Predicting the Winners of Every Key Spring Position Battle at the Midway Point

Spring training is nearly over and there are still a couple of heated position battles that will be determined in the next few weeks.

Through the first chunk of camp, the weak were eliminated, leaving a handful of competitors to duke it out for the remainder of the spring.

Many of the position battles still up for grabs, though, aren’t that exciting. The candidates, for the most part, are veterans trying to earn a spot at the back end of a rotation or a regular role in the infield or outfield. There are some minor leaguers and top prospects in the mix, but they aren’t very likely to win in most instances.

At the beginning of the spring, I examined the biggest position battles. Much has changed since then so here’s a fresh look at who’s in contention for a starting role and who’s likely to start 2013 on the bench or in the minors. 

Atlanta Braves: Third Baseman

The Breakdown

With the retirement of longtime third baseman Chipper Jones, a void at the hot corner was created for the Atlanta Braves.

The two players competing for the spot are Juan Francisco, a holdover from last season, and Chris Johnson, who was acquired in the Justin Upton deal.

Through the early parts of spring training, the pair of third basemen have played similarly. Johnson has 11 hits in 35 at-bats with eight runs, which is tied for the team lead. Francisco has 10 hits in 34 at-bats with five runs. Both have two home runs to their credit.

Manager Fredi Gonzalez recently talked to Mark Bowman of MLB.com about the competition:

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“Juan is playing good defense and he’s running the bases well,” said Gonzalez. He’s swinging the bat. Good things to see. They’re both making a good case. I think some of Chris’ at-bats have been really, really good too.”

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That doesn’t really clear much up nor does it show which way the Atlanta manager may be swaying.

The Eventual Winner

I believe that the likely scenario is that the Braves have a platoon at third base. Both are playing so well at the moment that it’s too difficult to determine who eventually will be the starter. Johnson and Francisco are both deserving of the job and one is going to have to pull away from the other in order to win it outright. Otherwise, they’ll flip-flop to start 2013.

Baltimore Orioles: No. 5 Starter

The Breakdown

The Baltimore Orioles came into camp with an obvious opening in the starting rotation.

Last season, Baltimore’s rotation exceeded expectations by a large margin and the O’s are hopeful that a strong staff can get them into the postseason for the second consecutive season.

There are four legitimate candidates to be Baltimore’s fifth starting pitcher: Jair Jurrjens, Jake Arrieta, Zach Britton and Steve Johnson. Jurrjens is the only of the quartet that wasn’t with the team in 2012—signing a minor league deal with Baltimore over the winter.

Each pitcher has taken the mound three times this spring for the Orioles and no one has really separated himself from the pack just yet. Jurrjens has been, by far, the worst, though. In 5.2 innings, he’s allowed six earned runs on nine hits with six walks.

Britton and Johnson have each allowed two earned runs in five innings of work, but Britton has shown much better command.

Arrieta has allowed three earned runs in 6.2 innings, also struggling a bit with locating his arsenal of pitches.

The Eventual Winner

I think that the Orioles will continue to give Jurrjens a shot at making the team, but in the end, Britton should be the No. 5 starter. He hasn’t had the easiest time in his two years with the Orioles, but it appears that he came into camp looking to win a spot he lost in 2012. With a chip on his shoulder, Britton only need a couple of more solid outings to secure the role.

Cleveland Indians: No. 5 Starter

The Breakdown

The Cleveland Indians have to be worried about their starting rotation. It’s been one of the worst in the league over the last couple of years despite the likes of Ubaldo Jimenez and Justin Masterson leading it.

But this isn’t about who is going to start in the first or second game of the year; it’s about who’s going to start the fifth. Cleveland manager Terry Francona is giving a bunch of arms the opportunity to win a spot in the backend of the rotation this spring.

Trevor Bauer, who was acquired over the offseason, is one of the team’s top prospects. Even though he could use some more seasoning in the minors, he’s pitched well in camp, allowing just two earned runs in seven innings while striking out five.

Carlos Carrasco missed all of the 2012 season recovering from Tommy John surgery, but did start 21 games for Cleveland the year prior. He has yet to bounce back, though, allowing runners to cross the plate this spring in eight innings. He’s also walked four and given up 12 hits.

