The Cleveland Indians are just about set for first pitch in Detroit and fans are already breaking down the first lineup of 2021.
As always, the social media comments are a world of their own.
Fans already knew Shane Bieber would be taking the mound.
The ace is one of the best pitchers in baseball and instantly gives the team a great chance to win every time he is on the field.
The surprises comes with two positions that were in focus during spring training.
Good morning, hi, and hello.
Here is how we line up to start our pursuit to 162-0 …#OurCLE pic.twitter.com/P0fUGEJ5pj
— Cleveland Indians (@Indians) April 1, 2021
A Surprise in Center
All the talk the past few weeks had to do with Ben Gamel and Amed Rosario coming out on top in center field over the likes of Bradley Zimmer, Oscar Mercado, and Daniel Johnson.
So of course Jordan Luplow gets the start on Opening Day.
The reasoning is obvious, as left-hander Matthew Boyd is on the hill for the Tigers.
That means Terry Francona is utilizing the platoon approach to start the season.
Luplow is an interesting player because he barely played this spring.
He had a total of 16 at-bats because of an injury and batted a whopping .000.
As we always say, there is no need to panic about spring stats.
Now fans are left wondering when Rosario will get his chance in the outfield.
Is he even ready?
It may be a rotation of Luplow and Gamel in the meantime.
The Surprise at First
Yu Chang gets the start at first base after Jake Bauers won the competition over Bobby Bradley in spring training.
This is another platoon situation with the southpaw Boyd on the mound.
Chang went from fighting for a job to landing in the Opening Day lineup.
Seeing him at first base tells fans he will be a true utility player this season and play all over the field.
Bauers is going to get plenty of playing time and will likely pinch-hit once Boyd leaves the game.
Francona has rotations at several positions until the front office comes to conclusions around the roster.
Luplow and Chang being in the Opening Day lineup is a familiar situation for Indians fans.
The first lineup of the season always looks drastically different from what is on the card in September.
Hopefully, the early surprises pay off in a big way.
Indians fans also get to see both Eddie Rosario and Andres Gimenez make their respective debuts Thursday.
There are plenty of reasons to be excited this season and what happens on a freezing day in Detroit won’t determine the trajectory of the season.
Happy Opening Season!!😎⚾️❄️#openingday #OurCLE pic.twitter.com/EbyP2XC86I
— Slider (@SliderTheMascot) April 1, 2021
That being said, a win is always ideal.
Leave a Reply