Sandoval is a candidate to remain a starter as manager Joe Maddon said he plans to utilize a six-man rotation this season, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.
The 23-year-old appeared set to begin 2020 in the starting rotation with Shohei Ohtani (elbow) and Griffin Canning (elbow) unavailable to pitch in the spring, but both should be ready for the delayed Opening Day next month. However, since Ohtani will remain on a once-per-week pitching schedule, Sandoval should still have a chance to retain a spot in Maddon's six-man rotation. Sandoval made his big-league debut in 2019 and posted a 5.03 ERA, 1.37 WHIP and 42:10 K:BB over 39.1 innings (10 appearances).