GOODYEAR, Ariz. -- Matt McLain has just under two weeks to go before the Reds break camp ahead of Opening Day. Can the second baseman get enough swings to be ready in time?

“Yeah, totally," McLain replied prior to the Reds' 14-1 loss to the White Sox on Tuesday.

However, McLain dealt with oblique soreness in the early days of camp after admittedly overswinging. The 24-year-old will need to see a lot of pitches between now and Opening Day on March 28 to get up to speed.

There's a plan for this, and it doesn't involve extra swinging.

"I just have to stand in on guys’ bullpens as much as I can, get in live at-bats as much as I can," McLain said. "I’ll try to simplify things. You don’t have as much time to necessarily work on your swing and stuff. It’s ramping straight into competitive mode. If I had been hitting the first two weeks, maybe I’d work on my swing a little bit more mechanically. I’ll just keep things simple and go compete.”

McLain, who went 0-for-2 Tuesday with two strikeouts, underwent an MRI on Feb. 19 after he felt soreness in his right oblique. It was a right oblique strain that kept him from playing the final month of his rookie season in 2023. The new issue was not in the same exact spot, and also showed that the original injury had healed.

It still cost McLain three weeks of Spring Training. He made his Cactus League debut on Sunday against the Guardians, going 0-for-2.

McLain understands he will need to restrict himself from overdoing it again.

“That’s where standing in plays a big role," he said. "I did it in college [at UCLA] when I fractured my thumb near the end of my junior year. It was a quick turnaround, 10 days or two weeks. I didn’t hit at all before going into games. This is obviously not college but I was standing in on everyone. I think it’s a very valuable tool for hitters. Even doing it when I’m 100 percent healthy, I can see guys and see guys’ stuff. The more pitches you can see and recognize, the eyes are a huge part of hitting. It only helps.”

Defensively, McLain showed his skills against the White Sox in the third inning. On a two-out grounder up the middle by Andrew Vaughn, McLain went far to his right to field the ball and threw across his body to first base. The one-hopper was nicely scooped by Jonathan India for the out.

“Oh, that was great," Reds starting pitcher Graham Ashcraft said. "Seeing him getting back and moving like that, it’s awesome. I’m glad that he’s healthy and feeling good and playing the way he’s playing.”

McLain is an integral part of the Reds 2024 expectations to contend for the postseason. After his May 15 promotion from Triple-A Louisville last season, he provided a quick spark -- offensively and defensively -- for Cincinnati during its surprising 82-win campaign. He batted .290 with a 129 OPS+, 16 home runs, 50 RBIs and 14 steals in 89 games while playing second base and shortstop.

Any setbacks in the next two weeks would be costly.

“He wouldn’t be playing in the games if the oblique wasn’t behind him," Reds manager David Bell said. "What he was feeling this time, it’s not entirely clear if it was exactly what it was. I get the concern but … we cleared him, he’s playing, he’s going for it as far as getting ready for the season. You can’t think about it. I am confident he will be ready to go.”

Ashcraft lacked feel for off-speed pitch
Ashcraft made his third start of spring and pitched four innings. He allowed five earned runs and seven hits with two walks and four strikeouts. In the third inning with one out, Luis Robert Jr. slugged a two-run home run -- the first of his two in the game.

“I felt good," Ashcraft said. "Slider wasn’t really there tonight. It was either staying arm side or it was going down in the dirt on the left side. I felt good with the cutter and sinker. I felt there were some pitches where I put it where I wanted to. Got two strikes quick and early but just wasn’t able to execute the off-speed pitch. If you don’t have that, it’s a little bit tougher.”

Ashcraft has made improving his slider a point of emphasis in camp.

“It’s there. It’s just one of those days," he said. "The velo with it is still there. The shape of it is still there. I just didn’t have the feel for it tonight.”