The Reds probably can’t release Candelario when he’s not even halfway through his three-year, $45 million contract, but he was bad last year and he’s been considerably worse while opening this season 9-for-80 with 29 strikeouts. He might lose even more playing time when Tyler Stephenson is activated, since Stephenson will likely DH at least once or twice per week.

Scoring 22 runs on Sunday has caused the Reds to run mostly the same lineup back out there tonight, though Jose Trevino is playing over six-hit superstar Austin Wynns. Spencer Steer’s return to the field after being limited to DH duties for three weeks has given the Reds some extra flexibility, and Candelario could be in danger of truly falling out of the mix if Marte continues to impress.

The Reds have a bit of a log jam now that Matt McLain and Austin Hays are back, so some usual starters for the Reds are going to get days off. In this case it’s Candelario, with Gavin Lux at third and Christian Encarnacion-Strand handling first.

Candelario got on the board with his first-inning blast off Bailey Falter. He had just one previous extra-base hit while batting .140/.208/.162 in 12 games. A corner infielder playing 81 games per year in GABP wouldn’t need to be very good in order to generate some mixed-league value, but Candelario has still fallen short of the standard since lancing a three-year, $45 million deal prior to last season. He’s probably not hopeless, but nothing so far this year has been very encouraging.