Reds Opening Day roster, lineups, rotation & bullpen for the 2025 season

It's finally arrived. Opening Day is here, and the city of Cincinnati is abuzz with the start of the baseball seasons mere hours away. Baseball's first franchise, the Cincinnati Reds will officially begin their 149th season with a game against another one of the oldest organizations in professional sports, the San Francisco Giants.

Today's first pitch is scheduled for 4:10 p.m. ET with Hunter Greene taking the mound to face off against Giants' right-hander Logan Webb. With new manager, and future Hall of Famer, Terry Francona at the helm, fans are excited to see what the Reds Opening Day lineup looks like.

Reds Opening Day roster

Francona shocked the Reds fanbase on Wednesday after announcing that Spencer Steer would start the season on the active roster rather than the injured list. News of Austin Hays' calf injury required the Reds to pivot, and Steer stepped up in a big way.

Stuart Fairchild was designated for assignment, and both Jacob Hurtubise and Blake Dunn will be part of the Reds Opening Day roster. DFA'ing Fairchild was a bit unexpected, but both Hurtubise and Dunn outplayed the Wake Forest product this spring.

The remainder of the Reds Opening Day is about as expected. Elly De La Cruz, Hunter Greene, and Nick Lodolo are all part of the Reds active roster, and when Matt McLain steps onto the grass at Great American Ball Park, it will actually be his first time being part of Opening Day in Cincinnati.

Reds Opening Day starting lineup

TJ Friedl will lead things off for the Reds against the Giants on Thursday. He'll be followed by second baseman Matt McLain and shortstop Elly De La Cruz. Gavin Lux will open the season in left field and bat cleanup ahead of third baseman Jeimer Candelario.

Spencer Steer will bat sixth as the Reds designated hitter with Christian Encarnacion-Strand hitting behind him and playing first base. Jake Fraley gets the nod in right field and Jose Trevino will be hanging the signs for Greene and batting ninth.

Reds Opening Day rotation

The Reds starting staff could be among the best in all of baseball. Joining Greene in the Reds starting rotation will be left-hander Nick Lodolo and right-handed veteran Nick Martinez. The Reds are hoping for Greene to build off his All-Star performance from last season, and spent a cool $21 million to retain Martinez's services for the 2025 season. Lodolo may be the biggest X-factor for the Reds this season.

Former Kansas City Royals hurler Brady Singer will join the Reds this season after spend the past five seasons in the Show Me State. With Andrew Abbott on the IL to begin the 2025 season, Carson Spiers will be the Reds' fifth starter, though he may not have that designation for very long. Abbott has been making steady progress over the past few weeks and should be back sometime in April.

Reds Opening Day bullpen

The Reds bullpen saw a lot of turnover from 2024 to 2025. Gone are the likes Buck Farmer, Lucas Sims, and Justin Wilson. They've been replaced by Scott Barlow and Taylor Rogers. The Reds selected the contract of Ian Gibaut after his impressive spring campaign.

Cincinnati removed Graham Ashcraft from the rotation, and are hoping that he could be a key cog at the backend of the Reds bullpen. Speaking of which, the Reds will open the 2025 season without Alexis Díaz after the closer suffered a hamstring injury a few weeks ago. Francona may lean heavily on the veteran Emilio Pagán and the hard-throwing Tony Santillan until Diaz returns.

More Cincinnati Reds News and Rumors