CINCINNATI — There was no shortage of optimism inside the Cincinnati Convention Center on Friday and Saturday as the Reds held RedsFest, a celebration of the team, its long and distinguished heritage and a chance to sell the 2026 team to its fanbase.
Elly De La Cruz, Noelvi Marte and Matt McLain were three of the stars to speak Friday, all expressing optimism based on how they’ve spent the offseason getting stronger and being more ready to produce at a high level in 2026.
The biggest question is how can the 2025 team, which is mostly intact, build upon a playoff appearance in 2025 and achieve bigger and better things in 2026?
“I think it’s a lot to build on since last year, we got there. We got our feet wet with the playoffs, like, just having the exposure of being in there, knowing what we’re going to have to do to get there, and maybe trying to get better at limiting losing streaks, and big negative things in the middle of the season, so that we don’t have to stress about when we’re getting in,” Reds lefty Andrew Abbott told me. “It was fun to be around those guys, fun to make that run, fun to be involved. And I think the sky’s the limit with this team, with the potential, with everybody staying healthy, with all the pieces that we need to to really go and grab something maybe a little bit higher this year.”
The Reds haven’t made the playoffs in back-to-back seasons since 2012 and 2013 and haven’t won a playoff game since Game 2 of the 2012 NLDS in San Francisco, a run of eight straight playoff defeats. They’ve never won a postseason game in Great American Ball Park in four chances. They are 2-15 in their last 17 postseason games.
In other words, Reds fans, when their team has reached the playoffs in the last three decades, haven’t enjoyed a lot of success. That’s why a little dose of optimism this weekend couldn’t hurt.
De La Cruz played through a significant quadriceps injury in 2025, playing all 162 games. He’s determined to be healthier and stronger this season and manager Terry Francona will no doubt put a governor on the engine inside Elly’s Lamborghini frame.
Reds President of Baseball Operations Nick Krall told MLB.com Friday that the team made an offer last spring to De La Cruz that would’ve made him the highest-paid Reds player in history, surpassing the 10-year, $225 million deal Joey Votto signed in 2012. But De La Cruz made it clear Friday, his mind is set on this season and playing at a higher level, offensively and defensively.
“I want to take everything to the next step,” De La Cruz told Mark Sheldon of MLB.com. “I’m not going to settle down with something. I always want more and more. I don’t believe in (being) at the top. There’s always something to achieve. There’s always a way to get better. You never get to the highest level.”
De La Cruz still managed to slash .264/.336/.440 with 22 home runs, 86 RBIs and 37 steals in 2025.
Matt McLain is not a .220/.320/.343 slash hitter. The Reds are confident in believing his numbers are closer to what he demonstrated in 2023, when he slashed .290/.357/.507 with 16 homers in just 83 big league games. He belted 15 homers last season as his power surged in the final six weeks of the season.
Then there’s Noelvi Marte. His move to right field unlocked his full potential, both as a slugger at the plate and a gifted athlete in the outfield. The argument could easily be made that Marte holds the key to how this Reds team could reach its full potential in 2026. He slashed .263/.300/.448 with 14 homers in 90 games.
Early look at the possible lineup:
CF TJ Friedl
SS Elly De La Cruz
DH Sal Stewart
RF Noelvi Marte
C Tyler Stephenson
1B Spencer Steer
LF JJ Bleday
2B Matt McLain
3B Ke’Bryan Hayes
Nick Krall said on Thursday he’d like to add at least one more position player to the roster by the opening of spring training in Goodyear.
But the Reds, early on, will be driven by their pitching, with a rotation of Hunter Greene, Nick Lodolo, Andrew Abbott, Brady Singer and Chase Burns, Rhett Lowder and Brandon Williamson battling it out for the fifth spot. Then there’s the bullpen of Emilio Pagan, Graham Ashcraft, Pierce Johnson, Connor Phillips, Brock Burke, Caleb Ferguson, Sam Moll, Chase Petty, Luis Mey and Zach Maxwell, among others.
