This Reds prospect quietly transformed into a 2026 breakout candidate

In 2023, the Cincinnati Reds made a $1.2 million bet that then 17-year-old Taiwanese star Sheng-En Lin could become their version of Shohei Ohtani. Well, maybe not Ohtani. That's an impossible ask for a teenager. What they were getting was a two-way player, and there was a hope that the youngster could stick and be a productive piece in both facets of the game.

Cincinnati took an interesting approach with the unique youngster, starting him out as only a position player. There were some initial promising results as Lin played both third base and shortstop in 2024 in the Arizona Complex League, but a 31.6% strikeout rate at the introductory level didn't bode well.

After struggling to hit again in the ACL in 2025, the Reds made a decision. They promoted him to Single-A Daytona and gave up the hitting part of being a two-way player. As a pitcher between the ACL and Daytona, he was impressive. Now 20, the right-hander posted a combined 3.06 ERA with a 31.8% strikeout rate and a 7.8% walk rate. He'll go into 2026 as a pitcher, and some believe that the sky is the limit.

Sheng-En Lin named a Reds' breakout prospect to watch in 2026

MLB.com's Sam Dykstra has named Lin a breakout prospect for 2026. He's already the Reds' No. 11 prospect, but a strong showing this season could have him shooting up the charts even higher.

At just 5-foot-11, he's not the biggest pitcher on the mound, and his velocity is only average. But as Dykstra notes, he's got some impressive characteristics on his fastball, including 18 to 20 inches of ride, that make it play well beyond its 93 mph velocity. Combined with some advanced strike-throwing ability, and you can see where the promise lies.

“He has a natural ability to pitch,” Reds director of player development Jeremy Farrell said. “I don't want to call him Rhett Lowder or anything like that, but it's similar in the sense that he's not going to overpower you with 98-100 [mph]. He’s going to add and subtract. He has a feel for a changeup and a split. He's going to throw strikes. He's going to read swings. So it's kind of a traditional approach in a sense.”

Lowder will be on the Reds' Opening Day roster and is one of the most exciting youngsters in the Reds organization. Lin drawing any sort of comparison to him is a huge deal, especially for the reason that Farrell gave.

The former two-way player is so young and has had his attention divided for so long that it's a surprise that he's as polished as he is on the mound. As Lin fills out and gets stronger, he might add a touch to the fastball velocity, but as we've seen time and time again, knowing how to pitch is much more important than being able to blow batters away.

Now that Lin has a singular focus, making a gigantic leap shouldn't come as a shock. Most of the Reds' top arms are knocking on the big league door, so if Lin can produce in the lower minors this year, it will do wonders for ensuring that the pitching pipeline is stocked down the road.