Ortiz First in Philly?
| 13
|
by user Xinoph
Boston Red Sox Designated Hitter David Ortiz will, as usual for Boston in interleague play, be breaking out his glove for the weekend series in Philadelphia. In previous years he has performed adequately at first base for the Red Sox; last year saw him get just two errors, but a low fielding percentage at .976%.
Normally this move would be without question for a guy who has 190 career HRs and 661 career RBIs. But this year the Red Sox have a viable alternative in steady first basemen Kevin Youkilis, who has proven adept on the offensive side as well. With the injury to Coco Crisp he has unexpectedly become the replacement for Johnny Damon as Boston's leadoff hitter, and he's filling that role admirably. On the season he has a .309 average, a .424 on-base percentage, 11 doubles, 3 homers, and 20 RBI.
So, Youkilis is doing well. But how does he compare to Boston's slugger, to whom he had to give up a ballot spot for the All-Star Game? Well, Ortiz has had his struggles at the plate this year. While he has 13HRs and 35 RBIs - surely numbers one doesn't want to give up in interleague play - his average is sitting at just .268, and his OBP is .364, both well below Youkilis.
If Ortiz struggles defensively this weekend in Philadelphia, and/or doesn't contribute offensively, Sox manager Terry Francona should seriously consider moving Youkilis back into the lineup. He'll definitely have a controversy on his hands, whatever he decides. While we usually talk about a quarterback controversy in football, this week in Boston baseball we could have a first base controversy. It will be interesting to see how this plays out.
Date
Thu 05/18/06, 6:20 am EST
