Reds' Alex Blandino: Won't be ready by Opening Day
Blandino (knee) will not be ready for the start of the season, Bobby Nightengale of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports. "We would love to have him ready," manager David Bell said. "I know he would love to be ready. It's just not realistic right now. As much as he's disappointed by that, he's come such a long way, I think he knows he has to be smart about it."
Blandino, who had surgery to reconstruct a torn ACL and MCL in July of 2018, is recovering slower than expected. While he's been able to field grounders and participate in batting practice, the outfielder still isn't ready for game action. As such, Blandino won't be able to get enough at-bats in before the start of the season, leaving him to open the year in the minors or on the injured list.
