Reds manager Terry Francona finally says the quiet part out loud about Spencer Steer

Spencer Steer has come up clutch on multiple occasions over the past week, and he's finally beginning to look like the player that the Cincinnati Reds' fanbase knows and loves.

Steer's three-run home run in the seventh inning against the Chicago Cubs on Tuesday night put the Reds up for good and helped secure a series win against one of Cincinnati's fiercest division rivals (and a team they're chasing in the standings).

Steer's struggles in the early-going of 2025 were evident, but his manager stuck with him. Following Steer's heroics on Tuesday night, Terry Francona spoke very highly of the Reds first baseman and revealed what most fans already knew.

Reds manager Terry Francona finally says the quiet part out loud about Spencer Steer

Steer spoke with FanDuel Sports Network reporter Jim Day after the game, "What happened in the past happened in the past," Steer said of his early season struggles. "I'm just trying to find a way to be a tough out that day and help the team win."

Day also had a conversation with Francona after the game as well, and spoke to the Reds skipper about Steer's post-game comments. "Well, what I would say is, if you take his first 50-60 at-bats away, his numbers aren't down," Francona said. "And he did that because he's a team guy. He probably shouldn't have been playing. So, he's the guy he is right now."

Steer battled a shoulder injury during spring training and was initially going to be kept off the Reds Opening Day roster. But the injury to Austin Hays thrust Steer back onto the roster, albeit as the teams' DH only.

If you take away — as Francona suggested — Steer's first 59 plate appearances, you'll see that he's now hitting .260/.324/.424 with a 105 wRC+. During his first two-plus seasons, Steer posted a .245/.335/.425 slash line with a 106 wRC+. It would seem that Tito is 100% accurate in his evaluation. Steer's return to form began after he was able to return to playing the field in late-April.

Baseball junkies will always tell you that a player's stats even out over 162 games, and Steer is living proof of that. Reds fans are hoping for more of the same from Steer over the final two months of the season, as Cincinnati is hoping to return to the playoffs for the first time since 2020.

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