Oakland Athletics: Franklin Barreto May End Up Playing Second Base
Franklin Barreto is the Oakland Athletics’ top prospect. He is technically a shortstop but his quickest path to the majors may be through playing other positions.
It’s a good thing for the Oakland Athletics that Barreto, who is just 21 years old, has the ability to play a number of other positions like second base and center field.
He’ll need to work on these other positions in the minors this year, of course. He was recently sent down to minor league camp, meaning he will not be on the A’s 25-man roster – yet.
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It was tough for A’s manager Bob Melvin to send Barreto down after the incredible spring he’s been having.
Barreto hit .481 in 16 Cactus League games with one home run and five RBI.
Barreto has showed he can hit for average, power and that he has speed on the basepaths. He is incredibly talented.
Vice president of baseball operations Billy Beane has made it clear that the team is choosing to stay with Marcus Semien at shortstop, likely until he hits free agency in 2021, meaning Barreto’s path to the majors will be through one of his other positions. Per CSN Bay Area:
"“He’s had a great camp, and you can see he’s a pretty talented guy,” Beane said. “But he only played a month at Triple-A last year. He probably needs some more drills at second base. he seems to be pretty comfortable over there right now. With Marcus at short, it’s probably his quickest path to the big leagues. … Once we get into the season, assuming he continues to improve and play the way he does, he’ll be putting pressure on us.”"
Not unlike the player blocking his path to the majors at shortstop, Barreto has a strong work ethic and will likely, as Beane noted, become good enough to put pressure on the A’s to bring him up sooner than later.
It looks as though they will be bringing him up to play second base, a position currently occupied by the oft-injured veteran Jed Lowrie. If Lowrie gets injured, the team may need Barreto earlier than expected.
Or if Lowrie, who is 33 years old and in the final year of his contract, is healthy and playing well when the middle of the summer rolls around it may be that he could be used in a trade if the Athletics are not contending.
Still, the 21-year-old does need to hone his skills at second base if he wants a spot on the Oakland Athletics’ 25-man roster at some point whether this season or next.
So while we may see Barreto for some time at second base in the big leagues, there’s always a chance that we may also see him later on in his career in center field, depending on the A’s needs.
Regardless of where he plays defensively he will be a force to be reckoned with, both on offense and defense, once he does hit the major leagues.
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The Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum is an aging stadium that the Oakland Athletics still share with the NFL’s Oakland Raiders. However, a new ballpark for the A’s in Oakland is expected to be announced soon.