Ke'Bryan

Hayes

Hayes is officially dealing with a lumbar bulging disc injury, and the move is retroactive to May 21. Eugenio Suárez (oblique) was reinstated off the IL as the corresponding move. Hayes hasn’t come close to matching the offensive upside he flashed back in 2020, but he was hitting poorly even by his standards this season, entering Friday with a .142/.195/.225 slash line. He wasn’t playing every day prior to this injury and remains under contract through 2029.

Ouch. Hayes is hitting a pretty incredible .142/.195/.225 through 128 plate appearances. Statcast thinks he’s been extremely unlucky, as he entered tonight with a .262 xBA and a .417 xSLG. He has underachieved some on his xSLG previously, but never like this, and his average and xBA have always matched up very closely prior to this year. Hayes also has a career-best 16 percent strikeout rate. So, he’s probably not going to continue to be anywhere near this bad. It’s just hard to sell Reds fans on that idea right now.

Stewart had a big game on Tuesday night as he looks to break out of his cold stretch. However, what’s more important here is that this could be a pathway to future playing time for him and the Reds. With Eugenio Suarez (oblique) nearing a return and Nathaniel Lowe hitting well, Stewart could see more time at third base when everybody is healthy at the expense of Ke’Bryan Hayes’ playing time.

Lowe has been swinging a hot bat for the Reds, slashing .273/.333/.636 with six homers and 11 RBI over 60 plate appearances in his last 16 games. He’ll get a breather in this one though. Sal Stewart will serve as the team’s designated hitter while Spencer Steer covers first base and Ke’Bryan Hayes draws a start at the hot corner.

Stewart has made five appearances at third base this season, but this is his first start. He started four games for the Reds there last year and plenty in the minor leagues, so we know he can play the position. What’s most interesting is that this allows the Reds to get Nathaniel Lowe in the lineup at first base and could open up a path to play both Stewart and Lowe when Eugenio Suarez (oblique) is off the IL and back at DH. This could be bad news for Ke’Bryan Hayes’ playing time.

It doesn’t sound like anything overly concerning, so the 34-year-old slugger should be considered day-to-day. Ke’Bryan Hayes will man the hot corner and bat ninth for the Reds while Nathaniel Lowe functions as the designated hitter against Framber Valdez and the Tigers on Friday evening in Cincinnati.

Hayes snapped an 0-for-33 stretch at the dish with an infield single that traveled exactly two feet, per Statcast. It was his first hit since April 5. The 29-year-old third baseman is a phenomenal defender but at some point he has to start producing something at the plate to justify being in the lineup.

Hayes hasn’t had a hit since April 5 and is slashing a pitiful .064/.137/.064 with one RBI and a 4/4 K/BB ratio in 51 plate appearances on the season. It doesn’t matter how good he picks it at third base, that level of offense isn’t going to cut it. Nathaniel Lowe will start as the team’s designated hitter and bat sixth while Eugenio Suarez mans the hot corner.

Hayes has not gotten a hit since April 5 and is working on a 26 plate appearance streak where he has two walks to show for it. Terry Francona said ahead of today’s game “Trevino said something about getting a chicken and having it sacrificed. I told him if we need to, we’ll get a human. We’ll find somebody.” It wouldn’t be surprising if Hayes lost some playing time, even though he is a remarkable defensive 3B, as this slump continues.

Hayes is 6-for-30 with one extra-base hit this spring, and it’s going to be interesting to see just how committed the Reds are to him at third if he doesn’t hit early in the regular season. They have four theoretical alternatives at third in Eugenio Suárez, Sal Stewart, Spencer Steer and Noelvi Marte. Suárez started there three times before leaving for the WBC, suggesting that he might be Francona’s preferred choice. Stewart has played there just once, while the other two haven’t been used there at all. Christian Encarnacion-Strand also got three starts at third before being sent down. Most likely, Hayes is going to be the everyday guy at the beginning of the season, but the Reds might be tempted to keep Nathaniel Lowe on the roster if they want to think of Hayes as more of a part-timer.