The Cincinnati Reds suffered a rough loss in Game 1 of the NL Wild Card Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Things started poorly when Hunter Greene allowed a leadoff home run to Shohei Ohtani in the first inning, setting the tone for the night. Greene gave up three home runs in total and was pulled after just three innings, with the Reds already trailing 5-0.
By the seventh inning, the Reds were down 8-0 but managed to score twice. Austin Hays came home on a fielder’s choice, followed by an RBI double from Tyler Stephenson that drove in Elly De La Cruz. Despite the rally, the Reds ended the inning trailing 8-2 with two outs and a runner still in scoring position.
With the light-hitting Ke’Bryan Hayes due up next, Terry Francona refused to send out a pinch-hitter, and unsurprisingly, the Reds third baseman hit a soft ground ball to second base. Dodgers’ infielder Miguel Rojas threw on to first base to end the inning and and chance of a Reds’ rally.
Terry Francona’s postgame remarks regarding Sal Stewart will have Reds fans fuming
Many Reds fans were understandably frustrated that manager Terry Francona chose not to bring in Sal Stewart during the key scoring opportunity. The rookie had led the team with five home runs in September and had proven himself as a reliable option at third base.
Adding to the confusion, Francona inserted Stewart into the game the very next half-inning—but only as a defensive replacement. He replaced Spencer Steer at first base, with Steer shifting to left field to take over for Austin Hays. When questioned about the decision by Cincinnati reporter Charlie Goldsmith, Francona explained that the team was down by eight runs and he wanted to make sure Stewart got a chance to hit.
He can’t be serious, right? Sure, getting Stewart an at-bat is important—multiple, ideally—but that wasn’t the moment to treat like a developmental opportunity. Stewart has arguably been one of Cincinnati’s most productive hitters over the past few weeks, even as a rookie. Leaving him on the bench to begin with was already questionable, but choosing to keep Austin Hays in the game instead of using Stewart as a pinch-hitter in a critical seventh-inning spot? That’s baffling.
With the Reds trailing but finally showing signs of life, the decision not to bring in one of your hottest bats—especially when you’re trying to spark a comeback—just doesn’t make baseball sense. If the goal was to get Stewart an at-bat, why wait until the game’s essentially out of reach? That’s not managing to win; that’s managing like the outcome doesn’t matter.
Stewart drew an RBI walk during the Reds’ rally in the eighth inning. Cincinnati was then able to score two more runs, and close the gap to 10-5. But, with the bases loaded and two outs, Hayes was due up, and yet again, Francona refused to pinch hit for a player who owns a 65 OPS+.
Granted the two most likely options to replace Hayes — Gavin Lux and Will Benson — have struggled against left-handed pitching this season. But Hayes is almost an automatic out at this point, having gone 4-for-41 over his last 15 games.
The Reds will get another shot at the Dodgers in Game 2, and after watching Los Angeles light up the scoreboard with 10 runs in the opener, it’s clear Francona needs to shift his focus toward offense. That means Sal Stewart has to be in the starting lineup. Hayes, meanwhile, should start the game on the bench. If the Reds are lucky enough to have a lead in the later innings, then bringing in Hayes for his defense makes sense.
It’s a simple call—play your best hitters in a must-win game—but Francona seems determined to overthink it.
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