Cincinnati Reds: 3 lineup shuffling scenarios to replace injured Joey Votto

1. The Reds could platoon Kyle Farmer and Alex Blandino at first base.

If you want to go with a very conservative route to replace Joey Votto at first base, the combination of Kyle Farmer and Alex Blandino is an option. Farmer replaced Votto following the veteran’s exit yesterday, and can certainly handle the rigors of playing first base. Alex Blandino has played five games at first base this season.

There are worse options that a platoon of Farmer and Blandino at first base, let me assure you of that. While neither is a terrific option in terms of offensive production, both Farmer and Blandino have experience playing all over the infield, so defense won’t be the issue.

However, Blandino is hitting just .226 on the season. While the former first-round pick has a .351 on-base percentage, the last few times we’ve seen Blandino in the batter’s box, he’s looked very tentative. The 28-year-old is 1-for-10 over the last seven games and has eight strikeouts during that span.

If the Reds would rather use one of their utility players to replace Joey Votto, Kyle Farmer is the guy. He had looked to be in line to take over at shortstop to begin the season. But, Eugenio Suarez’s position change scrapped that idea.

Farmer has been playing well recently, slashing .286/.375/.357 in his last seven games. However, making Farmer the everyday first baseman takes away some of his versatility, and limits what the Reds can do later in games defensively.