[新聞] Around the Horn: Corner infielders
From http://0rz.tw/653Db
Veterans expected to man corners in Baltimore for 2008
Change will come slowly to the Orioles' infield corners, an area of the team
stuck in a time warp. While Baltimore got younger and less expensive elsewhere
around the diamond, it will continue to trot out veteran placeholders Kevin
Millar, Aubrey Huff and Melvin Mora to sop up at-bats at first base and third
base.
Millar, Huff and Mora all struggled last season and will go into 2008 with
additional pressure mounted on their performance. Baltimore doesn't have a
marquee power hitter and isn't expected to add one before Spring Training.
Huff, Millar and Mora will all bat in the meat of the order, underlining their
importance in scoring runs.
Mora, the longest-tenured member of the team, is also one of the most critical.
The veteran received a blanket no-trade clause as part of his last contract
extension, limiting the places the Orioles can send him. Mora, who's suffered
through modest declines in both power and infield range, has two seasons
remaining on his contract.
Mora, who played in just 126 games and logged only 467 at-bats last year, fell
to his lowest totals in home runs (14) and RBIs (58) since 2003, the last of
his seasons as a utility man. His batting average (.274), on-base percentage
(.341) and slugging mark (.418) all dropped below his career norms for the
second straight season.
In fact, his performance level dipped so far last year that Baltimore
considered turning him back into a multi-positional rover, but that plan
appears to have been scrapped by the acquisition of full-time left fielder Luke
Scott. Mora will likely see most of his playing time at third base, which could
keep the Orioles from evaluating Scott Moore at that position.
Moore, who came over from the Cubs last year in exchange for Steve Trachsel, is
expected to serve in reserve duty at both infield corners and in left field.
The Orioles like his power but just don't have the at-bats to play him every
day. Moore, the eighth overall pick in the 2002 First-Year Player Draft, will
bide his time and wait for his chance.
Starting off as a bench player may actually be the best fit for Moore, who only
has one season of experience at both Double-A and Triple-A. Last year, he
drilled 19 home runs and drove in 69 runs for Triple-A Iowa. Moore is slightly
ahead of Mike Costanzo, who will likely start the season at Triple-A Norfolk
and compete for playing time in 2008.
The Orioles signed Huff before the '07 season in the hope that he could help
support Miguel Tejada and give them another experienced slugger. The veteran
had another down year, though, and didn't really heat up until after the
All-Star break. Huff finished with just 15 homers, marking the first time since
2001 that he didn't hit 20 or more.
Huff, who plays at both first and third base in addition to designated hitter,
provided some semblance of hope for a bounce-back year by hitting .363 in
August and .330 in September. He said he found a more comfortable batting
stance by standing upright, a posture that allowed him to drive the ball better
to all fields.
Baltimore needs him to make that adjustment pay dividends all season, which
would allow the Orioles to place him fifth or sixth in the batting order. Huff,
just 31 years old, still has time to reverse the effects of the past few
seasons.
Millar, the team's first baseman, was streaky for most of the season. The
veteran was Baltimore's most patient hitter in the first half, when he logged a
.395 on-base percentage. That mark dropped to .338 in the second half, and
Millar hit just .234 after the All-Star break. He hit 10 home runs in the
second half, finishing with 17 for the season.
The Orioles haven't had a power-hitting first baseman since Rafael Palmeiro,
and Millar has hit more than 20 home runs just once in his career. He likely
won't repeat that effort in 2008, when he could be forced to split time with
Huff and Moore. Millar is in the running for the cleanup slot, which would
further underline the club's lack of power.
One dark-horse possibility for playing time at first base is former oufielder
and DH Jay Gibbons, who's coming off shoulder surgery that will limit his
ability to play defense next season. Gibbons could see time at first base if
everything breaks right, and if his shoulder has healed, he could be part of
the antidote toward the team's lack of power.
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