Nathaniel Lowe’s Role on the Cincinnati Reds

The Cincinnati Reds’ 26-man roster has been finalized, and veteran first baseman Nathaniel Lowe has made the team out of spring.

Before Spring Training, the Reds signed Lowe to a minor league contract, with an invitation to major league Spring Training, and it is safe to say that he has made a good first impression.

Manager Terry Francona has shared that his role on this team, at least to start the season, will be a bench bat. Let’s look at his strengths and how he might perform this season.

Nathaniel Lowe’s Role on the Cincinnati Reds

Lowe’s Career Timeline

Starting his career in Tampa Bay, Lowe posted a couple of above league-average offensive “seasons” in 2019 and 2020. The use of “seasons” here is because he played only 51 and 20 games in 2019 and 2020, respectively.

His breakout didn’t start until he arrived at the Texas Rangers, where he played 157, 157, 161, and 140 games each year from 2021 to 2024. This four-year stretch was by far his peak throughout his seven-year career so far:

615 GP

11.2 bWAR

.274/.359/.432

.791 OPS / 122 OPS+

Unfortunately for Lowe, his 2025 season zapped all possibility of landing a big contract for 2026, as he struggled in 119 games with the Nationals, posting an 88 OPS+, the first time in his career when he was a below-league-average hitter.

However, he was able to turn it around in around 34 games with the Red Sox after the trade deadline, where he had a .790 OPS and 121 OPS+. This stretch undoubtedly enticed the Reds to take a flier on him for 2026, as he will hope to bring some power from the left side.

Lowe’s Role on the Reds

As a first baseman and DH, Lowe will slot behind righty rookie Sal Stewart at first, and Eugenio Suarez at DH. With both Stewart and Suarez being right-handed bats, it works as a perfect mix for a potential fill-in start, platoon situation, or pinch-hit opportunities late in games.

Lowe is not too volatile to splits, as he has been above average in OPS+ against both sides in his career (107 v.s L / 121 v.s R), but he is still more productive against righties.

As shown, he was valuable on both sides, but that was not the case in 2025. Last year, Lowe had a putrid 41 OPS+ against left-handers, which is essentially unplayable, but still managed a 111 OPS+ against righties.

Starting the season with him as the backup is a good idea, as it’ll help him ease into the season’s flow. The more Lowe sees success against righties, the better off he’ll be, and it’ll hopefully put his 2025 struggles behind him.

Expectations for Lowe

As of now, his 2025 struggles seem more like a blip on the radar, which should make Reds fans extremely excited about his potential. Not to sound like a broken record, as this detail gets thrown into every player’s expectations when playing for the Reds, but there is a chance Lowe benefits from playing in the hitter-friendly Great American Ball Park.

A more tangible reason as to why fans should feel confident in Lowe’s bounce back is his plate discipline. Despite the struggles, Lowe maintained his eye at the plate, not chasing bad pitches and drawing walks.

24.0 Chase% – 76th percentile

10.2 BB% – 72nd percentile

Based on everything, there is a chance Lowe returns to his Texas form, which would be huge for a Reds team that struggles to produce runs. Even if he doesn’t, he will be one of the best bench bats in the league.