The Boston Red Sox will sport an unconventional positional lineup as they test their mettle against the Atlanta Braves.
Red Sox manager Alex Cora has reworked Boston’s outfield for Tuesday’s series opener at Truist Park. Since there is no designated hitter at National League ballparks, J.D. Martinez, who bats third, will play left field as part of a larger outfield shuffle.
Alex Verdugo bats second and plays center field, instead of right field, where he played in Monday’s win over the Toronto Blue Jays. Right fielder Hunter Renfroe returns from a day off and bats sixth.
Kiké Hernández remains in the leadoff spot but moves from center field to second base. Shortstop Xander Bogaerts (batting fourth), third baseman Rafael Devers (fifth) and Bobby Dalbec (eighth) round out Boston’s infield.
Christian Vázquez bats seventh and will catch for starting pitcher Eduardo RodrÃguez, who is 0-4 with a 8.49 ERA over his last six starts. RodrÃguez also will bat ninth in what will be just his second set of plate appearances this season.
Lefty Tucker Davidson starts for the Braves.
Here are the lineups for Tuesday’s Red Sox-Braves game.
NESN will air the game in full, with pregame coverage starting at 6 p.m. ET. First pitch is scheduled for 7:20 p.m., and postgame coverage immediately will follow the final out. If you’re not near a TV, you can live stream full coverage of the game online at Watch NESN Live.
RED SOX (40-27)
Kiké Hernández, 2B
Alex Verdugo, CF
J.D. Martinez, LF
Xander Bogaerts, SS
Rafael Devers, 3B
Hunter Renfroe, RF
Christian Vázquez, C
Bobby Dalbec, 1B
Eduardo RodrÃguez, P
Eduardo RodrÃguez, LHP (5-4, 6.03 ERA)
BRAVES (30-33)
Ronald Acuña Jr., RF
Freddie Freeman, 1B
Ozzie Albies, 2B
Austin Riley, 3B
Dansby Swanson, SS
Abraham Almonte, LF
William Contreras, C
Guillermo Heredia, CF
Tucker Davidson, P
Tucker Davidson, LHP (0-0, 1.53 ERA)
