Josh Reddick
With only a month left until Opening Day, the Oakland A’s right fielder may not be healthy enough to start. Josh Reddick suffered a strained oblique during defensive drills this week and is expected to be out for at least two weeks. However, manager Bob Melvin said that it could be longer until we see Reddick back out in right field, meaning he might even miss Opening Day. So what does this mean for defensive coverage in right?
Melvin told Jane Lee from MLB.com that he is going to have a handful of players filling in for Reddick for the rest of spring training. This includes Matt Olson, Billy Burns, Mark Canha, Alex Hassan and Jason Pridie. Interestingly enough, Melvin also suggested that Ike Davis will have his turn in right field as well. As it turns out, Davis – who is normally plays at first baseman – has be working on his defensive skills in the outfield during the offseason. However, it is unlikely that all of these players will make the Opening Day roster. So who will be in right once the season starts and Reddick is still on the DL?
There are a few options. It is likely that both of last year’s outfield utility men Sam Fuld and Craig Gentry will make the 40-man roster. One will play in center while the other would most likely fill in for Reddick. Since Fuld is the starting center fielder on the Oakland A’s depth chart, it is likely that Gentry will see time in right field. However, neither Gentry nor Fuld have that much experience in right, as both usually play in left or center field.
Then there is utility man Ben Zobrist. And, as it turns out, right field is where Zobrist has started his second highest number of games after second base. Additionally, he has a .996 fielding percentage in right, which is higher than his fielding percentage at second. If the Athletics choose to not send Eric Sogard to Triple-A, the Oakland A’s could have Sogard cover second and move Zobrist to the outfield.
Lastly, there is a possibility that Ike Davis could see some playing time in right at the beginning of the season. Even though the only playing time he has seen in right field are the two appearances he made back in 2009 when he was in Double-A, Davis is expanding his defensive skills to the outfield. It will be interesting to see if this 27-year-old can learn a new position after playing exclusively at first base for his six year MLB career.
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Since Davis is going to be platooning at first base with Billy Butler, it was a smart move for him to start learning a new position. The Oakland A’s love utility men and the more positions a player plays, the more game time he will see. If Davis is able to show that he can be successful in right field during spring training, there is a possibility that he could see some playing time in the outfield during the regular season as well.
The most likely scenario is that Gentry and Zobrist will play in right field until Reddick is healthy again. Let’s hope that this recent injury is not a sign of the things to come this season. Since Reddick tends to be injury prone, the Oakland A’s need to have a solid backup plan in case this happens again during the regular season.
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This article Oakland A’s: Outfield roster changes after Reddick injury appeared first on isportsweb by Sam Riley