With the Phillies deciding to part ways with Pedro Feliz after last season, there was going to be a new 3rd baseman manning the hot corner in Philadelphia.
The Phillies ultimately decided to bring back Placido Polanco and shift him to 3rd base. After shipping him to Detroit in 2005 to make room for Chase Utley, Polly became an All-Star and 2-time Gold Glove winner at 2B for Detroit.
After shifting to 3rd base, where he had played earlier in his career, to start Spring Training, Polanco seemed to be making the transition easily.
However, in a Spring Training game today, Polanco tripped up on the mound fielding a pop-up and went down awkwardly. He ended up with a sprained knee and should only miss a few games.
This injury brought up the possibility of Polanco missing some time. Who would replace Polly if he gets hurt or this little experiment doesn’t go well?
In year’s past, the Phillies tolerated Pedro Feliz’ lack of offense because his defense was just that good. The opposite is probably going to be true for Polanco. His offense will most likely be better than his defense. Problem with that is this team has plenty of offense, but could use the defense that Feliz could provide. Polanco was a Gold Glove winner, but how well he will transfer to the other side of the infield has yet to be determined.
If Polanco doesn’t work out, either due to injury or ineffectiveness, the Phillies don’t have many options. Greg Dobbs is all-purpose utility man who will make the final roster and could fill in at 3rd base if needed. He would be an adequate fill-in, but he’s not an everyday player. His specialty is filling in where he is needed.
Another interesting possibility would be Cody Ransom. The Phillies signed him in the offseason to provide organizational depth. He was the Yankees’ Opening Day 3rd baseman last season when Alex Rodriguez was on the disabled list. Ransom has started off the spring well, even homering in 2 different games in 2 different cities on the same day. It’s nice to have a veteran in an organization that is empty of 3rd base prospects.
With Polanco ultimately only going to miss a few games, this question will go unanswered. Placido and his giant head will surely knock down their fair share of balls at the hot corner, but will most likely fall short of Feliz’ level of defense. The Phillies are counting on the increased offensive production from Polanco will make up for the decrease in defense.
Otherwise, the Phillies really don’t have many options at 3rd base.
