Everyday Second Baseman?
By Steve Marsi
With Nomar Garciaparra finally back in the Red Sox lineup, the team's infield is looking a little crowded, and will become even more so once third baseman Bill Mueller returns from knee surgery. After spending most of the season at shortstop in Garciaparra's absence, defensive wizard Pokey Reese has shifted to second base, the position he was signed to play. Reese's defense is a tremendous asset to the club and has gained popularity with fans. Rarely does a player receive a standing ovation for his glove work, as Pokey did last Sunday against Los Angeles after a ridiculous inning-ending snare of a line drive. But would the Sox be better off with him coming off the bench as a defensive replacement and continuing to give the majority of playing time at second to Mark Bellhorn? The numbers suggest that they might be.
Signed in the winter to be the team's utility infielder, Bellhorn has been an unsung hero this year in keeping Boston in the AL East race. In addition to respectable play in the field, he has worked his way up to the #2 spot in the batting order with his ability to get on base and occasional power. Entering Saturday's game, he led all everyday second basemen in walks (52), runs scored (48) and on-base percentage (.402). Historically, Bellhorn has never hit for average, but after hitting .194 through April, he has brought his clip up to .266. His 39 RBI and .429 slugging percentage are solid totals.
Compare those numbers to those produced in the 2003 campaign by Todd Walker (.333 OBP, .428 SLG), who was not retained by Boston in part because his fielding was seen as a liability. Bellhorn has proven himself to be a superior fielder and hitter than Walker. Compare the statistics to Reese's (.304 OBP, .372 SLG). Pokey is one of the best defensive players in baseball, but can his glove theatrics compensate for such a dropoff in production? Fortunately for the Sox, both players are versatile fielders and Garciaparra will be given a good number of days off as he returns from his 57-game layoff, so playing time will not been a huge problem in the next few weeks. But when and if the whole roster is healthy, manager Terry Francona will face some tough decisions.
