The Miami Marlins seem poised to finally give Derek Dietrich a chance to be a big league regular. Just don’t expect him to do it at a single position.
The always undervalued Derek Dietrich has been getting his fair share of ink the past few days as the Miami Marlins spring training schedule gets underway. MLB.com’s Glenn Satell has him down as a starting outfielder. The Miami Herald’s Andre C. Fernandez thinks he could well end up as the new leadoff hitter. Meanwhile, the Sun Sentinel’s Tim Healey sees a chance for him to emerge as a team leader.
Miami Marlins
It’s great to see Dietrich getting so much attention. Out of equal parts necessity and admiration, he’s undergone quite the transformation for at least one Marlins fan. Once served up as a constant example of why the club needed to trade for anyone not named Derek Dietrich, he’s easily become my second favorite player on the team.
Again, many stories. However, all of them have one thread in common: some variation of how much Dietrich could benefit from having a set position for once. And that’s where I take some serious exception to those expectations.
Three bold predictions about the Miami Marlins Derek Dietrich:
- Dietrich will lead the Marlins in games played.
- He will finish second on the team in home runs.
- He will play more than ten games at three different positions.
Basically, it’s that single position prediction that seems unlikely. Nothing about Dietrich’s track record with the team offers any reason to believe that will happen. Nor does anything about how this 2018 Miami Marlins season is expected to play out.
How the Miami Marlins Will Use Derek Dietrich
Consider the 2016 season, easily the best of his five-year Miami Marlins career. The lion’s share of his starts came at second base, where he filled in admirably for the suspended Dee Gordon. That season saw him bat over .300 in the first half, and was drawing serious All-Star chatter. Much of that time came in the leadoff spot. So the talk about him starting the season in that lineup spot should be taken very seriously.
However, that same season saw him start over thirty games at three different positions on the diamond.
That included a lot of third base time, a position he only played 103 games at in relief of injured starter Martin Prado last season. He’s also started 16 games at first base over the previous two years. That’s the spot currently belonging to Justin Bour, the guy who’s only been able to start just over fifty percent of the time for the Marlins since 2015. Finally, there was some outfield work as well: six starts in that career 2016 season and two in 2017.
Admittedly, the outfield has…shall we say, opened up over the last few months. The top four outfielders from the last three seasons are gone, and that’s apparently the biggest hole in the roster. By no means is it is argued here that the bulk of Derek Dietrich’s playing time won’t come as an outfielder.
Be that as it may, though, the reasons for Dietrich to float around far more than Marlins coaches are currently saying are legion.
Most of the prospects the Marlins want to look at in 2018 are outfielders. Probably only Lewis Brinson wins a job out of camp, but expect some youthful reinforcements by midseason. Secondly, supposing fully healthy seasons from both Bour and Prado looks like a huge ask. Brian Anderson is the third baseman of the future, but don’t plan on him being rushed out of AAA.
Lastly, even if they do pull that off, who says Prado isn’t one of the first Marlins dealt come July? The Marlins will be trading second baseman Starlin Castro if he plays well. And Dietrich has played second base more any other position he’s played in his career.
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Derek Dietrich will be a vital part of the 2018 Miami Marlins, both on and off the field. I expect him to be a lot of fun to watch. But playing just one position?
For a guy whose versatility is one of his greatest strengths, it just doesn’t seem like a smart bet.