The Reds infield has been a story as far back as last summer, as opposing teams have John Smoltz Jersey tried to leverage Cincinnatis depth in that regard in trade discu sions. GM Nick Krall and his front office have resisted that kind of move, maintaining theyre happy to stockpile position player talent which they can rotate through the outfield and/or keep in Triple-A. Manager David Bell addre sed the infield mix this afternoon, again pointing to an expectation theyll bounce players to various positions ( ). Thats particularly true of , who has played exclusively second base in nearly 3000 career innings on defense. Krall suggested earlier in the offseason that Cincinnati could get India work at first base, while Sheldon writes that the 27-year-old could also see some left field reps. Bell affirmed today that India is on board with a multi-positional role. He just wants to be on the field and in the lineup as much as po sible , the manager said. Obviously as a second baseman, but depending on how things shake out, to be able to get him on the field as much as he wants to be and as much as I want him to be, there may be other positions that hell need to play. India has graded as a below-average defender at the keystone over his three MLB seasons. Seeing increased action at first base or in the corner outfield could improve his defensive metrics, although more frequent work at a bat-first position would put additional pre sure on him to rebound at the plate. India hasnt taken the expected step forward since his Rookie of the Year campaign in 2021. He owns a league average .246/.333/.394 slash over the past two seasons. While Indias mediocre defensive grades are a factor in potentially moving him to a bat-first utility role, the bigger driver is Cincinnatis glut of young middle infield options. , and all debuted last season. McLain was excellent, hitting .290/.357/.507 over 89 games while splitting his time between the middle infield positions. De La Cruz flashed the ma sive physical tools that made him a top prospect, but he ultimately struggled to a .235/.300/.410 line while striking out more than a third of the time in 98 contests. Marte had the least amount of experience of the group. He played in 35 games after being promoted in the middle of August. He made a strong first impre sion, running a .316/.366/.456 slash while playing mostly third base. Hes in the mix for the Opening Day job at either shortstop or the hot corner. Martes winter ball season was cut short by a hamstring injury, but Krall said this morning that the young infielder is recovering well and remains on track for Spring Training (relayed by ). While the Reds werent generally expected to pursue infield help this offseason, they bucked expectations by adding on a three-year, $45MM free agent deal. Unsurprisingly, Bell stated that the veteran switch-hitter will be in the lineup on an everyday basis but could see action at a few different spots. Between DH, first base, third base hes going to be an everyday player , he said of Candelario. Theres plenty of playing time to go around there. also finds himself in the corner infield/DH mix. impre sed as the primary first baseman a season ago, hitting .271/.356/.464 with 23 homers in his own rookie campaign. The Candelario signing is expected to push Steer to left field on most days, although hell likely pick up stray DH and first base reps as the season goes along. There are a lot of options at the organizations disposal, at least so long as everyone is healthy. Jimmie Foxx Jersey