Top MLB Players Switching Positions in 2023
The 2023 MLB season will have some rule changes worth monitoring.
How long games last on average with the pitch clock, along with how pitchers and hitters adjust their routines to comply with it, will be fascinating aspects of the season to follow.
But outside of the rules, there will be other noteworthy changes.
For example, key players will change positions because of the offseason moves of their respective teams.
How will Fernando Tatis Jr. look in right field? Can Andrew Vaughn fill José Abreu's shoes at first base? Yordan Alvarez is an everyday left fielder now, ready or not. We won't overlook it here.
In this exercise, we examine position changes for some of MLB's top players in 2023.
Bryson Stott to Second Base
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Stott is moving from shortstop to second base with the arrival of Trea Turner, who signed with the Phillies for 11 years and $300 million.
The 25-year-old is a decent defensive shortstop with the potential to be a really good second baseman. At 6'3", he's taller and more athletic at the position.
The Phillies' former No. 1 overall prospect played 47 games at second base and 83 at shortstop last season.
This move upgrades the Phillies' middle infield immensely, with arguably the top free-agent shortstop plucked from the market and a top prospect sliding over to second.
What also helps is Stott's flexibility and willingness to move around. A year ago, he was competing with Didi Gregorius at shortstop but also seeing time at third base while Alec Bohm figured things out.
Tommy Edman to Shortstop
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It might not seem like Edman is switching positions, since he played almost as many games at shortstop (80) as he did second base (89).
This season, though, Edman's the everyday shortstop. His performance there last year warrants it, committing just two errors in those 80 appearances, per FanGraphs. He won the Gold Glove at second base in 2021 and was a finalist for the newly created utility position last season.
It's time for Edman, who turns 28 in May and has just two more years under contractual team control, to change the course of his career.
Edman is highly motivated to perform well at shortstop after watching the offseason free-agent contracts dealt to others at the position. John Denton of MLB.com noted at spring training that Edman was watching the market with a keen eye as Trea Turner, Carlos Correa, Xander Bogaerts and Dansby Swanson signed deals that could be similar to his future.
Alex Verdugo to Right Field
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This is not a familiar spot for Verdugo, who spent much of the 2020 season in right field after first being traded from the Los Angeles Dodgers to the Boston Red Sox.
But then most of his time the next season was spent in left and center fields. Verdugo made 102 appearances in left field last season, compared to 52 in right field, two designated hitter spots and none in center.
It's fair to say over the past couple of seasons, with occasional exceptions, Verdugo had become primarily a left fielder after his initial season in Boston. Then last season the Red Sox traded for Tommy Pham, who plays exclusively in left field, signaling a position change for Verdugo.
This season, Verdugo projects as Boston's starting right fielder, with Japanese star Masataka Yoshida signing a five-year, $90 million contract to be the new left fielder.
The adjustment for Verdugo is noteworthy, as he shifts from a small left field to an expansive right field. But it was his versatility that gave the Red Sox options in how to attack their needs in the outfield.
For Verdugo, he told The Athletic's Jen McCaffrey it's less about where he plays and more about staying in one position consistently.
George Springer to Right Field
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Springer's first two seasons with the Blue Jays have been overshadowed by injuries. He played in just 78 games in 2021, the first of a six-year, $150 million contract for the 2017 World Series MVP.
Then last season, he played in more games (133), but there always seemed to be nagging injuries that kept him from being his absolute best in center field.
The most notable injury was to his right elbow, which was surgically repaired over the offseason. It left the Blue Jays wondering if he'd be able to manage in center field or simply have to DH, per Keegan Matheson of MLB.com.
Given how it's been these past two seasons, it made sense for Toronto to address center field and move Springer over to right.
Now, with Kevin Kiermaier in center and Daulton Varsho in left, the Blue Jays have added the left-handed balance to their lineup and taken some defensive pressure off Springer.
Andrew Vaughn to First Base
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Vaughn should be comfortable moving to his natural position after spending much of the past two seasons playing the corner outfield spots.
Positional redundancy has been an issue for the White Sox: too many first basemen moonlighting as left fielders without a clear solution in right field, but no one good enough to unseat former AL MVP José Abreu.
