Austin Hays was smiling and excited inside the Reds’ clubhouse on Tuesday afternoon. For the first time during the 2025 regular season, Hays was in Cincinnati's starting lineup after missing the first 16 games with a left calf strain.

Speaking to reporters in his Great American Ball Park office prior to Saturday's Reds-Pirates game, Reds manager Terry Francona provided updates on outfielder Austin Hays (calf), who started the big-league season on the IL and is progressing with the Triple-A Louisville Bats.

Austin Hays returns to his roots tonight as the Reds go on their bi-annual trip to play the Baltimore Orioles in Camden Yards. In three games since his return to the Reds, he has four hits in 13 at-bats with a pair of two-run home runs. Now, Hays is going back to his roots in Baltimore.