Projecting the Cincinnati Reds 2022 Opening Day roster 2.0

Cincinnati Reds starting lineup (9)

Joey Votto (1B), Jonathan India (2B), Kyle Farmer (SS), Mike Moustakas (3B), Tyler Naquin (RF), Nick Senzel (CF), Shogo Akiyama (LF), Tyler Stephenson (C), Donovan Solano (DH)

Where to begin? Well, let's start with those things that are unchanged. Joey Votto, Jonathan India, Kyle Farmer, Tyler Stephenson, Nick Senzel, and Tyler Naquin are still part of the projected starting lineup on Opening Day for the Cincinnati Reds.

Of those aforementioned players, only Naquin would appear to be a trade candidate prior to the 2022 season. The left-handed hitting slugger has just one year of team control remaining, but at a projected $3.6M salary in 2022, I think the Reds will keep the former Cleveland outfielder in the fold...for now.

Let's move on to the newcomers, shall we? Mike Moustakas is not new to the roster prediction, but it's safe to say that Moose has moved from the team's primary designated hitter to the Reds primary third baseman after the Reds traded Eugenio Suárez to the Seattle Mariners.

That said, you can easily see a scenario where Moustakas flips spots with the recently signed Donovan Solano. The former San Francisco Giants infielder will add a nice bat to the Cincinnati Reds lineup, especially versus left-handed pitching.

Finally, for now, let's slot Shogo Akiyama in left field. Replacing Jesse Winker will be no easy task, and is certainly out of reach for the light-hitting Akiyama. But, the former Japanese will provide far better defense than Winker ever did in left field. The Reds are still waiting for Akiyama to live up to that three-year/$21M contract he signed prior to the 2020 season.