Could Héctor Rodríguez Follow Sal Stewart Into the Rookie of the Year Race in 2027?

As Sal Stewart continues to make his case in the 2026 National League Rookie of the Year race, the Reds could already have another intriguing rookie candidate waiting in the wings for 2027. Héctor Rodríguez has made an immediate impression since arriving in Cincinnati, but his late-season promotion has also created an interesting roster-management question: can the Reds continue giving Rodríguez meaningful major-league experience without exhausting his rookie eligibility for next season?

As of September 3, the answer is yes — but Cincinnati is beginning to approach the line.

Rodríguez was recalled from Triple-A Louisville on August 4 and has remained on the Reds' active roster ever since. Through Cincinnati's September 2 win over San Diego, the 22-year-old has appeared in 22 games and accumulated 80 plate appearances and 73 official at-bats. He is hitting .247/.313/.493 with five home runs, including a homer in the September 2 victory. His early production has only strengthened the case for Rodríguez to enter 2027 with a legitimate opportunity to claim an everyday role.

The important distinction for his rookie status is that MLB does not actually use games played or plate appearances to determine eligibility. A position player loses rookie status once he has exceeded either 130 major-league at-bats or 45 days on an active MLB roster during previous seasons. Time on the injured list does not count toward the 45-day limit, but September roster days do.

That leaves the Reds with two numbers to watch.

Rodríguez currently has 73 official at-bats, meaning he can accumulate another 57 and finish the season with exactly 130 while maintaining rookie eligibility. His 131st at-bat would push him beyond the rookie threshold. Walks and certain other plate appearances do not count as at-bats, so his total plate appearances can climb above 130 without necessarily affecting his rookie status.

The roster-day calculation is even more interesting.

Including the Reds' September 3 off day, Rodríguez has now spent 31 days on Cincinnati's active roster since his August 4 promotion. If the Reds leave him on the roster continuously, September 17 would be his 45th active-roster day. Cincinnati happens to play the Dodgers at Great American Ball Park that afternoon.

September 18, when the Cubs arrive in Cincinnati, would be Day 46.

That creates what amounts to a remarkably clean cutoff date. Rodríguez can remain with the Reds through September 17 without exceeding the service-time portion of the rookie limit. If he remains active on September 18, however, he would no longer qualify as a rookie in 2027 regardless of his at-bat total.

There are 14 Reds games scheduled between September 4 and September 17. Rodríguez has already appeared in 22 games, meaning he could theoretically play in every remaining game through the September 17 cutoff and finish his first major-league stint with as many as 36 games played while retaining rookie eligibility.

The at-bat threshold could make that slightly more complicated. Rodríguez has only 57 at-bats remaining before reaching 130. Spread across those 14 games, that works out to roughly 4.1 at-bats per game. If he starts regularly near the top of the lineup, there is a legitimate possibility that Cincinnati would need to monitor his at-bats in addition to his roster days. He can finish at 130 at-bats and remain eligible; reaching 131 would eliminate that eligibility.

In other words, there are two potential finish lines:

130 at-bats: still a rookie in 2027.

131 at-bats: rookie status exhausted.

45 active-roster days: still a rookie in 2027.

46 active-roster days: rookie status exhausted.

For Cincinnati, that could make the September 17 game against Los Angeles an important date that has little to do with the standings. If Rodríguez is still below 131 at-bats, the Reds could option him following that game and preserve his rookie status for 2027. Because position players who are optioned generally must remain in the minors for 10 days before being recalled, such a move that late in September would effectively end his regular season.

There is certainly an argument for simply letting Rodríguez play. Major-league development should take priority over chasing an award a year in advance, particularly if the Reds believe his September at-bats are valuable preparation for an everyday role in 2027. But the organization also has very little to lose by being conscious of the threshold.

Stewart's 2026 season provides an obvious example of why.

The Reds have watched Stewart emerge as one of the National League's premier young players while remaining eligible for Rookie of the Year consideration. Rodríguez could conceivably enter next spring in a similar position: a highly regarded young hitter with major-league experience already under his belt and an opportunity to secure regular playing time from Opening Day.

For now, the Reds don't have to choose between development and preserving that possibility. Rodríguez can play essentially every day for another two weeks and remain eligible.

But if Cincinnati wants Héctor Rodríguez's name to have a chance to appear in the 2027 Rookie of the Year conversation, September 17 and 130 at-bats are the two numbers to remember.