Cincinnati Reds camp battle: Nick Senzel versus Shogo Akiyama

Nick Senzel’s case to start in CF on Opening Day

Nick Senzel has definitely had a rough go of it on his path to the majors. Drafted in the first round back in 2016, it was assumed that the former Tennessee Volunteer would eventually become the everyday third baseman for the Reds. No one foresaw the breakout year that Eugenio Suárez had in 2018, and Geno is now firmly entrenched as the Reds third baseman for years to come.

Once Suárez made the leap to stardom, Senzel began to see more time at second base while playing in the minors. However, Scooter-mania took over the Queen City and Scooter Gennett looked to the fixture in the Reds lineup going forward. Gennett was eventually traded to the San Francisco Giants and Cincinnati signed Mike Moustakas to play second base this past winter.

So, for all those fans who want to see Nick Senzel return to the infield, trust me, it’s not going to happen. While I suspect that Senzel could play shortstop, obviously that’s not the route the Reds front office is going to go. With all that out of the way, let’s not act like Senzel is a below-average outfielder.

Senzel is, perhaps, the fastest player on the team, which will serve him well playing up the middle of the outfield. Though he ended last season on the injured list with a torn labrum, it’s assumed that the injury will have no ill-effects on Senzel’s ability to make the throws from the outfield. Senzel was credited with four outfield assists last season.

Then there’s Senzel’s ability at the plate. An advanced hitter when he arrived from the University of Tennessee, Senzel hit above .300 at every level of minor league ball he played. Don’t let last year’s .256 batting average fool you, because this dude can rake.