Pirates' starting lineup for Friday's Home Opener includes unexpected surprise

When the Pittsburgh Pirates revealed their starting lineup for Friday's Home Opener against the New York Yankees, it featured an unexpected twist.

Andrew McCutchen — who has appeared in just 13 games as an outfielder dating back 2022 — is starting in right field.

McCutchen has been out of the Pirates' lineup for the past three games while Bryan Reynolds has been nursing a triceps injury that has been limited to just hitting, forcing him to shift from his usual position in right field into the DH role. Jack Suwinski has been Reynolds' primary replacement in right field during that time, but McCutchen will get the nod Friday against the Yankees.

Pirates' starting lineup for Friday's Home Opener includes unexpected surprise

Pirates manager Derek Shelton spoke to the media before the Pirates' Home Opener Friday at PNC Park and spoke on how the club plans to monitor McCutchen's usage in the outfield moving forward. He said that he first spoke with McCutchen about the possibility of playing the outfield when Reynolds' triceps first became an issue, and that McCutchen began a throwing program to build up his arm at that point.

While McCutchen told Shelton that he felt good enough physically to play the outfield on Friday, the Pirates' skipper went on to say that he doesn't plan to use McCutchen in the outfield "a ton" moving forward — he is 38, after all, and he hasn't played in the outfield consistently in almost three years. Rather, Shelton said, the move is simply to give the Pirates "an option" and help them generate more offense.

Plus, Shelton pointed out, it simply wouldn't feel like a Pirates Home Opener without Cutch in the starting lineup.

"I know it was something very important to me but first and foremost, Cutch had to be in a good spot to do this," Shelton said. "Cutch is a person that means a lot to this organization and a lot to this city, so him being out there today was extremely important to me. The most important thing was Cutch was in a good spot with it. But it was front-of-mind for me."

Reynolds, meanwhile, was re-evaluated on Wednesday, and Shelton relayed that he would still be very limited when it comes to throwing, "if any throwing at all." He remains in the Pirates' lineup as the DH against the Yankees.

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