Tyler

Stephenson

Stephenson’s slam off Jack Flaherty in the fifth was the second of his career. He struggled in his first 15 games after coming off the injured list at the beginning of May, but he’s hit .329 with five homers, five doubles and 17 RBI in his last 18 games. The Reds seem a little more hesitant to use Stephenson at DH now that they’ve shed their third catcher by moving on from Austin Wynns, so he was out of the starting lineup entirely on Sunday and Wednesday. He did DH with Jose Trevino catching today, though.

Stephenson did his damage against Brewers’ ace Freddy Peralta, crushing an 0-1 fastball for a 359-foot (102.2 mph EV) two-run shot that made it a 2-2 ballgame. That would be his only hit on the night, but he certainly made the most of it. On the season, the 28-year-old backstop is off to a bit of a slow start, slashing .239/.317/.457 with five homers and 15 RBI in his first 104 plate appearances.

Espinal had been hitting second regularly since replace Matt McLain in that spot last month, but it seems to be over now. He’d hit just .183/.238/.225 in 76 plate appearances since the switch. The Reds have Gavin Lux batting second and Tyler Stephenson hitting cleanup tonight.

Stephenson has been moving steadily up Cincinnati’s lineup card in recent days as he continues to swing a hot bat, hitting .385/.467/.808 with three homers and seven RBI over his past seven games. It’s admittedly a small sample size, but the 28-year-old backstop has looked locked-in at the dish after missing time to open the year with an oblique strain that he suffered back in spring training.

The 28-year-old backstop functioned as the Reds’ designated hitter in this one, then opened the scoring in the ballgame with a 417-foot (106.4 mph EV) solo blast off of Daniel Lynch IV in the second inning. He also drew a walk and struck out twice in the contest, finishing the evening 1-for-3. On the season, he’s slashing a disappointing .214/.321/.414 with the aforementioned three long balls and 10 RBI through his first 81 plate appearances.

Stephenson extended Cincinnati’s early lead with a run-scoring single in the third inning before taking Royals starter Michael Lorenzen deep in the fifth inning to give the Reds a 6-0 advantage at the time. The season-high three hits included his first round-tripper since May 4. The 28-year-old backstop hasn’t been an elite fantasy contributor this season, but there’s still plenty of time for him to revert to his previous form.

Gavin Lux is also getting the night off. Benson takes a seat with lefty Bailey Falter toeing the rubber for Pittsburgh on Tuesday night. The 26-year-old power/speed combo outfielder has been one of the hottest hitters in baseball of late, batting .478 (11-for-23) with five homers and one steal over his last seven games. It’ll be Connor Joe in right field with Tyler Stephenson getting a break from catching to occupy the DH spot on Tuesday evening.

Stephenson victimized Nationals’ left-hander MacKenzie Gore for his 365-foot (101.1 mph EV) solo shot in the second inning, tying the game at one run apiece. He also drew a walk and struck out in the ballgame, finishing the afternoon 1-for-3. Since returning from the injured list, the 28-year-old backstop is hitting .300/.417/.800 with a homer and three RBI through his first three games.

Pretty good for a player who just went 3-for-28 on his rehab assignment. Stephenson caught five times and DH’d four times on his rehab assignment, so he should be fine to start behind the plate on Saturday.

Stephenson will get his first chance of MLB action after missing the start of the season with an oblique strain he suffered in the middle of March. The 28-year-old should see time behind the plate and at DH when Cincinnati chooses to deploy Jose Trevino at catcher. He’s worth a look in two-catcher leagues. Austin Hays was placed on the injured list with a hamstring strain in a corresponding move.