Cincinnati Reds outfielder JJ Bleday has caught the attention of Major League Baseball with his emerging play.
On Wednesday, Bleday was chosen as the National League Player of the Month for May after hitting .301 with eight home runs, 25 RBI and a 1.018 OPS. Athleticsfirst basemanNick Kurtz won the award over in the American League.
Coincidentally, Bleday and Kurtz were teammates on the Athletics last season. But in contrast to Kurtz, who immediately took the league by storm upon arrival and won the AL Rookie of the Year Award, Bleday was a highly regarded prospect who needed time and a change of scenery to reach his potential.
The 28-year-old was signed by the Reds this winter to a one-year, $1.4 million contract and started the year with the Triple-A Louisville Bats before being called up on April 25. In his first game as a Red the next day, Bleday tallied two hits including a home run against the Detroit Tigers to set the tone for the next month.
Over 27 games in May, Bleday reached base at least once in 22 of them and logged a .387 on-base percentage and .631 slugging percentage. He recorded 10 multi-hit games, including three in a row to end the month, and delivered a trio of three-hit games. Bleday did plenty of damage at the plate too; of his 31 knocks, 17 went for extra bases. Overall, he tallied 1.3 fWAR during the month, tied for the seventh most among all position players.
Bleday was the fourth overall pick of the 2019 MLB Draft, being selected by the Miami Marlins. He would only play 65 games with the club, all in the 2022 season when he slashed .167/.277/.309 with 10 doubles and five home runs. Before the 2023 season, the Marlins traded Bleday to the then-Oakland Athletics for left-handed pitcher A.J. Puk.
The left-handed hitting outfielder spent each of the next three seasons with the A's and became their everyday center fielder in 2024. That year, Bleday showed a glimpse of the player he was initially touted as by hitting .243/.324/.437 with 20 home runs, 60 RBI, 74 runs scored and a 120 wRC+.
Now, it appears that Bleday has put everything together with the Reds, and he even started his June with authority by swatting a home run against the Kansas City Royals. In 32 games this year, Bleday touts a .291/.387/.632 slash line with 10 home runs, 27 RBI and a 174 wRC+ across 137 plate appearances.
Despite Bleday's efforts, the Reds are currently in last place in a brutally unforgiving NL Central, with every team above .500. Additionally, Cincinnati will need to rely on their breakout outfielder more than ever, as superstar shortstop Elly De La Cruz is out 2-4 weeks with a Grade 1-2 hamstring strain.
Bleday will look to continue swinging his white-hot bat, as the Reds conclude their three-game series against the Royals tonight before facing the St. Louis Cardinals on the road this weekend.
