Sal Stewart did not just beat the San Francisco Giants on Wednesday night, he put on a one-man fireworks show. The 22-year-old Reds rookie crushed two three-run homers and drove in six runs to carry Cincinnati to an 8-3 win, his first career multi-homer game and an early-season statement that is getting hard to ignore.
According to The Washington Post, Stewart's pair of three-run shots did most of the heavy lifting in the victory, with Eugenio Suárez and Elly De La Cruz also going deep to pile on. By the end of the night, Stewart's home run total for the young season sat at seven.
Stewart's Numbers Are Getting Loud
Through 18 games, Stewart's stat line already looks like something out of a video game. He has seven homers, 17 RBIs, 13 walks, four doubles and three stolen bases, and his OPS sits at 1.160, per Fox Sports. That mix of power, patience and a bit of speed is rare for any player in April, let alone a rookie trying to stick in the bigs.
Why This Stretch Is One for the Books
WKRC Local 12 reports that OptaSTATS could not find another rookie who has ever matched that exact combination of homers, RBIs, walks, doubles and steals in any 18-game span since RBIs became an official stat in 1920. Local 12 also pointed out that if you project Stewart's current pace over a full season, the resulting totals look downright wild, even if everyone involved knows numbers like that are almost impossible to maintain.
From First-Round Hopeful to Everyday Problem
Stewart was a first-round pick in 2022 and reached the majors in September 2025. His quick climb and early adjustments to big league pitching are documented on his player page at Baseball-Reference. The blend of power and plate discipline he showed in the minors is exactly what made him one of Cincinnati's most closely watched prospects entering 2026.
What Comes Next for Cincinnati's New Headliner
Baseball America has been tracking Stewart's rise and has highlighted his power surge and on-base skills as the kind of package that could land him in Rookie of the Year conversations if this run continues. In the short term, the Reds simply need him to keep the bat hot and the lineup moving as the season settles into its next month.
For now, Cincinnati fans suddenly have a new slugger to roar for, and pitchers around the league have one more rookie bat they can no longer treat like an easy out.
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