PITTSBURGH – Two things worth noting about these playoff-hyped, last-place Cincinnati Reds as they crossed the halfway point of the season:
Welcome to the second half of Reds Baseball 2026, which promises an exercise in July urgency followed by the specter of trade-deadline sharks circling and – barring a sudden glut of wins against the likes of the Brewers, Phillies and Cubs – faded playoff talk, increased finger pointing and non-stop job-security speculation.
That’s the hard truth about the half-full, three-quarters-empty season they’ve constructed so far – even in the wake of all the feel-good vibes coming out of a winning weekend in Pittsburgh.
“To win a series is huge. We’ve just gotta keep grinding,” team president Nick Krall said.
Also: “We’ve got to figure out how to get better,” he said.
In fact, the Reds won a series against a division opponent for the first time this season when they came back for dramatic wins the first two games before losing Sunday’s finale 9-4 thanks to a pair of Ryan O’Hearn home runs: a go-ahead solo shot off Brady Singer after the Reds had rallied again from a 4-0 deficit to tie, and then a three-run shot off Pierce Johnson in the eighth.
Emerlyn Valdez made it back-to-back off Johnson with a shot to left to make it 9-4 . Dennis Santana pitched the ninth, walking Elly De La Cruz with two outs.
When they clinched their third series win in the last four overall, on Eugenio Suárez’s emotional home run Saturday night, the Reds reached the halfway mark of the year with the following numbers to show for the 81 games:
The Reds first half by the numbers
None of those numbers point to any reason to think this team is good enough to find a path to the playoffs in the second half.
But they did finish April with a 20-11 record that was good enough to lead the division. And a slew of injuries since then have are beginning to turn into the promise of important pieces returning from the injured list – including closer Emilio Pagán presumably in the next few days and All-Star starter Hunter Greene as soon as next weekend.
Greene pitched 6 1/3 scoreless innings in an 82-pitch rehab start for Triple-A Louisville on Sunday and could be activated to make his season debut against the Orioles Friday or Saturday at Great American Ball Park.
Pagán pitched a scoreless inning in the same game, and his next step could be joining the Reds for their big series this week in Milwaukee.
Krall has major decisions looming ahead of the Aug. 3 trade deadline but remains hopeful a healthier version of a team that made the playoffs last year and is managed by a Hall of Fame-bound Terry Francona can turn the worm in the coming days and weeks.
“We still have the same guys we had (that made the playoffs),” he said. “I think we’ve got a good group, and we’ve just gotta go out and win games.”
Statistics from the Reds’ first half
For now, here are some of the 81-game numbers that better tell more of the story of the first half:
“We’ve had some players step up. Chase Burns has pitched really well, and Sal has take the reins of an everyday player,” Krall said. “(JJ) Bleday’s come back from (struggles) last year.
“At the same time we’ve got to figure out how to win more games,” he said.
Especially in the NL Central, where they are still just 4-17 despite the series breakthrough in Pittsburgh as they headed to Milwaukee for another bout with the first-place Brewers.
“It’s been bad,” Krall said. “That’s been the biggest challenge.”
Do they have time to yet make noise this year? Enough time for a winning streak to influence trade-deadline decisions? Enough noise to even become relevant at some point in the second half?
Krall has said repeatedly he’s looking for a reason to add at the deadline. And he seems to still be holding out for a sign as the team heads into his final 10-game sprint to the All-Star break.
“This group doesn’t quit,” he said. “That’s a testament to Tito and the coaching staff and the players we have in here. We need to just keep working and keep growing.”
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Are last-place Reds half full or three-fourths empty at midpoint?
Reporting by Gordon Wittenmyer, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
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By Gordon Wittenmyer, Cincinnati Enquirer | USA TODAY Network
