Why Reds may part ways with Ke'Bryan Hayes not long after Pirates trade

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Why Reds may part ways with Ke'Bryan Hayes not long after Pirates trade originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

The Cincinnati Reds traded with NL Central rival Pittsburgh last season to acquire the Pirates' Gold Glove third baseman, Ke'Bryan Hayes.

Hayes' bat, though, is anything but golden, and that could ruin things in a hurry in Cincy.

Any kind of decision is delayed at the moment, because Hayes is on the Injured List.

But eventually, the Reds are going to have to make a choice. Can they tolerate Hayes' lack of thump in the box?

This season, he has just a .142 average, .195 on-base percentage and .225 slugging percentage. That's horrific.

"Hayes landed on the IL late last week because of a back problem, but the two-time Gold Glove winner at third base was struggling to generate any offense, well below even his .573 OPS in 2024 and .595 in 2025," ESPN's David Schoenfield wrote in a new article this week.

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What will Reds do when Ke'Bryan Hayes gets back?​

Schoenfield warns the Reds may look to push Hayes aside, at least to the bench if not more.

"This is a little tricky since Hayes is signed through 2029 and the Reds don't want to punt on his contract," Schoenfield writes. "But he's not making that much money at $7 million in 2026 and 2027 and then $8 million and 2028 and 2029 -- and he simply hasn't hit for a long time now."

The Reds can't afford to have a total zero in the lineup, even if he's got a great glove.

"The Reds, desperate for offense, might have no choice but to move on here," Schoenfield writes. "With Hayes injured, Sal Stewart has moved from first base to third base, Nathaniel Lowe (who leads the Reds with a .908 OPS) is playing first and Eugenio Suarez, just back off the IL, is the DH. It's hard to see Hayes getting back in the lineup, at least this season."

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Cincinnati could still try to improve Hayes' swing enough to make him useful again, but that doesn't seem like it'll be a simple process.

In the meantime, they can't afford to go out with a whimper like they did in last season's playoffs when the bats simply weren't dangerous at all.

Hayes diving to field a grounder while the Reds are down 4-0 isn't that useful if Cincy has no way to come back in a game.

Eventually, that might spell the end for him in Cincinnati.

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