by the team after one season.

Cincinnati's offense was near the bottom half of the league in almost every important category. Tons of players regressed. Whether Valaika is to blame for that or not, someone should be held accountable. Running it back and hoping it gets better is not a good plan.

Additionally, Valaika is responsible for hitting strategy across the entire organization, including the minor leagues.

“We rebuilt that process,” Valaika told Charlie Goldsmith of Charlie's Chalkboard a couple of months ago. “We’re building the same versions of those in the minor leagues so we’re speaking the same language and we’re looking at things the same way."

Valaika and Francona's approach to hitting is old school. In an era where most teams utilize analytics and make decisions based on those analytics and reports, the Reds appear to be moving in the opposite direction.

They play in one of the most home run-friendly ballparks in all of Major League Baseball. With that being said, they ranked 23rd in home runs per game, 22nd in slugging percentage, 26th in extra-base hit percentage, and 24th in Isolated Power. The entire approach is based on making more contact, improving situational hitting, and striking out less. While their power numbers regressed, their strikeout numbers still stayed high, ranking near the bottom half of the league.

One of the biggest complaints from the fan base was the team's poor situational hitting, which is the number one thing the staff preaches.

“I believe in the traditional, or whatever you want to call it,” Valaika said. “There’s always a place for situational hitting. There’s always a place for bunting. If you play to the scoreboard, the game takes care of itself. We keep talking about the right things. (Francona) has been a big champion of the messaging I try to bring with situational hitting. Understanding what the game is asking you. The heartbeat of the game.”

They routinely put guys in the lineup with a contact-first approach while ignoring analytics and benching players like Will Benson, even though Benson led the team in xwOBA, which combines exit velocity, launch angle, and other factors. It measures the quality of a hitter's at-bats, removing luck from the equation.

In an April game, Noelvi Marte hit a ball over 117 mph. A reporter told Francona how hard it was, and he wasn't impressed.

"OK," Francona seemed to ask in response. "We get one run. That's fine."

While this may seem like a silly comment, it shows the staff's approach as a whole. Yes, it was only one run, but hitting the ball hard means more hits, more extra-base hits, more power.

Instead, the staff constantly preaches about bunting and advancing the runner.

In late August, Marte was the hottest hitter on the team.

Trailing 2-1 in the sixth inning against the Dodgers, Matt McLain and Spencer Steer both singled to start the inning. On the first pitch of the next at-bat, Marte attempted to drop down a bunt, which was popped up to the pitcher and caught, and then the ball was fired to second base to complete the double play. It ended the Reds' rally.

Marte bunted on his own according to Francona. But the very fact that bunting in that situation was even in Marte's mind shows you the importance that the hitting staff places on bunting.

In Sal Stewart's very first game, he hit a single. Francona mentioned that the rookie missed a sign to move the runner over.

Stewart is Cincinnati's No. 1 prospect. They brought him up to hit. Yet, in his first at-bat, they ask him to "move the runner."

In the second half of the season, Elly De La Cruz went into a huge power slump. From June 1 to September 14, he hit just one home run. Before the 2025 season, he ditched his big leg kick and went with a toe tap to try to limit his strikeouts. However, near the end of the season, he ditched the toe tap and went back to the leg kick and seemed to find his power again.

“We’re trying to get him a little bit more aggressive,” Valaika said. “The home runs and the narrative that can go around that has been down since the All-Star break. He has done a really good job of controlling the strike zone. At times, it will lead to a little passiveness. Not a lack of aggression, but he’s trying to see the pitch first before making a move. The leg kick makes him a little more intentful and dynamic so he’s on the attack rather than trying to see before he goes.”

De La Cruz is one of the many players that had a worse season offensively. He hit fewer doubles, fewer triples, fewer home runs, and stole fewer bases. His OPS dropped from .809 to .777.

The staff's current approach is antiquated. While talent certainly matters, there are numerous statistics and data points that suggest this offense was one of the worst in the league.

The Reds have cycled through plenty of hitting coaches in recent years, but stability for stability’s sake is not progress.

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