Shortstop Defense Position

DTH: Is Lowrie or Iglesias Your Long Term Shortstop? - Bloody Sox ...

Welcome back, everbody. It’s time for another DTH. This week, we debate long term–should Jed Lowrie, April’s Wunderkin, be entrenched in the job he took away from Marco Scutaro, or should defensive wizard Jose Iglesias get the job?  I’ll admit, watching Iglesias this spring, and in his very brief stint in the pros this year, was a treat. Great defense, great baserunning, but as you’ll see after the jump, I’m not quite convinced. What’s your take on it, Red Sox Nation?

By: Nick DiBattista

For me, this question has two trains of thought-is to let Jose Iglesias, who was announced as one of the best defensive shortstop the Red Sox system had in the recent past, will assume the position of shortstop from that it proves it can handle all aspects of the game the major leagues. The other one I'm more in favor of, is to let Jed Lowrie to keep its role as blocker and let the offense make up the difference in stature between him and defensive Iglesias.

The problem I find in the theory of letting Iglesias have the job every day is that I’m just not sure he’s going to develop as a hitter, and I personally don’t want a guy starting who is only going to get a hit in one out of every five at bats. Take a look at his minor league numbers, both from 2010 and 2011. In 2010, he had 236 PA in double-A; in those plate appearances, he hit .285/.315/.357, a respectable line, albeit nothing special. But that production, or something similar to that in the major league level is nothing to be ashamed of. This year, he moved up to Pawtucket, and his numbers have regressed to .227/.267/.245. This line is not something I want to look at in box scores, no matter what kind of “in the hole” crazy, Jeter-esque jump throws he can create.

As I’ve just finished reading Moneyball, I understand that Bill James, the great sabermetrics mind, and Billy Beane, successful GM of the Oakland A’s, both believe that fielding is worth played on a consistent basis before. Not because they thought he had the athleticism to play first, or because they had a superb catcher, but because they had a hole at first base where Jason Giambi had defected to the Yankees, and Hatteberg had one of the best baseball eyes that was available on the open market. Billy Beane was willing to live with whatever defense Hatteberg put out at first base, provided he kept his on base percentage up, which he did.

Baseball Digest

Baseball for dummies

Softball Skills & Drills

A Young Softball Player's Guide to Fielding and Defense

Whatever happened to the Hall of Fame?, baseball, Cooperstown, and the politics of glory