Sal Stewart's meteoric rise turned a painful Reds decision into an easy one

Sal Stewart has quickly become a fan-favorite in the city of Cincinnati. The young rookie was batting cleanup for the Cincinnati Reds on Opening Day, and his .366/.471/.683 slash line through the first two weeks of the season has easily justified that decision.

Stewart looks like the real deal, which made it all the easier for the Reds to part with Christian Encarnacion-Strand earlier this week. Cincinnati needed to make a corresponding move after selecting the contract of P.J. Higgins on Wednesday, and the Reds choose to designate Encarncion-Strand for assignment.

Reds' DFA decision was easy thanks to Sal Stewart

CES, as he was known throughout Reds Country, burst onto the scene in 2023 and fans quickly gravitated toward him thanks to his prodigious power. Encarnacion-Strand walloped 13 home runs in 63 games as a rookie and posted an .805 OPS with a .477 slugging percentage.

But injuries derailed his ascent in 2024, and poor performance followed. Encarnacion-Strand played in just 29 games during his second season in Cincinnati, and a wrist injury that eventually resulted in surgery, landed him on the 60-day IL. Encarnacion-Strand returned to the field in 2025, but appeared in just 36 games and hit .208 with a .610 OPS.

The Reds yo-yo'd Encarnacion-Strand back and forth between Triple-A and the big leagues until midway through the 2025 season. Cincinnati finally decided it was best for his development to remain in the minors throughout the rest of the season, and he closed out his campaign hitting a meager .229/.287/.458 with a 25.4% strikeout rate.

The Reds are hoping that Stewart doesn't follow the same path that doomed CES, and at the moment, it appears he's on an upward trajectory. Stewart began last season at Double-A Chattanooga, and after hitting .306 with a 146 wRC+ through 80 games, the Reds promoted him to Triple-A.

Stewart continued to mash at the upper-level of the minor leagues, hitting .315 with a 164 wRC+ in 38 games with the Louisville Bats. The Reds added Stewart to the Major League roster for the final month of the season, and he was one of the team's key performers during their brief playoff appearance against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Stewart has voiced his desire to remain with the Reds organization for the long haul, but to date, there've been no reports of a contract extension. Given Encarnacion-Strand's fall from grace, some Reds fans are rightfully hesitant to hitch their wagon to Stewart. But the Reds rookie has continued to prove the doubters wrong, and there's every reason to believe that will continue.