Rece Hinds' breakout could spark hope for this forgotten Reds prospect

Rece Hinds may not be having success at the big-league level this season, but the former second-round pick has shown massive improvements in the minor leagues. In 107 games with the Louisville Bats, Hinds is hitting .302/.359/.563 with 24 home runs, 83 RBI, and 21 stolen bases.

Moreover, Hinds has cut down on his strikeouts dramatically. The 25-year-old slugger has a 25.9% strikeout rate, which is a tremendous drop from the 37.9% K rate he owned during 99 games at Triple-A last season. Though there's not enough space on the Reds roster at the moment, fans are assuming that Hinds could have an impact on the team in 2026.

Many Reds fans gave up on Hinds after watching his performance last season. Sure, there was a lot of thump in his bat, but a strikeout rate approaching 40% makes even the best power-hitter virtually unplayable. But after seeing Hinds recover and post more respectable numbers this season, perhaps all hope is not lost for another Reds prospect.

Rece Hinds' breakout could spark hope for forgotten Reds prospect Austin Hendrick

Austin Hendrick was the Reds' first-round selection during the 2020 MLB Draft. A high school outfielder from Pennsylvania, Hendrick arrived to the Reds organization with the promise of a big-time bat. Unfortunately, Hendrick has been somewhat of a bust since being taken with the 12th overall pick in 2020.

Hendrick's raw power is off the charts, but an unsustainable strikeout saw him disappear from every single prospect evaluator's top-100. The last year that Hendrick was even seen in that light was in 2021 when MLB Pipeline labeled him as the 85th-best prospect in baseball.

Hendrick hit just .188/.243/.288 with 11 homers and a 52 wRC+ last season while at Double-A Chattanooga. This season, however, he's posted a .246/.322/.422 slash line with a 113 wRC+. Better yet, his strikeout rate has dropped four points from 36.5% to 32.5%. His ISO has jumped from .101 to .176, and he's even increased his walk rate by four points. In other words, something finally clicked for Hendrick this season.

It seems unlikely that Cincinnati will need to add Hendrick to the 40-man roster this season in order to protect him from the Rule 5 Draft, though you'd have to think that's at least on the table. Nevertheless, if Hendrick remains with the Reds organization heading into 2026, he could follow Hinds' path and be one of the emerging power hitters in the team's farm system.

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