O's utility infielder no longer needs to play SS

[wildcard]

One of the effects of Manny moving to SS is that the O's now have two shortstops on the 25 man roster.   One could say they have been there all along even back to the days when JJ Hardy was healthy.   But the O's had decided last year that they did not want to move Manny from 3rd when JJ was injured.  They wanted Manny to play 3rd base all season.    

Now with Manny moving to short and Beckham a 3rd base, should Manny need time off for any reason Beckham probably moves back to SS to fill in.   As long as the O's have a SS at AAA that they are willing to promote in case of injury to Manny or Beckham there is no reason for the Utility Infielder to play SS.   He can be a 2B/3B type.   Don't ask me who that is in the O's organization because I am not sure.  It could be Dosch if he is playing well.  It is certainly not Mountcastle.   And it will not be Wilkerson for the first 50 days of the season.   Maybe Flaherty if he is re-signed.

Never the less I do believe that Manny moving to SS changes the skill set needed for the  Utility Infielder.

[wildbillhiccup]

3 minutes ago, wildcard said:

One of the effects of Manny moving to SS is that the O's now have two shortstops on the 25 man roster.   One could say they have been there all along even back to the days when JJ Hardy was healthy.   But the O's had decided last year that they did not want to move Manny from 3rd when JJ was injured.  They wanted Manny to play 3rd base all season.    

Now with Manny moving to short and Beckham a 3rd base, should Manny need time off for any reason Beckham probably moves back to SS to fill in.   As long as the O's have a SS at AAA that the are willing to promote in case of injury to Manny or Beckham there is no reason for the Utility Infielder to play SS.   He can be a 2B/3B type.   Don't ask me who that is the organization because I am not sure.  It could be Dosch if he is playing well.  It is certainly not Mountcastle.   And it will not be Wilkerson for the first 50 days of the season.   

Never the less I do believe that Manny moving to SS changes the skill set need for the  Utility Infielder.

The logic behind this post escapes me. Machado and Beckham were both on the team last year and I don't see how them swapping primary positions changes or effects what the team needs out of a utility infielder. 

[Aristotelian]

True but they would still need someone to back up both 2B and 3B. You still need a guy who is quick enough for 2B and strong enough arm for 3B.

Another option that some have discussed is signing a 3B, namely Moustakas. I might take a look at Brandon Phillips who has been playing 3B lately, or Eduardo Nunez.

[wildcard]

1 minute ago, wildbillhiccup said:

The logic behind this post escapes me. Machado and Beckham were both on the team last year and I don't see how them swapping primary positions changes or effects what the team needs out of a utility infielder. 

Because the O's didn't want to move Manny off 3rd to fill in a SS last year. 

[wildcard]

1 minute ago, Aristotelian said:

True but they would still need someone to back up both 2B and 3B. You still need a guy who is quick enough for 2B and strong enough arm for 3B.

Another option that some have discussed is signing a 3B, namely Moustakas. I might take a look at Brandon Phillips who has been playing 3B lately, or Eduardo Nunez.

Buck said the O's don't want to add another guy with a low OBP so no interest in Moustalkas.   This is a UIF.  Philips is too high profile for that.   Nunez made 4.2m last year.  I would think the O's will be looking for someone around 1M.

[oriole]

5 minutes ago, Aristotelian said:

True but they would still need someone to back up both 2B and 3B. You still need a guy who is quick enough for 2B and strong enough arm for 3B.

Another option that some have discussed is signing a 3B, namely Moustakas. I might take a look at Brandon Phillips who has been playing 3B lately, or Eduardo Nunez.

I'm afraid of them signing Moustakas. We already have enough hitters barely getting on base...the last thing we need is another overpaid one. 

[jamalshw]

3 minutes ago, wildcard said:

Buck said the O's don't want to add another guy with a low OBP so no interest in Moustalkas.   This is a UIF.  Philips is too high profile for that.   Nunez made 4.2m last year.  I would think the O's will be looking for someone around 1M.

I'd be on board with Nunez, but don't underestimate the power of the O's bending over backwards in logic to justify a Moustakas deal. This is a front office that loves a good "deal" and the Moustakas market has evaporated. The Giants needed a 3B and traded for Longoria. The Angels were an option and signed a shortstop and moved him to third instead. KC could still resign him and that may be enough to prevent his market from completely collapsing, but if it drops low enough, I can see DD getting involved and making the argument that he should he could get on base in 2015.

