Stott starts, Realmuto bats 2nd in Phillies' opening day lineup originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
The Phillies' opening day lineup is out.
Bryson Stott will make his major-league debut as the Phils' opening day third baseman, and it is J.T. Realmuto in the two-hole.
Get Philly local news, weather forecasts, sports and entertainment stories to your inbox. Sign up for NBC Philadelphia newsletters.
Two was a batting order spot of interest given the clear preference Joe Girardi showed in spring training to lead off Kyle Schwarber, bat Bryce Harper third and Nick Castellanos fourth.
Here is the lineup for Game 1 of 162, against Athletics right-hander Frankie Montas:
1. Kyle Schwarber, LF
2. J.T. Realmuto, C
3. Bryce Harper, RF
4. Nick Castellanos, DH
5. Rhys Hoskins, 1B
6. Didi Gregorius, SS
7. Jean Segura, 2B
8. Bryson Stott, 3B
9. Matt Vierling, CF
Aaron Nola, SP
It would have been interesting to see whether Mickey Moniak got the opening day nod in center field had he not suffered a broken hand in his final plate appearance of spring training. He was so hot at the plate that it seemed like a realistic move against a righty in Montas. The Phillies on Friday placed Moniak on the 10-day IL retroactive to April 7 and recalled outfielder Simón Muzziotti from Double A Reading.
Expectations are high for this lineup, which added two 30-homer bats in Schwarber and Castellanos, hopes for more of the same from Harper and better health from Hoskins and Gregorius. One of the Phillies' primary offensive issues in 2021 was a lack of production from the top two spots in the lineup, where their leadoff men and No. 2 hitters each had the lowest on-base percentage in the National League. That's expected to change significantly with Schwarber and Realmuto up top. We could also see Segura and Hoskins spend time in the two-hole throughout the year.
The only Phillie with more than one career at-bat against Montas is Castellanos, who is 3 for 9 with two doubles.
Subscribe to Phillies Talk: Apple Podcasts | Google Play | Spotify | Stitcher | Art19 | Watch on YouTube
