3-24 Reds vs. Phillies - Griffey Starting in RF

[Tom Servo]

per trent:

SARASOTA — Batting fourth and playing right field, Ken Griffey Jr.

Jerry Narron said Griffey would get two or three at-bats today and he'd try to play him in as many games as possible betwen now and opening day.

Reds
Ryan Freel CF
Adam Dunn LF
Brandon Phillips 2B
Ken Griffey Jr. RF
Edwin Encarnacion 3B
Joey Votto 1B
Alex Gonzalez SS
David Ross C
Bronson Arroyo P

Phillies
Michael Bourn RF
Shance Victorino CF
Wes Helms 3B
Ryan Howard 1B
Pat Burrell LF
Rod Barajas C
Abraham Nunez SS
Brent Abernathy 2B
Adam Eaton P


Here's what Jerry had to say:

"I asked him if he was ready. He said he was ready."
(does he have enough time left to get ready for season) "I sure hope
so."
(how many ABs today) "Two or three. We'll see where he is after that.
We'll see how the game goes."
(how much will be play these last 8 days) "We'll see where he is after
he plays. We'll see how his wrist responds. He won't play in all the
games."
(is it easy to move to RF) "I've never been an outfielder, so I really
can't say, but if you can play, you can play."

[cincy09]

minus Votto it looks very close to what the opening day lineup could look like.

[jmac]

Good to see Jr back in there !

[NatiRedGals]

Griffey to play vs. Phillies today
Slugger will play right in his first Grapefruit action this spring
By Mark Sheldon / MLB.com

SARASOTA, Fla. -- Ken Griffey Jr. will make his spring debut for the Reds on Saturday against the Phillies.

Griffey will bat fourth and play right field.

The 37-year-old had missed all 22 of Cincinnati's previous exhibition games while he recovered from a broken left hand. He suffered the injury in December while wrestling with his three children.

Originally expected to be ready for the start of camp in February, Griffey's rehabilitation has been a slower process than expected. He began taking batting practice a couple of weeks ago but continued to have lingering soreness.

Throughout camp, Reds manager Jerry Narron left Griffey's playing status up to the slugger. Saturday was no different, but the answer was.

"I asked him if he was ready," Narron said. "He said he was ready."

Griffey will likely get two or three at-bats on Saturday, Narron indicated.

If Griffey hadn't started playing in the next few days, the club was considering placing him on the disabled list to begin the regular season. Now the question is if the 12-time All-Star can get ready in time for Opening Day.

"We'll see how he is, how he feels and how the wrist responds," Narron said.

If all goes well, Griffey will likely see a lot of action in the final week of Spring Training.

"I'm sure he won't play in all the games," Narron. "I hope for him to play as many as he possibly can."

Narron announced on Monday that Griffey would be shifted from center field -- his position for all 18 of his big-league seasons -- to right field. Griffey said earlier this week that he was fine with the decision and that it had been made a month ago behind the scenes.

Mark Sheldon is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

http://cincinnati.reds.mlb.com/news/...=.jsp&c_id=cin

[IamWallaman]

I really like this lineup. Only nitpick would be to switch EdE and Phillips.

[NatiRedGals]

I really like this lineup. Only nitpick would be to switch EdE and Phillips.

Dont worry Openning Day is on the way

[mth123]

minus Votto it looks very close to what the opening day lineup could look like.

Toobad. If Votto stayed and Hatteberg became a bench player, the team would only have pitching to worry about. Of course when Hatte returns we could see him at number 2 with Dunn moving into Votto's spot.

[Redsland]

Wow. Nice Lineup.

[Heath]

Gonna have to miss this one. It's sunny here in Dayton.

[flyer85]

minus Votto it looks very close to what the opening day lineup could look like.

with Votto it would be a good opening day lineup

[Matt700wlw]

Griffey's going long today.

[edabbs44]

Griffey's going long today.

Long like 2 innings?

[Matt700wlw]

Those Phillie uniforms look goofy

[Matt700wlw]

Long like 2 innings?

Maybe

[Reds Fanatic]

Bourn strikes out looking to start the game.
Victorino lines a single to center.