CLEVELAND -- As parts of the Reds’ lineup continue to struggle past the quarter-point of the season, it's hard not to notice that one of Triple-A's hottest hitters -- infielder Edwin Arroyo -- is making a push for his first big league promotion.
Ranked No. 3 in the organization and recently moved back up to No. 100 overall by MLB Pipeline, Arroyo is batting .345 with a 1.001 OPS in 43 games this season for Louisville with nine home runs and 30 RBIs. The 22-year-old has been tearing it up in May, batting .448 with a 1.363 OPS and six homers.
“He’s played really well," Reds president of baseball operations Nick Krall said. "For him, it’s still about taking good at-bats. We’ve got guys here that have played well offensively over the last couple of weeks."
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There was a scare on Friday vs. Indianapolis when Arroyo left the game in the seventh inning after fouling a ball off his left leg. After a rainout Saturday, he was back in the Bats' lineup on Sunday and played both games of a doubleheader.
Finding a spot where Arroyo could play daily for Cincinnati could be a challenge. A natural and slick-fielding shortstop blocked by two-time All-Star Elly De La Cruz at the big league level, he also plays second base and began appearing in games this season at third base.
The organization appears to want to give Arroyo more seasoning before considering a callup.
"Third is learning a new position for him. He is progressing and it just takes time," Krall said. "He’s still a young player that’s got a little over a month at Triple-A, so it’s trying to get him to continue to develop, maybe in a spot that’s not his normal position.”
The Reds have Matt McLain at second base and Ke'Bryan Hayes as their third baseman. Another third baseman, slugger Eugenio Suárez, is on the injured list with a left oblique strain but is getting closer to a return.
McLain was dropped from second to the lower part of the batting order on May 8 but has been hitting better over the past week while raising his OPS over 100 points since May 5. He also plays strong defense.
“Sometimes you look at rankings, analytics, and it doesn’t always love him and I never can understand it," manager Terry Francona said after McLain saved a game with a great diving stop for the final out in Friday's win. "He makes every play there is.”
Hayes is a two-time Gold Glove winner, including 2025, but despite some harder contact of late, has not found a groove at the plate while batting .150 with a .446 OPS in 41 games.
"We still think highly of our group of guys and it’s just trying to figure out how everybody fits," said Krall.
Arroyo still has room to grow as a hitter and his 34.9 percent chase rate entering Sunday indicates he needs to be more selective at the plate.
“He just needs to continue to take good at-bats and not expand the zone," Krall said.
Arroyo, who was a coveted part of the July 30, 2022 trade from the Mariners for rotation ace Luis Castillo, missed all of 2024 with a torn labrum in his left shoulder. He batted .284 with a .716 OPS and three homers in 120 games at Double-A Chattanooga last season as he resumed his development.
“When you see steady improvements in his hard contact, his contact rate over the last year -- we saw it throughout the course of the season coming off the shoulder injury," Krall said. "This year, you’re seeing it go up again. Defensively, he’s got a lot of tools, but it’s getting some consistency defensively. That’s a big thing for young players to be able to do, especially when you’re playing new positions and moving to a couple of different positions.”