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The Red Sox will welcome the Orioles into Jet Blue Park for a Tuesday matinee with another lineup that could be a preview of the Opening Day starting nine--with one small exception.
- Jacoby Ellsbury, CF
- Shane Victorino, RF
- Dustin Pedroia, 2B
- Mike Napoli, 1B
- Jarrod Saltalamacchia, C
- Will Middlebrooks, 3B
- Jonny Gomes, LF
- Ryan Sweeney, DH
- Jose Iglesias, SS
Starting Pitcher -- Ryan Dempster
What obviously won't be happening come April 1st is Ryan Sweeney at DH. He may very well be in the lineup. And if he is, chances are he's batting eighth. But he'd be playing in the outfield in place of no-glove Jonny Gomes, who would get the nod as the designated hitter.
Of course, that's assuming Ryan Sweeney makes the team, but between his glove and some relatively unimpressive performances from his competition, that's seeming more likely by the day.
Otherwise, as we saw a couple days back, the Sox would have Jonny Gomes playing the field and both their catchers in the lineup. There are some days where that might make sense, but most of the time they're probably better served keeping Gomes out of the field while Ortiz isn't there to fill his typical role.
