BETTER EVERY DAY AND HOPEFULLY WE’RE GOING TO PEAK AT THE RIGHT TIME. OBVIOUSLY IN MARCH, AFTER A TWO YEAR HIATUS, REDS FEST WAS A HIT. THIS WEEKEND, THE CLUB ANNOUNCING THAT NEARLY 22,000 PEOPLE ATTENDED OVER THE PAST TWO DAYS. THAT NUMBER IS UP FROM JUST OVER 16,000 BACK IN 2023. EMILIO PAGAN, WHO RESIGNED ON A TWO YEAR DEAL THIS OFFSEASON AMONG THE PLAYERS IN ATTENDANCE, THE RANDI POISED TO BE CINCINNATI’S CLOSER THIS YEAR. DO MY JOB. I’M TRYING NOT TO MAKE IT ANY BIGGER THAN THAT. THE EMOTIONS OF THE NINTH INNING CAN CAN GRAB ON AND HOLD ON FOR DEAR LIFE, WHERE YOU TRY TO BE THE HERO OUT THERE. BUT THE WAY I TRIED TO APPROACH IT LAST YEAR WAS JUST BE BE SUPER, SUPER HONEST WITH MYSELF. LIKE, DID I EXECUTE THAT PITCH? AND IF I DID, ALL RIGHT, CHECK, KEEP, KEEP GOING FORWARD. IF I EXECUTED MY PITCHES THEN I’M OKAY WITH THE RESULT.
Former Reds outfielder Austin Hays reportedly agrees to contract with Chicago White Sox
Updated: 2:08 PM EST Jan 31, 2026
One of the Reds’ best batters during the 2025 season is reportedly set to join the Chicago White Sox.According to MLB.com, veteran outfielder Austin Hays has agreed to a new 1-year deal with the team.Hays previously became a free agent at the end of the 2025 season, with the Reds declining a 2026 club option that would have extended Hays’ one-year stint in Cincinnati.Throughout his year in Cincinnati, Hays became known as one of the Reds’ most reliable hitters, putting up one of the team’s highest batting averages at .266, as well as an OPS of .768. He also notched 15 home runs and 64 RBIs, the third-highest total in both stats among all Reds players in 2025.However, injury also significantly affected Hays throughout the season, causing him to miss approximately a third of the team’s games. Nonetheless, Hays’ contributions on the field helped lead the Reds to their first playoff appearance in a full-length season in 12 years.The dollar amount of Hays’ new contract remains unknown. He previously signed a $5 million contract with the Reds in 2025.Before joining the Reds, Hays spent a partial season with the Philadelphia Phillies, which he was traded to in 2024 from his longtime club, the Baltimore Orioles.During the 2023 season, Hays was named as an MLB All-Star, where his abilities at the plate helped lead Baltimore to put up its best regular-season record in 44 years, and its first postseason appearance in 7 years.
CHICAGO —
One of the Reds’ best batters during the 2025 season is reportedly set to join the Chicago White Sox.
According to MLB.com, veteran outfielder Austin Hays has agreed to a new 1-year deal with the team.
Hays previously became a free agent at the end of the 2025 season, with the Reds declining a 2026 club option that would have extended Hays’ one-year stint in Cincinnati.
Throughout his year in Cincinnati, Hays became known as one of the Reds’ most reliable hitters, putting up one of the team’s highest batting averages at .266, as well as an OPS of .768. He also notched 15 home runs and 64 RBIs, the third-highest total in both stats among all Reds players in 2025.
However, injury also significantly affected Hays throughout the season, causing him to miss approximately a third of the team’s games. Nonetheless, Hays’ contributions on the field helped lead the Reds to their first playoff appearance in a full-length season in 12 years.
The dollar amount of Hays’ new contract remains unknown. He previously signed a $5 million contract with the Reds in 2025.
Before joining the Reds, Hays spent a partial season with the Philadelphia Phillies, which he was traded to in 2024 from his longtime club, the Baltimore Orioles.
During the 2023 season, Hays was named as an MLB All-Star, where his abilities at the plate helped lead Baltimore to put up its best regular-season record in 44 years, and its first postseason appearance in 7 years.