December 4, 20196 yr This could actually be the best thing to solve the whole infield and improve the defense a the same time. Arraez has not shown great range playing 2B. So why not have him work with someone this winter into becoming a good 1ST baseman. It would allow Sano to stay at 3RD for the time being until he needs to become our future DH. You could also finally move Polanco to 2B and sign a SS like Jose Iglesias to shore up the defense. Sign Iglesias to a 2 year deal and then if Royce Lewis is ready sooner he can take over at SS.
December 4, 20196 yr Interesting idea. I wonder if he’s too short to play first base, though. I’m guessing that unless they sign someone, it will mostly be Marwin there next season.
December 4, 20196 yr Author My thoughts are that Arraez does not have great range and speed so technically playing at 1ST would improve the defense if they can add a quality SS as well. Nothing saying they couldn't platoon him with Marwin Gonzalez or anyone else.
December 4, 20196 yr I’d go another direction. The obvious is getting a high-end defensive 3B and moving Sano. My personal favorite 1B of the future is Garver. There’s no saying what his numbers would’ve looked like, but I think it was gross mismanagement to have one of the best offensive players in the MLB getting part-time ABs. Taking Arraez, who will almost certainly regress, and planting him at 1B full time drives what value he has into the ground, IMO. We see guys with significant run production, OPS, home run, etc numbers that get tossed on the scrap heap at 1B/DH every year. What kind value does a guy who hits around .300 (assuming there’s some regression/adjustment by the league) with no power or speed have at 1B? Pete Alonso hit 55 HRs, 120 RBI with a .360 OBP (probably about where Arraez will sit) and he barely cracked the MLB top 50 in WAR. Same with Matt Olson who had huge power numbers, a .350 OBP and the Gold Glove at 1B. Santana has a .400 OBP, big power numbers and is even lower on the list than the previous 2. Arraez won’t be anywhere near the neighborhood of guys like that. That’s not even considering guys line Rizzo, Freeman, Gurriel, Bell, Goldschmidt, Hoskins, Voit, Renata Nunez, Christian Walker, etc. If he’s a full-time 1B, he’d be near bottom of the barrel at the position. He needs to be somewhere his bat plays (middle infield) or he just won’t make it. Realistically, he’s not sustaining a .350 batting avg, IMO.
December 4, 20196 yr What makes Luis's bat so interesting is that he plays second base. Transfer him to first base, and he no longer stands out versus the competition.
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