Two Reds Teammates on Pace To Make Major League History With Impressive 2026 Season

Elly De La Cruz and Sal Stewart are on a historic pace to begin the 2026 season.

De La Cruz and Stewart are undoubtedly carrying the Cincinnati Reds' offense through April. Stewart is batting .303 with a .1.024 OPS with nine home runs, 29 RBIs, and seven stolen bases, and De La Cruz is batting .275 with a .921 OPS with nine home runs, 20 RBIs, and six stolen bases.

This Has Never Happened Before

Apr 25, 2026; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Cincinnati Reds first baseman Sal Stewart (27) runs the bases after hitting a three-run home run against the Detroit Tigers in the first inning at Great American Ball Park. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-Imagn Images | Aaron Doster-Imagn Images

With those kinds of statistics, Stewart is on pace to hit 54 home runs, 174 RBIs, and have 42 stolen bases. This puts him on track to become just the second player in Major League history to put together a 50-home-run, 40-stolen-base season. Shohei Ohtani is the only player to hit 50 home runs and steal more than…

The historical context is that De La Cruz is on pace to hit 54 home runs, steal 36 bases, and drive in 120 runs. Making them the first pair of teammates to record 50 home runs and 30 or more stolen bases in history.

Ohtani is the only player in Major League history to record a 50/30 season, a 50/40 season, and a 50/50 season. Ronald Acuna Jr. came close in 2023; he hit 41 home runs and stole 73 bases. He's the only player ever to have a 30/60, 40/60, and 40/70 season.

The season Stewart is having is ridiculous. He became the fourth rookie in MLB history to hit eight home runs and 23 or more RBIs before May, joining Pete Alonso, Jose Abreu, and Albert Pujols.

Best Season in Reds History

Elly De La Cruz stolen bas — Apr 11, 2026; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly de la Cruz (44) steals second base ahead of the tag from Los Angeles Angels second baseman Vaughn Grissom (5) in the first inning at Great American Ball Park. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-Imagn Images | Aaron Doster-Imagn Images

George Foster currently holds the record for the most RBIs in a single season in Reds' history with 149. Stewart is on pace to surpass it by 25. Foster is also the only player in Reds history to hit 50 or more home runs in a season. De La Cruz and Stewart are each on pace to do that in the same season. The Reds have never had a pair of teammates hit 35 or more home runs in the same season.

If one of De La Cruz or Stewart accomplishes a season that is projected, this will be the greatest season in Reds' history, let alone both of them in the same season.

Will they keep this pace up? Almost certainly not. Projections are fun, but this is an astounding pace for any player to be on. Most importantly, the Reds are winning games on the backs of these two star players.

On Pace for 100 Wins

Elly De La Cru — Apr 25, 2026; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly de la Cruz (44) reacts to the three-run home run hit by first baseman Sal Stewart, against the Detroit Tigers in the first inning at Great American Ball Park. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-Imagn Images | Aaron Doster-Imagn Images

The Reds are currently 18-9 and are off to their best start since the 2006 season. They are winning the close games, they are 11-0 in games decided by two runs or less, they are the only National League team to do this and are one win away from tying the all-time record of 12-0 set by the Milwaukee Brewers in 1987.

This has the Reds on pace to win 108 games. The last time they won 100 or more games was in 1976, when they won 102. Their all-time record is 108 wins; they set that in 1975. They have won 100 or more games just two other times in franchise history: 1970 (102) and 1940. They won 99 games in 1973. Since 2000, they have won 90 or more games just three times (2010, 2012, 2013).

This season is far from over. The Reds are currently leading the division, but the rest of the division is .500 or better.

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