Jonathan India hasn’t played yet this spring. The 2021 National League Rookie of the Year lost time last season due to plantar fasciitis, which he also fought with during the offseason. That caused a delay in his spring training preparedness, but he’s been working his way back, and Cincinnati Reds manager David Bell informed Charlie Goldsmith of the Cincinnati Enquirer that India is expected to make his debut on Friday.
Friday night the Reds will play the Los Angeles Dodgers at 8:05pm ET. That game will be available to watch on MLB Network. Where Jonathan India will play will be interesting to see. He’s only played second base in his big league career. In college he played third base, and in the minor leagues he saw time at third and second (and a very small bit of time at shortstop). Cincinnati has had him working in the corner outfield spots, as well as second base, because India seems to have lost his every day second base gig to Matt McLain.
The Reds plan for now appears to be to have India rotating around a few positions, as well as serve as the designated hitter role. Mixing-and-matching him against certain types of pitchers and filling in when some guys made need an off day could still get him plenty of playing time, but that’s also a role that several others on the team are going to be serving in. If everyone remains relatively healthy, David Bell and his coaching staff are going to have an interesting job when it comes to finding enough playing time for a handful of guys who are platooning-type of guys along with India.
A new Reds Top 30 Prospect List
MLB Pipeline released their 2024 Top 30 Cincinnati Reds prospects list on Tuesday. Noelvi Marte tops the list, with four additional Reds prospects making the Top 100. However, if you’re interested in learning more about the other 25 players on the list, here’s a link to their profiles. Five players on the list have yet to make their professional debuts: three from the 2023 draft and two from the club’s overseas signings in January.
