The Cincinnati Reds didn’t need any more injuries. This is the case when no player is injured, but it feels like the Reds have been hit by a wave of injuries. The idea that they have more than nine starters on the roster is long gone.
Depth was something that was praised at the beginning of Spring Training, but now that's gone. TJ Friedl is out for at least two months, Noelvi Marte is suspended for 80 games, and now Matt McLain is facing possible shoulder surgery. That’s 33% of the potential starting lineup.
Nick Krall made a move to begin to fill the void. He traded for infielder Santiago Espinal from the Toronto Blue Jays. Espinal played second base, shortstop, and third base last year and bats from the right side. All it cost was right-handed pitching prospect Chris McElvain who is 23 and hasn’t yet pitched at Double-A.
Espinal’s addition will allow Spencer Steer to remain in the outfield the majority of the time. The infield really was going to be able to continue to function reasonably well, but if Steer had to be counted on as the rotational middle infielder if Jonathan India or Elly De La Cruz needed a day off, then the outfield would be severely depleted.
Despite the depth built up for the infield and the pitching, the outfield was not addressed this offseason. Steer was announced as a primary left fielder, early on. India was then said to be penciled in as an option in the outfield, as well. That was mostly due to McLain supplanting him as the primary second baseman. With McLain set to miss an undisclosed amount of time, India will move back to second.
That’s just defensively, the lineup will look a bit different, too, with two of the possible top three hitters out.
- India 2B
- De La Cruz SS
- Steer LF
- Christian Encarnacion-Strand 1B
- Jeimer Candelario 3B
- Jake Fraley RF
- Tyler Stephenson C
- Nick Martini DH
- Will Benson CF
There’s definitely a chance the Reds stop the “best No. 9 hitter in baseball” nick name if Benson hits well and the lineup dictates he hit higher up. Right now, the idea of having him turn the lineup over is still intriguing.
This lineup is still pretty good. If the pitching can hold opponents better than they did last year, this Reds team can still hang on until Friedl returns. Hopefully the news on McLain isn’t catastrophic and he can return, too.
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