This one should be short and sweet.
Unlike the first base position one word comes to mind for second base, entrenched.
Josh Harrison, Pedro Ciriaco, Chase d’Arnaud, Josh Rodriguez and Brandon Wood all spent time at second base, but Neil Walker was the clear starter.
Walker started 155 season, every one of them at second.
Contrary to popular belief he was actually fairly good at the position defensively as well. His Fielding Percentage of .992 was higher than the league average of .985 and his RF/9 of 5.05 was significantly higher than the league average of 4.75. Both of those number improved drastically from the prior year.
Walker had basically the season most people expected. His offensive production was down, but still solid. In fact he was eighth in average, ninth in OBP, eleventh in SLG, and ninth in OPS amongst all qualified 2B in baseball. Walker was fourth in RBI amongst that group, despite playing for such a poor team, while ranking fifth in doubles and seventh in walks.
Walker was definitely an above average player for his position last season. He has also been talked about as a likely extension candidate, so I don’t foresee him going anywhere.
Pedro Ciriaco might make this team, but not as the 2B. He is viewed as a backup Shortstop, but I thought he flashed a whole lot of potential this season. His future is tied up pretty heavily in the future of Brandon Wood, Ronny Cedeno, and Chase d’Arnaud.
Now onto Wood. I’ve left no question that I like the guy, and think he may have turned it around a bit this season. He is valuable because he can play every infield position, and is probably good enough to start at SS, at least defensively. He has the pop to fill in at the other positions too. This team is starved for power and he provides that, if nothing else. That said, it looks like he may be the odd man out. I think that would be a mistake.
Chase d’Arnaud has been one of my favorite prospects since he was drafted. He got a chance to play this season at the big level, but I really don’t think he was ready. It was nice for him to get his feet wet, but I wouldn’t be too upset if he started off in AAA Indianapolis.
There are plenty of questions about d’Arnaud’s glove, and personally I think they are overblown. He really did nothing to quiet concerns though. That’s because he wasn’t ready in my opinion. He probably does profile as more of a 2B than a SS, which is what he is being groomed to play so he might actually turn out to be trade bait.
Josh Harrison is an odd player. I love the guy, and have loved him since the trade. I’ve seen him play, and play well at both Indy and Altoona now but he has an obvious problem…. taking walks. He reminds me of Freddy Sanchez in a way, as he hits for a great average, fouls off some pitches, but swings at everything. Harrison might actually be best suited for 3B from a defensive standpoint, but his bat doesn’t seem to profile there. In the end he might also find himself starting off with Indy but again, it depends what the club does with Wood. If Wood goes you have to think one of the young guys makes it, filling the role of super-sub.
Not a whole lot to say here. Mostly who backs up second will be determined by who is starting at SS.
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