“I love that role, and I appreciate it and cherish each opportunity, but like, I think you’re crazy to go into a season and say this is what’s going to happen here,” Pagan said of his career-high 32 saves in 2025. “I don’t think anybody saw me having 32 saves last year, myself included. There are so many unknowns, especially in the in the bullpen of Major League Baseball.
“I know we’ve got a lot of talented arms and adding Caleb and pierce guys that have pitched in the playoffs and have pretty much done any role in the bullpen in their career. It’s going to enhance our bullpen, for sure. And so whatever role they’re in, that’s going to change. It’s going to be fluid. Tito knows what he’s doing. He’s going to put us in good spot to be successful. And I think, to a man, as long as we’re winning games, I don’t think anybody really cares when we’re throwing.”
“I’m excited,” Abbott added. “Still got to go and prove it. Still got to go in and earn it, in my mind. So I think everyone’s going to be hungry, ready to get after it. And also, like using an event like this to kind of meet them, see them again, talk to them, see how things are going. And then we get to spring training. It’s just go to work.”
On the main stage during Redsfest, the Reds and the local chapter of the Baseball Writers’ Association of America tonight announced the 2025 award winners.
Andrew Abbott was named the winner of both the Ernie Lombardi Award as the team’s Most Valuable Player and the Johnny Vander Meer Award as the club’s Most Outstanding Pitcher (29gs, 10-7, 2.87era, 166.1ip, 60r/53er, 148h, 43bb, 149k). He is the sixth Reds pitcher since the Vander Meer Award was established in 1969 to receive both awards in the same season. Abbott is also the seventh Reds pitcher to be recognized as the team’s MVP since the award was introduced in 1955.
This past season, Abbott was named a National League All-Star, recognized as a finalist for the All-MLB team, and received votes for both the NL Cy Young Award and Rawlings Gold Glove Award. His 2.87 ERA ranked fifth among qualified National League pitchers and was the best mark by a Red with at least 29 starts in a campaign since Johnny Cueto (2.25) in 2014.
Emilio Pagán was named the winner of the Joe Nuxhall Good Guy Award presented by TriHealth (2-4-32, 2.88era, 70g, 68.2ip, 26r/22er, 41h, 22bb, 81k). Pagán, who was re-signed by the Reds to a 1-year contract through 2026 (with a player option for 2027) on December 4, was a finalist for the All-MLB team after posting career bests in both appearances and saves last season. He also posted the third-lowest WHIP (0.92) by a Reds pitcher with at least 250 batters faced in a single season in the last 125 years.
Sal Stewart received the Sheldon “Chief” Bender Award as the Reds’ Minor League Player of the Year (.309/.383/.524, 20hr, 34 2b, 78r, 80rbi, 46bb, 17sb in 118 games with AA-Chattanooga and AAA-Louisville). Stewart was named the Southern League Most Valuable Player, selected to the league’s All-Star team, and represented the Reds organization in the All-Star Futures Game this past season. He later made his Major League debut with 18 appearances for the Reds and appeared in both games of the National League Wild Card Series against Los Angeles.
Chase Burns was named the organization’s Minor League Pitcher of the Year (7-3, 1.77era, 13gs, 66ip, 89k, 13bb with A-Dayton, AA-Chattanooga, and AAA-Louisville). Burns, who celebrates his 23rd birthday today, this year made a combined 13 starts across Cincinnati’s top 3 full-season affiliates before making his Major League debut on June 24 vs New York-AL. The Reds’ first-round selection (2nd overall) in the 2024 first-year player draft, Burns posted 4 double-digit strikeout games in his first 8 career appearances, most by any Major Leaguer in that span since 1893.
Catcher Alfredo Duno was named the Reds’ Minor League Position Player of the Year (.287/.430/.518, 18hr, 32 2b, 81rbi, 78r, 95bb in 113g with A-Daytona). Duno, who turned 20 on January 7, was recognized as the Florida State League Most Valuable Player, selected to the league’s All-Star team, and represented the Reds organization in the All-Star Futures game this past season. He led the Florida State League in several offensive categories, including doubles (32), home runs (18), extra-base hits (52), RBI (81), on-base percentage (.430), slugging percentage (.518), OPS (.948), walks (95), total bases (202), and runs (78).
