Reds roll out Sunday matinee outfield against Giants and southpaw Robbie Ray
Here we go!
Nick Martinez makes his long-awaited 2025 debut on Sunday afternoon for the Cincinnati Reds, getting the starting nod in the series finale against San Francisco opposite former Cy Young Award winner Robbie Ray. Martinez, who returned to the Reds by accepting their $21.05 million Qualifying Offer, was brilliant as a starter down the stretch in 2024, and the hope is that he can replicate that success as a starter from day one in 2025.
Well, day three, but you get the point. Day four if we’re being even more technical, but now we’re off the rails.
The Reds and Giants have split the first two games of this season-opening series, and it comes down to which side can plate more runs this afternoon. That seems a daunting task on-paper for the Reds today, who are employing an ‘outfield’ to begin this one of infielder Santiago Espinal, infielder (and a LHH with a career .565 OPS against LHP) Gavin Lux, and soon-to-be 27 year old rookie Blake Dunn. On top of that, Spencer Steer and his still-busted shoulder are back in the lineup as the DH, so the potency on offense may well be hard to find.
First pitch is set for 1:40 PM ET, and you can stream it in-market via FanDuel Sports Ohio or out of market via MLB.tv.