Hall of Famer Barry Larkin said Sunday the Cincinnati Reds remain well behind the National League’s top clubs after a 9-1 home loss to the Chicago Cubs closed the team’s final homestand of 2026.
The defeat dropped the Reds to 72-84 and last place in the NL Central, 26 games behind first-place Milwaukee.
Larkin, the starting shortstop on Cincinnati’s 1990 World Series champions and the 1995 National League MVP, pointed to a recent run of games against playoff-bound teams.
Over a 22-game stretch the Reds faced the Cubs and Brewers six times each, the Los Angeles Dodgers seven times and the San Diego Padres three times. Cincinnati went 9-13 in that span and 3-10 in the final 13 games.
“I think these last three weeks of baseball playing against some of the better teams that are going to be going to the postseason really illustrates how far we are behind at this big league level,” Larkin said.
“And change has to happen,” he continued. “This city deserves better than that, and I know every player down there feels that. But something has to give. We have to get better because we are so, so far behind.”
Former Reds first baseman Joey Votto, the 2010 NL MVP, posted “Captain Lark” with a 100 emoji in agreement.
Cincinnati has not won a World Series since 1990. The club last won a postseason series in the 1995 NL Division Series against the Dodgers and last won a playoff game in the 2012 NLDS.
The Reds reached the postseason in 2025 with an 83-79 record under first-year manager Terry Francona, then were swept in two games by the Dodgers in the Wild Card round. They have made the playoffs in just five of the last 31 seasons.
This year’s roster still has standout pieces. Shortstop Elly De La Cruz is hitting .286 with 28 home runs, 74 RBIs, 27 stolen bases and 5.5 WAR in 136 games.
Rookie first baseman Sal Stewart is batting .269 with 32 homers and 110 RBIs in 155 games. He set the franchise rookie RBI record, made the All-Star team and is the leading candidate for NL Rookie of the Year. He is the 14th rookie since 1920 to post a 30-homer, 100-RBI season.
Those individual numbers have not lifted the team. Cincinnati ranks last in the majors with a .229 batting average and 27th with 642 runs scored despite ranking fourth with 204 home runs. The pitching staff’s 4.89 ERA ranks near the bottom of the league.
President of baseball operations Nick Krall and general manager Brad Meador are expected to return. Francona, who has one year left on his contract, has said he wants to stay and help fix the problems.
The Castellini family has owned the club since 2006. Phil Castellini became controlling owner earlier this year.
Cincinnati next plays three games at Atlanta, another team headed to the postseason, before finishing the year on the road.
