Cincinnati Reds: Four options to play shortstop in 2021

3. Jonathan India

Jonathan India was one of the Cincinnati Reds top prospects entering the 2019 season. While still one of the best farmhands in Cincinnati’s system, India’s performance last season left more questions than answers. As India enters 2020 as part of the Reds major-league camp in Goodyear, will the 23-year-old see some time at shortstop?

India was drafted out of the University of Florida in 2018 as a third baseman, and the Cincinnati Reds have not tinkered with that too much since he began playing professional baseball. Throughout his minor-league career, India has played five games at second base, nine games at shortstop and a whooping 140 at third base.

The question with India becomes the same one that the Reds faced last offseason with Nick Senzel – where will he play once he’s ready? Fans already saw Senzel shifted to the outfield after Eugenio Suárez became an All-Star third baseman, cementing his position on the Reds roster for years to come.

Can India make the transition from third base to shortstop? Is Jose Garcia the better prospect? Looking at India’s stats from last year, it would seem that the 23-year-old took a step back. In 2018, India put up an .814 OPS at three different stops, while the Reds top infield prospect put up an OPS of .767 in 2019 while playing at Advanced-A Daytona and Double-A Chattanooga.

I tend to think that Jonathan India may morph into a super-utility player for the Reds in 2021 or possibly find a home elsewhere. With Senzel and Mike Moustakas on the roster, India could find his name on the trade block, as it would appear that the Reds have adequate depth at third base in the event Suárez goes down with an injury.