Slumping Reds bat could force Terry Francona into an uncomfortable lineup change

Austin Hays' extended slump has gone somewhat under the radar since the All-Star break. The Cincinnati Reds outfielder, who's been used as primarily as the team's DH of late, has been one of the team's worst hitters, and it's time to wonder if Terry Francona will bump Hays out of the cleanup spot and move him further down in the lineup.

Hays has hit cleanup in 60-plus games this season, which was the plan coming out of spring training. Francona spoke endlessly about Hays batting cleanup to protect Elly De La Cruz, but his recent slump has become a hindrance.

De La Cruz's numbers haven't been the same since the All-Star break — though he's not been as bad as Hays. Though the two slumping simultaneously could prove coincidental, Francona's stated goal seems meaningless if a .200 hitter (post-break) is hitting behind De La Cruz. Hays' strength lies against lefties, which should lead Francona to let him bat cleanup against southpaws only.

Austin Hays' slump is forcing Reds manager Terry Francona into an uncomfortable lineup change

Francona has proven stubborn when it comes to moving key players up and down in the lineup — Matt McLain being the best example of that. McLain hit second in the Reds lineup for weeks until Francona inevitably dropped him to the bottom of the batting order. Unfortunately, if Hays is moved down in the order — solely against right-handed pitching — there aren't many options to replace him.

Noelvi Marté's presence would certainly be respected in the cleanup role. He's batting over .300 against right-handed pitching this season; which is surprising after his disastrous 2024 campaign. No other Reds player strikes real fear into the heart of opposing pitchers, so leaving Hays in the cleanup spot may be best of a bad situation.

Reds' fans endured a honeymoon phase with Hays to begin the season, but it's worn off of late. Despite struggling with injuries early on, Hays hit .365 through his first 13 games with the Reds in April, which proved Francona's lineup strategy effective. Since then, however, fans have been treated to little more than mediocrity from the veteran left fielder.

The Reds' top outfield prospect Hector Rodriguez has been lighting up Triple-A since his promotion. It's only a matter of time before the 21-year-old prospect gains an opportunity with the big league club, which could come as soon as this month.

The front office made a great decision to sign Hays to a team-friendly deal during the offseason. The outfielder has produced clutch hits and played solid defense, but hasn't lived up to the expectation of an everyday cleanup hitter. If he doesn't turn it around in the near future, Francona may have no choice but to move him down in the lineup, and attempt to protect De La Cruz with a different bat.

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