Reds could play spoiler against MLB’s biggest playoff contenders

The Cincinnati Reds are still alive in the mathematical sense. September puts everyone else’s fate in their hands. Sitting in last place in the NL Central and needing to run the gauntlet to sniff the final Wild Card spot, Cincinnati’s 2026 postseason chances are essentially gone.

So this is where they get the chance to play spoiler. Every one of the Reds’ 24 September games comes against a team that either owns a playoff position or sits within three games of one. There’s no soft landing or series to sleepwalk through. They’re going to be playing pressure baseball all month, even if most of that pressure starts in the other dugout.

Every Reds opponent in September has something riding on October

The Reds open September with two games against the San Diego Padres after the series begins August 31. Then come three against the Milwaukee Brewers, three at the Los Angeles Dodgers, three more at Milwaukee and four more against Los Angeles. That is 13 consecutive games against two teams fighting over the National League’s best record and a first-round bye.

The Cubs visit next for three. Then they close with three games at Atlanta and three at Toronto. That’s really rough. Six teams with something important to lose, and the Reds can make them lose it.

September also needs to be an evaluation month for Cincinnati without becoming a surrender. The Reds should give younger players real reps, test relievers in leverage spots, and learn which hitters can adjust against playoff-caliber pitching. 

This schedule creates that pressure naturally. Those clubs will manage every inning like it matters, and the Reds should do the same. Cincinnati can prepare for 2027 while still trying to win every series. 

At the same time, playing spoiler is no achievement for a franchise that reached October in 2025. It’s more like a consolation prize, and a cheap one at that. The Reds made their own mess long before September arrived.

Still, 24 games against playoff-caliber opponents offer more value than a month of empty at-bats. Hitters will see quality pitching. Cincinnati’s starters will face stacked lineups. And what if the Reds somehow go on the unlikeliest of magical runs? Well, they’ll have earned it against some of the best teams the NL has to offer, with those opponents playing for October. 

That could open the door for a few familiar names. Edwin Arroyo is the obvious position-player candidate after his first major league stint ended without much impact. September would give Cincinnati another look at his bat and continued work at second base.

Tight games will expose which relievers can handle leverage and which ones are merely taking up innings. We can learn something useful, provided the Reds treat these games like more than a long runway into 2027.

Good teams are waiting on every line of the schedule in September, ready to expose exactly how far Cincinnati has to climb. The Reds already failed to make their own October matter. But they can still make everybody else’s a lot less comfortable.

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