It’s highly unlikely that Matt McLain will play again in 2024. The Reds infielder has been on the injured all season after undergoing shoulder surgery in March. He was initially targeting a return sometime in August, but a rib cage stress reaction he suffered about six weeks ago turned out to be a major setback in his rehab.
Still, until recently, the Reds had been holding out hope he could return before the end of the year. Just last week, manager David Bell told members of the media (including Gordon Wittenmyer of the Cincinnati Enquirer) that McLain was “pain-free” and on his way back to “baseball activities.” Today, however, Bell admitted that it isn’t realistic to expect McLain to return this season, telling reporters (including Mark Sheldon of MLB.com): “It’s probably not going to happen.”
McLain, 25, finished fifth in NL Rookie of the Year voting last season after he hit .290/.357/.507 with 23 doubles, 16 home runs, and 14 stolen bases in 89 contests. He also put up 2 OAA and 4 DRS while splitting his time between shortstop and second base. Looking like a legitimate five-tool talent, McLain finished with 3.1 FanGraphs WAR in just over half a season’s worth of games. Hopefully, Cincinnati will finally be able to see what he can do over a full season in 2025.
The Reds entered the 2024 campaign with a glut of talented young hitters, but many of those players have struggled this season for one reason or another. Spencer Steer and Will Benson have each taken a big step back at the plate after their breakout performances in 2023. Noelvi Marte has been a disaster since his return from an 80-game PED suspension earlier this year. Christian Encarnacion-Strand was slumping badly before he underwent surgery on his wrist in May. He has not played since. McLain was the most exciting of all those names in 2023, and his lost 2024 season has been, perhaps, the most disappointing.
Indeed, the word “disappointing” pretty much sums up the Reds in 2024. A year after finishing third in the NL Central and two games back of the final Wild Card spot, they currently sit fourth in their division and 10.5 games back of a postseason berth. They’re on pace to finish 78-84, four games worse than their record in 2023. Their pitching staff ranks 16th with a 4.06 ERA, while their offense ranks 26th with an 89 wRC+. They also rank 26th with a -23 fielding run value, per Baseball Savant.
McLain was hoping to get back on the field before the end of the season. Surely, the Reds would have loved to have his bat and glove back on the roster. However, at this point in the year, it’s not hard to understand why he and the team are putting their efforts toward a stronger and healthier 2025 instead.