How light-hitting, Gold Glove 3B Ke'Bryan Hayes upgrades Cincinnati Reds' hitting, too

Yahoo

a day ago

Charlie Hayes, a 14-year big-leaguer spent almost a decade in the major leagues with five teams before finally playing in October, winning a World Series with the 1996 Yankees after getting dealt by the Pirates in an August waiver trade.
Twenty-eight years and 11 months later, his kid is hoping to get the same kind of bounce off a trade from the Pirates.
More: The Reds added a longterm third baseman. What's that mean for prospect Sal Stewart?
More: How Cincinnati Reds say trading for starter Zack Littell provides needed help for bullpen
Not that the 2025 Cincinnati Reds bear significant resemblance to Derek Jeter's 1996 Yankees.
But Ke'Bryan Hayes, the chip off the infield block that Charlie helped turn into the best defensive third baseman in the game, has big ideas since joining the Reds in a deadline trade July 30 – and joining the starting lineup the next night against the Atlanta Braves.
'That's why we play this game, to play in the playoffs and ultimately win a World Series,' said Hayes, who picked up two places and 10 games in the standings with the trade. 'If you're not playing to win, why are you playing?'
On his first day with his new team, Hayes said he's looking forward to playing for Terry Francona, who crossed paths with his dad some as their playing careers overlapped in the late 1980s.
And he said he already has felt welcomed in the clubhouse, which has a familiar feel not only because of all the times his Pirates faced the Reds in recent years but also because of personal connections with such new teammates as Hunter Greene, Gavin Lux and Tyler Stephenson.
'This is a really good team,' Hayes, 28, said. 'I'm just excited to be here and excited for a new chapter and just want to get out there and play hard and win games.'
Hayes ranks among the top 10 players regardless of position in defensive runs above average and fourth in defensive runs saved. He's No. 1 at his position in almost every advanced defensive metric by a lot.
He also ranks at the bottom in nearly every offensive metric among qualified MLB third basemen.
Team president Nick Krall said the thinking behind adding Hayes, beyond the obvious overall lift for a shaky-fielding team, is the domino effect across two positions, including right field.
Getting some of the worst production both offensively and defensively from both of those positions this season, the Reds were able to significantly elevate the defensive side of third base and shift Noelvi Marte into a more regular role in right – where his productive bat elevates the offensive side of that position.
'He's also got upside to be an offensive contributor if he can get back to where he was a couple years ago,' Krall said, before also mentioning the Marte bump in right.
'It is a defensive move, but I also think that it allows you to get more offense in the game.'
Hayes hit .271 with 15 home runs and a .762 OPS in 2023, to go with a Gold Glove that year.
'That plays,' Reds closer Emilio Pagan said. 'Especially with his defense. Now you're talking like – I don't want to get ahead of my skis here – but that's perennial All-Star, MVP-type numbers with what he brings defensively.'
That's the dream of the organization that just picked up the $36 million left on the remaining four years of Hayes' contract (including a $6 million buyout clause on a $12 million club option for 2030).
It's also a big gap to bridge. But Hayes is thinking the same way and said he hopes new eyes and voices makes a difference.
'I've already talked with the hitting guys a little bit,' he said.
He batted ninth in his Reds debut, lining softly to first in his first at-bat, popping to second in the fourth and grounding out to second in the sixth.
He also started a big inning-ending double play in the fourth with the bases loaded – misplayed a chopper with the bases loaded in the sixth for a two-base, two-run error that tied the game.
So much for that seamless transition.
But then he added his third home run of the year in the bottom of the eighth inning, a three-run shot for his first hit as a Red.
Maybe there's something to that theory about the bat?
'I'm hoping I can get back to swinging the bat how I know I can swing it,' he said.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: How light-hitting Ke'Bryan Hayes helps upgrade Cincinnati Reds' hitting