Sal Stewart Pushes Back on Reds’ Offensive Concerns After Slow Start

Stewart hit his fifth home run of the season on Tuesday night.

Apr 14, 2026; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Cincinnati Reds third baseman Sal Stewart (27) runs the bases after hitting a solo home run against the San Francisco Giants in the fourth inning at Great American Ball Park. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-Imagn Images | Aaron Doster-Imagn Images

Cincinnati Reds infielder Sal Stewart seems to do something every single night that surprises fans. On Tuesday, he worked a nine-pitch at-bat with Giants pitcher Robbie Ray, and on the ninth pitch, he took a fastball that was well above the zone, deep into the right field seats to put the Reds on top 2-0.

In fact, the Giants television team couldn't believe Stewart hit that particular pitch over the fences.

"Wow, what an at-bat that was," they said on the broadcast. "A nine-pitch battle and an opposite-field home run. The fifth already for Stewart. It's 2-0...That was an impressive at-bat and he even had Robbie Ray shaking his head right there because you’re not supposed to hit this pitch out of the ballpark. That right there shows you how much talent this kid has and why they're so excited about Sal Stewart."

In fact, Robbie Ray credited Stewart after the game.

"The guy somehow just clips it perfect, and it's a home run," Ray told MLB.com's Mark Sheldon. "It's one of those where you look back at it and you can't really get mad because you felt like you made a good pitch."

Reds manager Terry Francona also had high praise for Stewart.

"In an era of baseball where you're not supposed to talk about the top hand, he has a great top hand. He can get on top of that ball. I know that's not a real popular term in today's game."

Stewart Not Worried About Offensive Woes

Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz (44) and Cincinnati Reds second baseman Matt McLain (9) react after the Cincinnati Reds defeated the San Francisco Giants at Great American Ball in Cincinnati on Tuesday, April 14, 2026. | Albert Cesare/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

After the game, Stewart pointed out while their offense didn't score a lot of runs in Tuesday's win, they put together some good at-bats and forced Robbie Ray out of the game early.

"We had a lot of good at-bats," Stewart told Charlie Goldsmith. "People who are just looking might (say we only had) three hits or we're not hitting. We had 97 pitches through four innings (against Ray). If that's not a testament to all of these guys at-bats, I don't know what is. I put all of my money on these guys."

Through 17 games, Stewart is slashing .310/.431/.638 with nine extra-base hits and three stolen bases. He leads the Reds in batting average, RBIs, and on-base percentage.

While it seems like his current pace is unsustainable, Stewart is here to stay, and if other guys in the lineup can find their level, the offense should slowly start to come around.