Reds prospect call-up excites fans and immediately sparks demand for more

Reports on Thursday revealed that the Cincinnati Reds plan to select the contract of Zach Maxwell ahead of Friday's game against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Maxwell, affectionately known as Big Sugar, will be making his Major League debut with the Reds after an impressive run of late with the Louisville Bats.

Maxwell had an outstanding showing in spring training, and many Reds fans assumed he would've received a call-up to the big leagues much earlier than this. An up-and-down season in the minors, however, kept the Reds' front office from pulling the trigger, as Maxwell battled control and command issues in the early-going.

Nevertheless, the hard-throwing right-hander appears to have worked out all the kinks, and has a 0.96 ERA and 13 strikeouts during the month of August. Cincinnati cleared a roster spot for Maxwell during their off-day on Thursday after optioning fellow fireballer Luis Mey back to Triple-A Louisville.

Zach Maxwell call-up excites Reds fans and immediately sparks demand for Sal Stewart

With Maxwell slated to meet the Reds in desert, the fanbase's attention will now turn to another top prospect — Sal Stewart. The 21-year-old has been on a torrid stretch at Triple-A, and with Cincinnati struggling to put runs on the board, Reds fans are (understandably) hoping to see Stewart in the majors very soon.

The Cincinnati faithful may in fact get their wish, but it would seem that Stewart's debut will have to wait until at least next week. The Reds top prospect was in the Louisville Bats lineup on Thursday night, and if he were going to make his MLB debut alongside Maxwell, he'd have been on flight out to Arizona.

Stewart did, however, line up at second base for second game in a row. That could be a rather obvious sign as to the Reds' intentions once they finally decide to promote Stewart to the big leagues. Given Ke'Bryan Hayes' presence at third base, Spencer Steer's Gold Glove-caliber defense at first base, and Matt McLain's struggles at the dish, the Reds' decision shouldn't be all that difficult.

Stewart had a go-ahead sacrifice fly for the Bats on Thursday night, giving him 25 RBI in 30 games at Triple-A. Though there are certainly questions and concerns when it comes to promoting such a young and inexperienced prospect, Stewart has done nothing but rake since arriving in Triple-A. Reds fans are itching to see Stewart make his MLB debut, and he may have forced the team's hand at this point.

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