The pitchers and catchers for the Guards have been soaking the Arizona sunshine in Goodyear for a week now. It’s been great to see them getting ready, working on their skills, and gearing up for the season ahead.
My dad loved going to that week to see all the pitchers warming up.
The first Spring Training games kick off this Saturday, and we have some possible position changes.
According to Tim Stebbins, Steven Kwan will take some reps in center this year, and it’s an interesting choice to address our … well deficit in the area. The last great centerfielder we had was Straw and his bat was mediocre at best. Kwan’s been leadoff for a couple years now, and while his bat is impactful, he’s not primarily a hitter.
If Chase DeLauter can stay healthy, then he may be our main in right. Petey Halpin is mostly in centre, but so was Kwan before he moved to left. Halpin is pretty fast, so he might be a good fit there, as would Jonathan Rodríguez and George Valera. But there’s also Angel Martínez who has played every outfield position as well as second base!
If you looked at the roster transactions last month, we invited a lot of the non-roster infielders to spring training, including:
- Travis Bazzana (2B)
- Ralphy Velazquez (1B)
- Dayan Frias (3B)
It’s no secret that the middle line has been rough. Without Andres Gimenez, it’s not the same, and while both Brayan Rocchio and Gabriel Arias are doing well, they’re young and having ups and downs. Those guys are in addition to the other young guns so here’s hoping we get a solid short and second baseman.
While our 🐐 José Ramírez is a lock at 3rd, we do need a backup. And there’s no guarantee that poor David Fry will be able to platoon at first with Kyle Manzardo. Mind you, there’s a Manzo Bobblehead Night so I don’t think he’ll be replaced anytime soon. For Manzo, it all comes down to “Doth he hit?” José needs protection in the lineup, and that means someone’s got to hit reliably behind him. Can it be Fry or Manzo? Time will tell.
A full list of the non-roster invites includes a number of pitchers you might remember, some catchers you probably don’t and a good load of “Who are these fucking guys?”
We’ll find out in two more days!