Early Possibilities for Cincinnati Reds' Opening Day Lineup

The Cincinnati Reds have a lot of options for David Bell to choose from when he is making his lineups on a day-to-day basis. Let’s take a look at what the Opening Day lineup may be before pitchers and catchers get to Goodyear for spring training. 

The Reds will face the Washington Nationals on Opening Day, which provides an interesting conundrum for who will be on the mound. The Nationals high-dollar pitcher is Patrick Corbin, but the best-performing starter for the Nats last year was Josiah Gray. Corbin is a lefty and Gray is a righty. 

Let’s look at the lineup if Gray gets the nod:

The Reds added Jeimer Candelario this offseason, giving them a second switch-hitter in the lineup. He will play almost every day, as will Elly De La Cruz. Matt McLain, Spencer Steer, and TJ Friedl also figure to be everyday mainstays, but you can reasonably expect the rest of the lineup to be different almost daily.

Christian Encarnacion-Strand showed his power and prowess at the plate last year in his short stint in the majors. Noelvi Marie ended the season on a hitting streak and showed speed to go along with a powerful bat. 

Jonathan India has shown how good he can be but seems to be a man without a position. Who gets more time in the outfield between Jake Fraley and Will Benson against righties? Who fills in for them against lefties?

Here’s my prediction for the Opening Day lineup before anyone laces up their cleats in Goodyear:

1. TJ Friedl, CF
2. Matt McLain, 2B
3. Elly De La Cruz, SS
4. Christian Encarnacion-Strand, 1B
5. Jeimer Candelario, DH
6. Spencer Steer, LF
7. Noelvi Marte, 3B
8. Tyler Stephenson, C
9. Will Benson, RF

Encarnacion-Strand and Marte get the nod because the Reds pay attention to the split stats. Both guys slugged over .500 against right-handed pitchers last year. Marte hit .317, albeit in a small sample size of 82 at-bats, and Encarnacion-Strand hit .274 in 168 at-bats.

India could be in the Opening Day lineup for a more ceremonial purpose, but I believe this is the best lineup the Reds can put up against a right-handed pitcher.

There is a possibility that Fraley could DH and Candelario starts at first base. I don't see Fraley getting the nod over Benson though. Benson destroyed right-handers last year. He slashed .297/.390/.549 in 246 at-bats with 11 homers.