Cleveland Indians: Predicting lineup as summer camp opens

Predicting the Cleveland Indians lineup as summer camp opens.

The Cleveland Indians continue to move forward with a 2020 season, and whether or not MLB plays the campaign out, will likely depend on baseball is able to stay ahead of COVID-19.

Summer camp will open on July 3, and there’s plenty to dissect. After you think you’ve got a handle on the roster, you’ve then got to construct a batting order, and predicting a lineup for a Terry Francona-led team is about as hard as it gets, as the veteran manager makes the most of using what he has, moving parts around in a quest to put his players in the best position to be successful.

Things get really complicated when you try to figure out what Francona will do with an unsettled position, such as the outfield. Oscar Mercado is an everyday player, as is Franmil Reyes. Factoring in an unsettled DH spot, along with a questionable left-field spot, and all bets are off, especially since Tito will be able to choose from an expanded roster in the early going.

The Indians aren’t being talked about much in this 60-game sprint, although one analytical projection has the Tribe grabbing the Wild Card. Ideally, Tito’s group will win the division where the season won’t come down to a do-or-die Wild Card game.

That’s especially true because after going over the lineup, Tito’s batting order has the potential to be very, very, very good. Factor in the sticks with the Tribe’s starting pitchers, and the recipe is there for the Tribe to make some noise, and perhaps, go on a little run.

With the season pegged to start sometime at the end of July, here’s my guess for a lineup.