The Reds have a huge series coming up against the Atlanta Braves after taking two of three from the New York Mets this past week. The Braves are one of the best teams in baseball, currently sitting at 38-19.
Atlanta has been one of the most complete offensive teams in baseball during the 2026 season. The Braves lead MLB with 507 hits and also sit 1st in the league in RBIs with 293, showing just how consistently they have created scoring opportunities. Their lineup has combined contact and power at a high level, ranking 2nd in home runs with 77 while posting a .432 team slugging percentage that ranks 3rd in baseball. They have also hit for average all season long, carrying a .259 batting average that ranks 3rd in MLB, while their .324 on-base percentage ranks 9th. Overall, Atlanta’s offense has been one of the biggest reasons they have remained near the top of the National League standings.
The Braves have also backed that offense with one of the strongest pitching staffs in the majors. Atlanta owns a 3.15 team ERA, good for 4th in MLB, and the staff has consistently kept games under control throughout the season. They rank 3rd in innings pitched and 3rd in hits allowed with only 396, while also ranking 4th in both earned runs and total runs allowed. Their pitchers have combined durability with swing-and-miss ability as well, recording 501 strikeouts, which ranks 6th in baseball.
And it is just that prowess on the mound that should lead the Reds to question whether some changes to the lineup are in order to keep them competitive moving forward.
One of those tough decisions comes at second base.
In the beginning of May, McLain looked like one of the hottest hitters in baseball during a scorching nine-game stretch. It looked like he had perhaps turned a corner in his development after an extremely difficult 2025. Over 36 plate appearances, he slashed .367/.457/.733 with 3 home runs and 10 RBIs and a 226 wRC+.
But since then he has been mired in the depths of yet another slump. Over his last 35 plate appearances, McLain has resumed his struggles at the plate, recording just 3 hits for a .088 batting average with a .114 on-base percentage and a .118 slugging percentage. He has scored 2 runs, driven in 1 RBI, and stolen 1 base during that stretch, but he has also struck out in 31.4% of his plate appearances while walking only once.
Through 54 games and 218 plate appearances in 2026, he is hitting just .199 with a .295 on-base percentage and a .325 slugging percentage. He has only 5 home runs, 20 RBIs and 21 runs scored. McLain has managed a paltry 75 wRC+ despite showing some flashes of promise at the plate this year.
So many Reds fans were behind McLain to rebound and show a return on all the talent he demonstrated after being called up in 2023. But there have been so many more downs than ups for the fan favorite since his return from injury. And it’s fair to ask if a stretch in AAA might straighten out what might be wrong with McLain, especially with the talent waiting in the wings in Louisville.
And that talent’s name is Edwin Arroyo.
It’s hard to make the case that he has anything left to prove as a part of the Louisville Bats. In 50 games in AAA this year he is hitting .335 with a .397 on-base percentage and a .576 slugging percentage, with a ridiculous .973 OPS. He’s also scored 40 runs and driven in 33. Arroyo has also shown improved power with 10 home runs, 9 doubles, and 5 triples already this season.
Arroyo is ranked the 23rd best prospect in baseball by The Athletic’s Keith Law, and it is easy to see why.
Across his last 107 plate appearances, he is batting .390 with a .430 on-base percentage and a massive .740 slugging percentage. He has also added 17 extra-base hits, including 7 home runs, while keeping his strikeout rate at just 11.2%.
It would be a tough ask to have Arroyo make his debut against the Braves. But at the same time, even if he were to be promoted to a bench or supplemental role in this series it may be an upgrade over a struggling McLain. And with Spencer Steer able to play primarily at second until Arroyo is completely ready, now is as good a time as any to see him punch his ticket to the big leagues.
And if Arroyo is ready to punch his ticket back, another Red might be ready to return to Cincinnati’s lineup.
TJ Friedl has struggled offensively during the 2026 season so far for the Reds. Through 150 at-bats, he is hitting .180 with just 2 home runs, 8 RBIs, and a .522 OPS.
Could Noelvi Marte be the answer there? He has been playing more in center field in AAA and his bat is more than ready for a call up.
In 35 games for the Bats, Marte is hitting .379 with a .426 on-base percentage and a .600 slugging percentage, good for a 1.026 OPS. He has 53 hits in 140 at-bats, with 5 doubles, 1 triple, 8 home runs, 27 runs scored, and 26 RBIs.
Marte is one of the more polarizing players in the Reds minor league system. His 2025 campaign was statistically promising. He hit .263 with a .300 on-base percentage and a strong .448 slugging percentage, finishing with a .748 OPS across 360 plate appearances. But his struggles over the last months of 2025 and the beginning of 2026 led to him being sent down.
At this point, however, the Reds have a few players they could jettison in the outfield, even apart from Friedl. Through 41 games, Will Benson is hitting only .179 with 2 home runs, 5 RBIs, and 10 runs scored, and could also be seeing a demotion sooner rather than later.
Though the promotions of Arroyo and Marte may not solve all of the Reds problems, they would go a long way to bolstering a lineup that is hitting better as of late, but still has far too many holes to be a legitimate contender.
And there’s no time like the present to see if a shakeup could do this team some good heading into one of their most challenging series of the year.