Corey Kluber and David Huff are both long shots to make the starting rotation, each struggling to throw consistently every time they take the mound. Kluber has allowed five earned runs in camp while Huff has allowed six. That’s not going to help their respective chances.

Scott Kazmir is trying to make a major comeback and has turned a lot of heads with how well he’s been doing since joining the Indians on a minor league deal over the winter. He’s yet to allow a run in eight innings of work while striking out eight and walking just one.

Daisuke Matsuzaka is the final candidate in this race, but it seems as if he may already be eliminated. The right-hander was forced to exit a recent outing with calf cramps and I presume that his chances have diminished considerably.

The Eventual Winner

At this point, I don’t see any way that Kazmir doesn’t break camp in the starting rotation. He’s pitched better than anyone on the Indians, not just those he’s been dueling against. He’s logged the second-most innings thus far and has easily been the most successful as he’s tied for the team lead in ERA and strikeouts. 

Oakland Athletics: Second Baseman

The Breakdown

The Oakland Athletics didn’t have a consistent second baseman all last year. Cliff Pennington, Adam Rosales and Jemile Weeks all split time.

Heading into this season, the player that will man second base most frequently still isn’t clear. Rosales and Weeks are in spring training looking to earn the starting role, but Scott Sizemore and Grant Green are also getting the identical opportunity.

Weeks lost the job last year, but comes into 2013 with a clean slate. He played well in the four games he’s gotten into this spring, but has been held out recently due to a bone bruise. If he doesn’t make a speedy recovery, he can kiss the starting job goodbye.

Sizemore is having a poor spring after missing all of the 2012 season due to injury. He probably would’ve been the favorite coming into camp, but has since hit .143/.345/.143 in 21 at-bats. He has struck out nine times, the second-most on the team, thus far.

One of the top prospects in Oakland’s organization, Grant Green is really having himself a great couple of weeks. In 11 games, he’s 8-for-19 with five extra-base hits and five runs. It may be time for the A’s to give the youngster a spot on the team.

Rosales probably has the worst shot at winning the job, but his spring numbers say otherwise. He’s played in 11 games and has gone 5-for-16 with seven runs. What’s also interesting is that he’s drawn seven walks, the most on Oakland.

The Eventual Winner

At the beginning of the spring, I had Sizemore winning the starting second baseman job. But he’s really struggled so for that reason, I’m going to go with the youngster, Green. He should be able to provide a big spark in the lineup and in the field, especially if he keeps up the hot streak he’s been on. Give it to the kid.

St. Louis Cardinals: No. 5 Starter

The Breakdown

The St. Louis Cardinals have an interesting situation on their hands in terms of starting pitching.

St. Louis decided against re-signing Kyle Lohse over the offseason even though he was the team’s best pitcher in 2012. Then, Chris Carpenter was sidelined with numbness in his throwing arm and will likely miss majority of the season, if not all of it.

That now leaves top prospect Shelby Miller and Joe Kelly to fight for the fifth spot in the Cardinals’ starting rotation. Trevor Rosenthal was in the mix earlier, but I believe he’s bound to be a reliever in the majors or start the season in the minors, still working to become a big league starter.

Miller hasn’t been that sharp in his two outings this spring. In five innings of work, he’s allowed three earned runs on four hits. He’s only walked one batter and has struck out four. It’s a toss-up as to whether he needs more time in the minors. His next couple of starts should determine that.

Kelly, however, has yet to show he deserves the spot either. He’s thrown four innings and has served up one run on a pair of hits. Although he hasn’t allowed many runs, like his opponent somewhat has, he’s had trouble with location. He’s walked five batters in those four innings, which won’t help his case.

The Eventual Winner

This is definitely a tough one to choose right now since neither candidate has pitched well. Both Kelly and Miller have the potential to be effective in the big leagues, but neither has been able to show it yet. If I had to pick one, I’d probably go with Miller. He has the higher ceiling and has been dominant in the minor leagues. St. Louis might as well give it a shot.

Texas Rangers: Center Fielder

The Breakdown

The departure of Josh Hamilton during the offseason has left the Texas Rangers looking for whom to play alongside of Nelson Cruz and David Murphy in the outfield.

