Despite changes, infield defense solid
01/27/2006TORONTO -- As the offseason is nearing its end and players around the league are gearing up for Spring Training, it's hard not to evaluate the changes to every roster.
Toronto was by far one of the busier teams this winter -- signing two prized free agent pitchers and dealing for a pair of potent bats. Blue Jays fans have been given a team to get excited about and talk of a possible run at the playoffs in is in the air.
It's a bit early to tell how all of Toronto's moves will work out, but it's never too early to try to identify a potential chink in the team's armor. The changes around the Jays' infield have many critics questioning how well the defense will hold up this season.
"I dont think our defense has taken a hit in any way," Toronto general manager J.P. Ricciardi said last week, quick to shake off those concerns.
It's hard to deny the legitimacy of the criticism, though.
Acquiring third baseman Troy Glaus and first baseman Lyle Overbay caused a ripple effect around the infield. Adding Glaus cost the Jays' a Gold Glove-winning second baseman in Orlando Hudson and essentially forced them to trade third baseman Corey Koskie. With Overbay starting at first, that left Eric Hinske and Shea Hillenbrand without regular work in the infield. Hinske will be attempting a move to the outfield this year and Hillenbrand has been relegated to full-time designated hitter duties.
That's a lot of changes to a team that was tied for second in the American League with a .985 fielding percentage last year behind a pitching staff that was tied for first in the AL in forcing groundouts.
Taking into account the fielding statistics from 2005 of the 25 players projected to make the Opening Day roster for the upcoming season, the Blue Jays' fielding percentage dips to .981. Only two teams in the AL had lower percentages. Toronto was playing with several rookies and Hinske had no outfield experience, but that stat still shows that the defense may have taken a hit.
Not as far as Ricciardi is concerned.
"Overbay is a big upgrade from what we've had over [at first base]," he said. "I thought Shea did a great job for us, but Overbay is a [heck] of a fielder."
Overbay does have better career numbers than Hillenbrand at first base, but his totals are comparable to that of Hinske, who played 100 games at the position last year. Both Overbay and Hinske have a .993 career fielding percentage at first base. The difference is that Hinske's experience at first rests in just those 100 games, while Overbay has 387 games under his belt at that spot. That gives Overbay the nod.
Glaus is another player that Ricciardi has great faith in defensively.
"Glaus is a very good fielder, too. I don't know where this so-called reputation of him not being a good fielder is coming from," Ricciardi said.
That reputation might come from his fielding percentage as a third baseman. Glaus has a career .945 percentage at the position, which is considerably lower than Koskie's .966 career average. It's in the range category that Glaus gets the edge.
Glaus played some shortstop earlier in his career and that is reflected in his range as a third baseman. Last year for Arizona, Glaus had a range factor of 3.01, which tied his career-high set in 2000 with the Angels. He put up that number despite playing with a strained tendon behind his left knee.
Koskie's hustle will be missed, but he never surpassed 2.84 statistically in range. And that was three seasons ago.
The corner spots aside, losing Hudson caused the middle of the infield to get younger. Shortstop Russ Adams, 25, will team with second baseman Aaron Hill, 23, as the new double-play combination.
Hill spent limited time at second last year and Adams is still developing his glovework. Adams had 26 errors at short last year in his first full season at the position. Even Toronto's four-time Gold Glove winner Tony Fernandez topped 30 errors in his first full season at short in 1985.
"I think Russ is going to be fine," Ricciardi said. "Most of his errors were throwing the ball and a lot of it was just being young and playing at the pace of the big league game."
Hill, who was drafted as a shortstop, split time between third, short and second base last season as a rookie and was more than adequate at all three spots. In his 22 games filling in for an injured Hudson at second, Hill posted a .991 fielding percentage. Toronto believes that was a sign of good things to come.
"We're not looking at [second base] as a position where we have a huge deficiency," Ricciardi said. "I think [Hill] is going to do really well there. He's got a good mindset and a good work ethic."
Toronto's improvements to the rotation, bullpen and lineup could outweigh any minor setbacks to the team's defense. Ricciardi believes that the defense was addressed in the same way as those other three areas, though.
"We think we upgraded all the way around," he said.
Source: http://toronto.bluejays.mlb.com/
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