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TJ Friedl Held Out of Cincinnati Reds' Lineup Following Health Scare, Hospital Visit

Cincinnati Reds center fielder TJ Friedl left Saturday's game early after experiencing shortness of breath, and while tests didn't reveal any serious issues, he won't start on Sunday.
Sam Connon|
Cincinnati Reds center fielder TJ Friedl (29) catches a fly ball ending the top of the sixth inning of the MLB game at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati on Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024.
Cincinnati Reds center fielder TJ Friedl (29) catches a fly ball ending the top of the sixth inning of the MLB game at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati on Wednesday, Sept. 4, 2024. | Albert Cesare/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK

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Cincinnati Reds

TJ Friedl will not be in the Cincinnati Reds' starting lineup against the New York Mets on Sunday, the team has announced.

Friedl left Saturday evening's game early after experiencing shortness of breath. He was checked by a trainer and went to a local hospital for precautionary testing, according to the Cincinnati Enquirer, but no serious issues were uncovered.

Will Benson will start in center field in Friedl's place on Sunday.

Friedl has only appeared in 67 games this season, missing long chunks of time with wrist, thumb and hamstring injuries. The 29-year-old is batting .218 with 11 home runs, 46 RBI, eight RBI, a .688 OPS and 0.4 WAR so far in 2024.

That comes on the heels of Friedl's breakout 2023 campaign, during which he hit .279 with 18 home runs, 66 RBI, 27 stolen bases, an .819 OPS and a 3.8 WAR. Friedl even earned a lone 10th-place MVP vote thanks to that production, asserting himself as Cincinnati's everyday center fielder moving forward.

Friedl, who has reached base safely in each of his last 10 games, was 2-for-7 with a home run and two RBI against the Mets this weekend.

Here is the full lineup card Reds manager David Bell submitted for Sunday's series finale in Queens:

1. Jonathan India, 2B
2. Elly De La Cruz, SS
3. Spencer Steer, LF
4. Ty France, 1B
5. Jake Fraley, RF
6. Santiago Espinal, DH
7. Noelvi Marte, 3B
8. Will Benson, CF
9. Luke Maille, C
SP: Julian Aguiar, RHP

First pitch is scheduled for 1:40 p.m. ET.

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Sam Connon
SAM CONNON

Sam Connon is a staff writer covering baseball for “Fastball on SI.’’ He previously covered UCLA Athletics for On SI’s All Bruins site, and is a UCLA graduate, with his work there as a sports columnist receiving awards from the College Media Association and Society of Professional Journalists. Connon also wrote for On SI’s New England Patriots site, Patriots Country, and he was on the Patriots and Boston Red Sox beats at Prime Time Sports Talk. Sam lives in Boston.

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