Manager Craig Stammen shook up the San Diego Padres' lineup, shifting Fernando Tatis Jr. out of the leadoff spot. Will he bat cleanup on Opening Day?
The San Diego Padres enter the 2026 MLB season with a lot of changes to the roster, but a lot of expectations once again.
The Padres decided to use Nick Pivetta as the Opening Day starter against the Detroit Tigers on Thursday afternoon at Petco Park, and that was expected to be the case all along.
The big question mark entering Opening Day is what the lineup will look like. The infield is mostly set with Freddy Fermin at catcher, and Jake Cronenworth, Xander Bogaerts and Manny Machado filling the second, short and third base spots.
First base is an interesting one, and the outfield is set with Fernando Tatis Jr., Jackson Merrill and Ramon Laureano.
Now, new manager Craig Stammen raised eyebrows by putting Tatis in the No. 4 spot in his first-ever Cactus League lineup, moving Tatis away from the leadoff spot.
Tatis has been a staple on top of the order for quite some time, but Stammen again and again used Tatis outside of that spot.
On Wednesday, Padres beat writer AJ Cassavell of MLB.com and Jason Beck gave their predictions for the Opening Day lineups for both teams, and it had Tatis at No. 4.
- Xander Bogaerts, SS
- Jackson Merrill, CF
- Manny Machado, 3B
- Fernando Tatis Jr., RF
- Ramón Laureano, LF
- Jake Cronenworth, 2B
- Nick Castellanos, DH
- Miguel Andujar, 1B
- Freddy Fermin, C
That version has Gavin Sheets on the bench, which makes sense with Tigers lefty Tarik Skubal taking the mound. It also has Miguel Andujar at first and Nick Castellanos at DH, but Tatis is hitting in the clean-up spot.
On Wednesday, Marty Caswell asked Tatis where he expects to bat, and here's his answer:
"I don't know yet," Tatis said with a chuckle. "I'm just going to be ready wherever they need me."
Stammen indicated early on that he might move Tatis out of the leadoff spot completely, and his Cactus League lineups hinted at that time and time again.
Tatis doesn't seem to be bothered by it in any way, but putting him in the clean-up spot would give him more opportunities to drive in runs with Machado and Merrill ahead of him.
Now, let's remember that the Opening Day lineup isn't always an indication of how things will look for the majority of the season, and Mike Shildt sure had a difficult time moving the lineup around last season.
Maybe Stammen is a bit freer and more flexible with the lineup, but it wouldn't be surprising at all to see if Tatis bats outside of the leadoff spot.