[wildcard]

4 minutes ago, jamalshw said:

I'd be on board with Nunez, but don't underestimate the power of the O's bending over backwards in logic to justify a Moustakas deal. This is a front office that loves a good "deal" and the Moustakas market has evaporated. The Giants needed a 3B and traded for Longoria. The Angels were an option and signed a shortstop and moved him to third instead. KC could still resign him and that may be enough to prevent his market from completely collapsing, but if it drops low enough, I can see DD getting involved and making the argument that he should he could get on base in 2015.

Even if Moustakas' price comes down the O's shouldn't be spending money on him.   Dan says he is going to sign a starter by March 1st.   I also expect that Dan will be watching which teams may have a young starters push out older ones right as the season starts.   Dan will need to have some money available for that.    Of course Dan will be watching the waiver wire as well but that should not cost much.

[El Gordo]

22 minutes ago, Aristotelian said:

True but they would still need someone to back up both 2B and 3B. You still need a guy who is quick enough for 2B and strong enough arm for 3B.

Another option that some have discussed is signing a 3B, namely Moustakas. I might take a look at Brandon Phillips who has been playing 3B lately, or Eduardo Nunez.

2B and 3B were Flash's  strongest positions. Just sayin'.

[Redskins Rick]

4 minutes ago, El Gordo said:

2B and 3B were Flash's  strongest positions. Just sayin'.

I disagree, Buck doesn't like moving position players during the middle of a game, unless its truly an emergency.

I still see the UINF on Buck's team, as a guy that can play SS.

 

[Il BuonO]

43 minutes ago, wildcard said:

One of the effects of Manny moving to SS is that the O's now have two shortstops on the 25 man roster.   One could say they have been there all along even back to the days when JJ Hardy was healthy.   But the O's had decided last year that they did not want to move Manny from 3rd when JJ was injured.  They wanted Manny to play 3rd base all season.    

Now with Manny moving to short and Beckham a 3rd base, should Manny need time off for any reason Beckham probably moves back to SS to fill in.   As long as the O's have a SS at AAA that they are willing to promote in case of injury to Manny or Beckham there is no reason for the Utility Infielder to play SS.   He can be a 2B/3B type.   Don't ask me who that is in the O's organization because I am not sure.  It could be Dosch if he is playing well.  It is certainly not Mountcastle.   And it will not be Wilkerson for the first 50 days of the season.   Maybe Flaherty if he is re-signed.

Never the less I do believe that Manny moving to SS changes the skill set needed for the  Utility Infielder.

And I covered this in the Wilkerson thread long before they stated Machado was playing SS. If you have a guy who used to play SS then your utility guy doesn’t need to be counted on there. It didn’t need to change just because Manny moved to SS.

[weams]

42 minutes ago, wildbillhiccup said:

The logic behind this post escapes me. Machado and Beckham were both on the team last year and I don't see how them swapping primary positions changes or effects what the team needs out of a utility infielder. 

Agreed. 

[Redskins Rick]

2 minutes ago, weams said:

Agreed. 

I dont have heartburn, if they try this in ST and see how it works.

If its not working and during the regular season, then I would probably not be happy too much.

But, for now, much ado about nothing.

[wildcard]

2 minutes ago, Il BuonO said:

And I covered this in the Wilkerson thread long before they stated Machado was playing SS. If you have a guy who used to play SS then your utility guy doesn’t need to be counted on there. It didn’t need to change just because Manny moved to SS.

Last year Buck did not want to move Manny off 3rd to cover SS.  He wanted Manny to stay at 3rd base because Manny was a gold glover at 3rd and he didn't want to weakens the defense.  Manny's move to SS changes all that.

[Legend_Of_Joey]

46 minutes ago, wildbillhiccup said:

The logic behind this post escapes me. Machado and Beckham were both on the team last year and I don't see how them swapping primary positions changes or effects what the team needs out of a utility infielder. 

The logic behind it is that now the Orioles showed that they would move a player around. Last year, they weren't moving Manny off of 3rd unless a plague was there. This year, moving Manny and Beckham *might* show that they will swap them if there is a need. So, instead of bringing in a utility player to play shortstop, they might be willing to move Beckham to short later in the game and have the utility player at 3rd, especially if the utility player has a good hitting or base running intangible while maybe have a slight deficiency at shortstop.