Matt McLain faces make-or-break opportunity in the second half with Reds

In the lead up to the All-Star break, the Cincinnati Reds made a surprising roster swap. The Reds brought back Ke'Bryan Hayes at the expense of Matt McLain, who hit the 10-day injured list with a calf strain. Hayes appeared in two games before the All-Star break, going 1-for-7, and he may be limited to platoon duty for the remainder of the 2026 campaign.

The more pressing concern is McLain, who already seemed like the odd-man out on the roster prior landing on the IL. He'd been playing on a semi-regular basis even if he wasn't in the starting lineup, which is a byproduct of his elite-level defensive skills. It's impossible, however, to ignore his offensive struggles this year.

McLain's hitting .190/.293/.328, which is merely a continuation of his downturn in 2025, when he posted a .643 OPS as an encore to his brilliant rookie campaign. The reeling Reds will probably be able to afford McLain more at-bats during the second half than he otherwise deserves, though that audition could prove fateful for his future in Cincinnati.

Matt McLain's second half will have outsized importance on Reds' offseason plans

Fans already saw the Reds pull the plug on one lineup stalwart earlier in the year when they demoted TJ Friedl to Triple-A; though that came when contention in the NL Central didn't seem like so much of a pipe dream. Now more than 15 games removed from that conversation, odds are the team will be subtracting at the trade deadline, rather than adding.

Still, even if spots open up on the active roster, McLain will have to earn his way back into Terry Francona's good graces. He does a lot of the little things well, which have endeared him to the skipper, but it's just impossible to justify starting a player with a batting average below the Mendoza Line after more than 300 plate appearances.

It helps his case that a lot of the Reds' lineup is underperforming this year, though that's hardly a reprieve when his two primary positions (shortstop and second base) currently feature Elly De La Cruz and Edwin Arroyo.

In actuality, all fans are looking for is any modicum of improvement from McLain. He was a monster against heaters as a rookie (+10 cumulative run value) but has since become a liability against the fastball (-7 run value in 2026). That would be a nice place to make some gains, especially now that his bat speed has jumped by about 1.5 mph since 2023.

If McLain continues to falter during the second half, the Reds will have no choice but to attack the offseason with the intention of finding his replacement (or at least some additional competition).

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