CINCINNATI -- For the first time in a few seasons, the Reds have multiple top prospects stationed one level away at Triple-A Louisville, and several who are on the brink of reaching the big leagues are doing big things.

Whether it's Matt McLain hitting for the cycle and Christian Encarnacion-Strand hitting three home runs -- both on Thursday at Omaha -- or lefty starting pitcher Andrew Abbott continuing to perform well, Reds manager David Bell is among those paying close attention. There's excitement about what's happening in the system as Cincinnati rebuilds.

“Everybody in our clubhouse cares about everyone else in our organization," Bell said this week. "We’re always following how players are doing, how teams are doing. We get close to a lot of the guys in Spring Training. Not everybody in the Minor Leagues unfortunately, but a lot of the guys that are with us in camp or come up for [Cactus] League games. The staff all works together in Spring Training and the offseason.

"There’s a lot of good things right now. That’s important to us as an organization, to us as a Major League team.”

Bell is also in frequent communication with Louisville manager Pat Kelly.

"I've known PK for a long time. We don't talk a lot of days, but when we do talk, we have great conversations," Bell said. "The communication is always there. I'm always watching. It's fun to watch."

Here's a roundup of recent activity in the Reds' system:

Triple-A Louisville
Playing third base at Omaha on Saturday, No. 8 overall prospect Elly De La Cruz fielded a groundball and fired a throw to first base that was tracked at 99.2 mph by Statcast for the out. The throw was the hardest tracked this season by an infielder at any level of the Minor Leagues. In the same game, he hit a home run with an exit velocity of 116.3 mph, the second-hardest hit homer in Triple-A this season.

Also of note in that game, an 11-9 loss for the Bats, McLain hit his team-leading ninth homer of the 2023 season. The No. 5 prospect in the organization, according to MLB Pipeline, he is batting .336 with an 1.130 OPS in 31 games.

Double-A Chattanooga
In a 6-4 victory over Birmingham on Friday, third baseman Noelvi Marte delivered a two-run, walk-off home run with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning. Marte, who is ranked No. 2 in the organization and No. 25 overall by MLB Pipeline, leads the Lookouts with four homers entering Sunday.

High-A Dayton
The Midwest League's Player of the Month for April, Blake Dunn is still rolling well into May. Dunn was among three Dragons players to hit a homer during Saturday's 11-0 win over Lansing. Dayton's center fielder, Dunn entered Sunday batting .321 with a 1.086 OPS and a team-leading six homers. The 24-year-old was a 15th round selection by the Reds in the 2021 MLB Draft.

Low-A Daytona
Second baseman Carlos Jorge, who is ranked No. 15 in the organization, entered the day batting .323 with a .905 OPS in 22 games. Jorge, 19, has two homers, six RBIs and five stolen bases. He delivered a pair of two-hit games on Friday and Saturday vs. Palm Beach.