The Rangers have three candidates that they’ve been watching this spring to see who looks the best and who will be the starting center fielder come Opening Day: Craig Gentry, Leonys Martin and Julio Borbon.

Gentry, who was the Rangers’ fourth outfielder last season, was the favorite heading into camp. Through 12 games, he’s 9-for-27 with 10 runs, two home runs, five RBI, four walks and just one strikeout. In 2012, Gentry hit .304/.367/.392 in 122 games, which will clearly help him when Texas sits down to determine if he should be the starter.

Martin is one of the top prospects that Texas has and it may be time for the team to call him up for good. He’s gotten a handful of chances the last two seasons, but it’s too small of a sample to judge him like a regular. In 14 games thus far, he’s 13-for-33 with nine runs and four extra-base hits. He’s also driven in a team-high seven runs.

Borbon has seen time with the Rangers sporadically over the last three seasons, but spent majority of the 2012 season in the minor leagues. He is the underdog in this race and has played well this spring so far. He’s 9-for-31 in 17 games with four doubles, six RBI and five walks. He’ll really need to play well in order to win the starting job.

The Eventual Winner

I believe that Martin is the guy who’ll come out of camp with the center field job under his belt. Gentry is a valuable player to have, but in the end, I think he’s more of a fourth outfielder than a third. Martin has a lot of potential and giving him the opportunity to shine on a regular basis is in the Rangers’ best interest at the moment.

Toronto Blue Jays: Second Baseman

The Breakdown

Kelly Johnson was the primary second baseman for the Toronto Blue Jays last season, but he signed with the Tampa Bay Rays over the offseason.

The Blue Jays managed to acquire Emilio Bonifacio in the monster deal with the Miami Marlins and also signed Macier Izturis to compete for the starting job. There really shouldn’t be much competition the rest of camp, though, as Bonifacio basically has won already.

Manager John Gibbons doesn’t agree with me, according to Melissa Couto of MLB.com:

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“It’s going to come down to the wire, and…we may end up playing both of them a lot there,” said Gibbons. “They’re both having really good camps and they’re both proven big league players.”

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Bonifacio and Izturis are proven big league players, but I’m questioning whether Gibbons has seen the statistics lately. Bonifacio has nine hits in 31 at-bats this spring, four of them for extra bases. Izturis, on the other hand, is just 4-for-25. That’s not going to cut it whatsoever.

The fact that Gibbons said it’s going to be close seems like he favors Izturis. If he didn’t, why would he extend the race much further? Bonifacio is the better player overall and has been the better player midway through spring training.

Bonifacio hasn’t played too often at second base over the course of his career, but there’s no reason to doubt that he wouldn’t play well defensively. His bat is certainly more valuable than anything Izturis, who has played second base more frequently, could bring to the table.

The Eventual Winner

I would be absolutely shocked if Izturis wins the starting job. The only way that should happen is if something happens to Bonifacio, such as an injury or a massive, massive slump.

Washington Nationals: Catcher

The Breakdown

The Washington Nationals had a wide variety of players behind the plate in 2012, mainly because Wilson Ramos was out for majority of the year after undergoing knee surgery.

Ramos, the starter at the time of the injury, is back in camp looking to regain the confidence of manager Davey Johnson and rest of the coaching staff. In order to be behind the plate on Opening Day, he’ll have to fend off Kurt Suzuki, who caught down the stretch and in the postseason.

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“For me, I’ve been out of the game for a long time,” Ramos told Bill Ladson of MLB.com. “I know everyone says I recovered quickly. To me, it was too long. I’m excited for this moment. I enjoy playing.”

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In limited time this spring, Ramos is 3-for-9 with a double and a run scored. Suzuki has played much more and is 4-for-16 with four runs.

It’s fair to say that neither has gotten enough at-bats to determine a winner midway through camp, but Washington will definitely take its time working Ramos back into the swing of things. He’s probably going to be the catcher for the next couple of seasons so it would be a dumb move to rush him back.

The Eventual Winner

I’m going to go with Suzuki on this one and it makes a lot of sense. Suzuki is the seasoned veteran who the Nationals can throw behind the plate until Ramos is ready to start playing on a regular basis, which will likely go beyond Opening Day. Once Ramos is back, though, he’ll be the starter and Suzuki will come off the bench from time to time.