Willians Astudillo making an impression in camp. Can he crack the Marlins’ roster?
Willians Astudillo spent Thursday morning catching Elieser Hernandez’s bullpen session on the back fields of the Roger Dean Chevrolet Stadium complex.
He spent Thursday night hitting a two-run double and playing second base for the final five innings of the Marlins’ 9-3 spring training loss to the New York Mets at Clover Park.
Astudillo, 30, has quickly made an impression during camp as a non-roster invite. He has a hit in all three games he has played and has played a different position in the infield each game (third base Tuesday, first base Wednesday, second base Thursday).
Is it enough for him to crack the Marlins’ Opening Day roster? It’s probably too early to tell even as this shortened camp nears the halfway mark.
But there is intrigue with what he can provide on both sides of the game.
Offensively, he’s a career .270 hitter with 22 doubles, 15 home runs, 66 RBI and 58 runs scored in 169 games over four seasons — all with the Minnesota Twins, where he became a fan favorite. He has put the ball in play in 488 of his 533 career plate appearances (91.6 percent). The other 45 plate appearances: 25 strikeouts, 10 walks, 10 hit by pitches.
“He hits,” Marlins manager Don Mattingly said. “He can hit. You see a guy who knows how to hit. He’s got a good swing.”
Defensively, he has played every position except shortstop at least once in a regular-season MLB game, although the bulk of his playing time in the field has come at catcher (362 1/3 innings over 53 games, including 39 starts), first base (303 2/3 innings over 42 games, including 33 starts) and third base (347 innings over 48 games, including 38 starts).
“He plays all over the place,” Mattingly said. “He may fool you. The body [5-9, 225 pounds], you kind of look at one thing but he moves good. He brings a lot of energy and you can feel that too. There’s a lot of positives.”
This and that
▪ Right-handed pitcher Pablo Lopez was originally scheduled to start Thursday but he instead got his work done in Jupiter because of the risk of inclement weather.
▪ The Marlins on Thursday optioned outfielder/first baseman Jerar Encarnacion to the minor leagues and reassigned outfielder prospects JJ Bleday and Peyton Burdick to minor-league camp.
Bleday and Burdick, ranked as the Nos. 5 and 14 prospects in Miami’s system according to MLB Pipeline, were non-roster invites to spring training and are expected to begin 2022 with the Triple A Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp, whose season starts on April 5.
Encarnacion, ranked as Miami’s No. 22 prospect, had gone 2-for-7 with a solo homer and a three-run double in Grapefruit League play.
“It’s always good to have them in camp and get some experience,” Mattingly said. “Obviously a little shorter this year, little less playing time because of trying to push our guys to get ready earlier or in a shorter period of time. So they’re playing more innings faster. So there’s less at-bats, and it’s just time for them to get ready for a season.”
▪ Anthony Bass made his 2022 spring training debut on Thursday, stranding two in a scoreless fourth inning against the Mets.
▪ Outfielder Monte Harrison, who the Marlins designated for assignment last week, cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple A Jacksonville.
This story was originally published March 24, 2022 at 10:20 PM.
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