Bogartz’s aftermath, San Diego outfielder traffic control Soto right fielder left fielder
Major League Baseball (MLB) San Diego Padres, who brought free agent shortstop Xander Bogartz, began outfield traffic control following the infield. Fernando Tatis Jr., who is currently training for outfield defense, will play right field as Juan Soto moves from right field to left field.
San Diego coach Bob Melvin met with Soto at the spring camp at the Peoria Sports Complex in Arizona on the 15th (Korea Standard Time) and told reporters, “Soto will play in the left field this season.” “We plan to have Soto play in a fixed position,” he said.
Soto, who left the Washington Nationals in August last year and joined San Diego through a trade, has been playing right field. However, as San Diego signed an 11-year, $280 million (about 357 billion won) contract with FA shortstop Bogartz in the offseason, a series of players became inevitable.
Shortstop Tatis Jr., whose Kim Ha-sung went from shortstop to second baseman and Jake Cronenworth went from second baseman to first baseman, and who rested the entire 2022 season due to injuries and banned drug disciplinary action, will play as an outfielder from this season.
As Soto changes his position to left fielder, Tatis Jr. is expected to play right fielder. The center fielder is Trent Grisham’s position with excellent defense enough to receive gold gloves twice.
Earlier, Soto said he hoped to play steadily in one position rather than alternating left and right field, but coach Melvin finally decided Soto’s position as left fielder.
The left fielder is a familiar position for Soto. Soto, who became a big leaguer in 2018, played left field for the first two seasons and changed his position to right field from the 2021 season.
“Soto was nominated for right fielder Gold Glove last year, but compared to other outfielders in San Diego, his defense is mediocre and his range is not wide,” MLB.com said. “The right fielder seems to be a good position for Tatis Jr.” Considering that Petco Park, the home stadium of San Diego, has a wide right side of the outfield, Tatis Jr., who has excellent athletic ability and strong shoulders, may be suitable as a right fielder, he explained 파워볼사이트
Tatis Jr., who played as a starting shortstop in the 2021 season, also has experience as an outfielder. Tatis Jr., who injured his shoulder two years ago, has started 16 games as a right fielder and 7 games as a center fielder.
However, coach Melvin said, “We are leaving all possibilities open,” adding, “We have not yet fixed Tatis Jr.’s position as a right fielder.” Tatis Jr., whose banned substance disciplinary action remains, plans to plan with ease as he cannot play 20 games after the season’s opening.
