Rece Hinds, who hit five home runs in first six MLB games, optioned to Louisville

On Friday, the Cincinnati Reds optioned rookie sensation Rece Hinds to Triple-A Louisville after they activated center fielder TJ Friedl from the injured list.

Hinds made waves earlier this month by hitting five home runs in his first six MLB games. In those six games, from July 8 to July 13 against the Rockies and then the Marlins, Hinds hit .500 with a 1.951 on-base-plus-slugging percentage (OPS).

He won the NL's player of the week award during that stretch.

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Hinds was called up for a short term fill-in stint, but continued to hit, making for a longer stay than the Reds likely originally thought.

In the last game before the All-Star break, Hinds was 0-for-4. Since the All-Star break ended, Hinds was 1-for-12 with five strikeouts.

Friedl has been expected to return from the injured list, on which he's appeared three times. A hamstring injury has kept him out of action since June 23. So far this season, Friedl is hitting .216 with four home runs and a .676 OPS in 26 games.

Hinds, 23-years-old, was a second round pick by the Reds out of high school in 2019. So far this season in 77 games at Triple-A, he's hit .216 with 13 home runs and 126 strikeouts in 296 at-bats.

The Reds take the field at 6:50 p.m. for the first game of a three-game set with the Rays Friday. Friedl was scheduled to play center field and hit cleanup.

The Rays series wraps up a nine-game road trip for the Reds, who return home Monday for a six-game homestand against the Chicago Cubs and San Francisco Giants.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Rece Hinds optioned by Reds after five homers in first six games