With ‘no shortage of potential candidates,’ who will be the Marlins’ center fielder?
With spring training just about a month away, a better idea of what the 2020 Miami Marlins will look like is starting to take shape.
One big question still remains: With no clear front-runner, who will be the team’s starting center fielder?
“There’s no shortage of potential candidates,” Marlins president of baseball operations Michael Hill said this week.
Hill specified five of those potential candidates by name. Each will have his chance to make a statement during spring training and land on the Opening Day roster.
▪ Lewis Brinson: This is a make-or-break season for Brinson, 25, who has struggled in his first two seasons in the organization. Brinson was once considered the centerpiece of the Christian Yelich trade, but he has yet to live up to expectations. He’s solid defensively, but his .189 batting average and 194 strikeouts compared to 115 hits and 30 walks is concerning. The Marlins will give him every opportunity to make a case for a roster spot, but if the poor performance continues, they might start looking at other options.
▪ Magneuris Sierra: The speedy left-handed hitter impressed in a small sample size at the MLB level in 2019, hitting .350 with a double and a triple in 40 at-bats before sustaining a hamstring strain two weeks left in the season. If those numbers weren’t a fluke, he could provide another steady bat to the lineup and give the Marlins another player with game-changing speed on the basepaths while playing solid defense. The one tricky point with Sierra is he’s out of options. If he doesn’t make the Opening Day roster, the Marlins will have to either designate him for assignment or trade him before the final roster cuts.
▪ Monte Harrison: Harrison, the Marlins’ No. 5 overall prospect according to MLB pipeline, likely would have been a September call-up last season if he had not sustained suffered a pair of wrist injuries. He will need a big spring training to make the roster out of camp, but he should make his MLB debut at some point this season.
▪ Jon Berti: In a perfect world, Berti, 29, would serve a super-utility role for the Marlins. He made starts at all three outfield spots plus shortstop and third base in 2019 while holding his own offensively (.273 average, 14 doubles, six home runs, 24 RBI, 52 runs, team-leading 17 stolen bases in 73 games)
▪ Jonathan Villar: The Marlins acquired Villar in December as one of three signings to add impact hitting to their everyday lineup. The question remains as to where they want him playing in the field. He’s a natural middle infielder, but Miguel Rojas and Isan Diaz are the favorites to play at shortstop and second base, respectively. He could split time between third base and right field with Brian Anderson, who bounces between the two positions as well. Or, if they feel he is capable, the Marlins consider him a possibility in center field. Regardless, he will be a regular in the lineup with his career .261 batting average, 78 home runs, 202 stolen bases and 132 doubles through seven MLB seasons.
Cervelli signs
The Marlins on Thursday officially announced that they signed veteran catcher Francisco Cervelli to a one-year contract. Cervelli, who will turn 34 before the start of what will be his 13th MLB season, is expected to back up Jorge Alfaro. The Marlins also still have Chad Wallach on their 40-man roster.
The club designated outfielder Austin Dean for assignment to make room on the 40-man roster for Cervelli. Dean had a career .223/.268/.388 slash line in 98 MLB games with the Marlins. He also had a minus-9 defensive runs saved mark in 602 innings. His roster spot was expendable considering the wealth of outfield depth Miami has coming up.
This story was originally published January 9, 2020 at 10:38 AM.
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