Now, Abreu's left for the Houston Astros in free agency, opening a spot for Vaughn, Chicago's No. 3 overall pick from 2019 who turns 25 in April.
First-year White Sox manager Pedro Grifol said at spring training that he doesn't view it as a move to first for Vaughn, rather the previous year was a move to left field.
This is Vaughn returning to his comfort zone, and the hope is that it helps his all-around game. The interesting part is how big the shoes he's filling are, with Abreu and Paul Konerko being the ones to hold down first base on the South Side since 1999.
Enrique Hernández to Shortstop
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Hernández has spent most of his major league career playing in the outfield or at second base.
In six seasons with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Hernández was the ultimate utility player, finding himself literally anywhere on the field. As a Red Sox, he's made 173 appearances in center field; 58 at second base and just 18 at shortstop.
That's because Xander Bogaerts was on the team, which he is no longer. With Bogaerts' departure and the Red Sox not finding an external replacement, Hernández is the next man up at shortstop, especially with Boston's versatility in the outfield.
Plus, Hernández views shortstop as his best position, but he just hasn't been given much opportunity to show it given his role with the Dodgers and Bogaerts' place in Boston.
While anyone would acknowledge Bogaerts is the better player because of what his bat brings, the Red Sox are hoping they actually upgraded defensively with Hernández.
Jake Cronenworth to First Base, Ha-Seong Kim to Second Base
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Speaking of Bogaerts, his arrival in San Diego creates quite the position shuffle for the Padres.
It's kind of wild to think that between Bogaerts, Manny Machado, Fernando Tatis Jr. and Ha-Seong Kim, the Padres have four players who at various points have been capable shortstops. They should be a really strong defensive team when you consider this.
But the Bogaerts signing shifts Kim over from shortstop to second base and Cronenworth from second to first.
While it's a shame that injuries and suspensions have compromised Tatis' availability, the Padres are wise to move him to the outfield and solidify the left side with Bogaerts and Machado, more reliable players who they inked to major deals this offseason.
It allows Kim and Cronenworth to play positions for which they are overqualified, which seems like more of a solution than a problem.
Luis Arraez Back to Second Base, Jazz Chisholm Jr. to Center Field
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Arraez, a first-time All-Star and the AL batting champion last year, is looking forward to playing his natural position after being traded from the Minnesota Twins to the Miami Marlins.
Arraez spent much of his time last year at first base and has also played third base and left field since making his MLB debut in 2019.
Interestingly, the Marlins already had a first-time All-Star second baseman on the roster in Chisholm. But they are moving Chisholm to center field, a position he's never played.
It seems daring and risky, but the Marlins are comfortable with it because of Chisholm's exceptional athleticism. Also, per Christina DeNicol of MLB.com, Chisholm revealed it was his idea to move positions if it meant adding a player who could improve Miami's lineup, as Arraez is expected to do.
Yordan Alvarez to Left Field
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Alvarez has played plenty of left field, but going into last season, that job belonged primarily to Michael Brantley, with the Cuban slugger serving more as the DH.
Things have changed.
Brantley is still recovering from shoulder surgery after an injury that sidelined him for much of 2022. Alvarez proved himself to be a more than capable left fielder last year in Brantley's absence.
The interesting part about it is how both prefer to play in the field as opposed to DH because it helps them feel more in tune with the game.
Brantley is just at a point physically where he can't be depended on to field every day, and Alvarez is better defensively than perhaps initially thought.
Fernando Tatis Jr. to Right Field, Juan Soto to Left Field
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With the Padres solidifying the left side of their infield by signing Bogaerts and extending Machado this offseason, it firmly plants Tatis in the outfield.
Putting Tatis in the outfield means moving Soto from right field to left and, similar to the right side of their infield with Kim and Cronenworth, the Padres upgrade defensively by doing so.
Soto started his career in left field but spent the past three years playing in right. He's expressed an openness to switching positions, but like Tatis, he prefers locking into one spot rather than shuffling.
We've come a long way from Tatis ensuring after the 2021 season that he would return to shortstop. How he looks upon return, after not playing since October 2021, will be of great intrigue.
