Alex Liddi's Big Adventure

by Jeff Sullivan on Feb 14, 2012 1:00 PM PST in Seattle Mariners Regular News

The original headline of this post was Alex Gaining Some Versati-Liddi but then I threw up all over my computer and had to get a new computer. Greg Johns:

Mariners manager Eric Wedge says Alex Liddi will get work at both 1B and 3B this spring to give him more options.

Not long ago, Mike Curto basically predicted that this would happen. Alex Liddi is almost guaranteed to begin the season with Tacoma. Other players who are almost guaranteed to begin the season with Tacoma, or who will at least show up in Tacoma before long, are Vinnie Catricala and Francisco Martinez. Catricala will probably spend a lot of his time in left field, but Martinez is a third baseman, and Martinez is a guy the Mariners really like, since they brought him over in the Doug Fister trade. The Mariners think Martinez could be the third baseman of the future, so Liddi will have to make some space.

Read into it however you want. I personally don't think this is huge news, or that it changes very much. My understanding is that Martinez has the better defensive reputation as a third baseman, so he should naturally be the one to stick. Not that Liddi is a disaster, but he isn't Martinez. Additionally, it's not like all of Liddi's third base skills are going to atrophy - if the Mariners need him to be a third baseman, he can be a third baseman. This is more about versatility than an out-and-out position switch.

And of course, Liddi is a prospect who might never make it in the Majors, on account of questions regarding his ability to make contact. Alex Liddi misses the ball a lot when he swings, and he needs to get better in that department if he wants to have a long career. So whatever position Liddi plays might end up being way more important to Mike Curto than it ever is to us.

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I apologize if this has been covered, but pronunciation has been bothering me...

Is it Vinnie cah-TREE-cah-luh or Vinnie cah-tree-CAH-luh?

by RLfreckles on Feb 14, 2012 1:20 PM PST reply actions

Caeh-trih-CAH-luh

You won’t here the long e, although it’s technically there.

Don't worry; I'm a writer.

by harkening on Feb 14, 2012 1:31 PM PST up reply actions

Thank you!

I saw this video before I saw this video at 1:40 and started doubting myself!

by RLfreckles on Feb 14, 2012 2:08 PM PST up reply actions

The first one sounds like how John Lackey would say it.

by WhyGodWhy on Feb 14, 2012 1:48 PM PST up reply actions 1 recs

WHEW! What a relief this is

by Kermit. on Feb 14, 2012 2:11 PM PST reply actions

Of course, those two things aren't unrelated

i.e., whether he sticks at third base and whether he ever makes it in the Majors. If he winds up as a .240/.320/.440 kind of guy, the organization might find that to be solid enough production at third base, but not at first.

by Suburban Shocker on Feb 14, 2012 2:29 PM PST reply actions

They'd only find that good enough after a while?

by nathaniel dawson on Feb 14, 2012 4:09 PM PST up reply actions

The fact you didn't use the old title has made the sadness spread to my lungs.

by joof on Feb 14, 2012 2:34 PM PST reply actions

How much do other teams move guys around in the majors / high minors?

Not a criticism of doing this with Liddi – sounds pretty necessary here – or of doing this in general. I know objectively there’s probably been few position switches for people. It just seems like a bunch of Mariners have gotten shuffled around off their initial and/or most experienced positions. It feels like the M’s try to turn half their players into sort of super utility men.

by Chris_FB on Feb 14, 2012 3:30 PM PST reply actions

Happens all the time.

Even after a player gets to the Majors. It mostly happens to those players that show enough with the bat, but don’t have the chops to play the position they’ve been playing.

by nathaniel dawson on Feb 14, 2012 4:12 PM PST up reply actions

I think it's quite common when you've got a so-so prospect who's either blocked or has an A+ prospect coming up behind him.

See the Angels moving Mark Trumbo anywhere from 3B to LF to DH next year, or the Padres moving Kyle Blanks/Chase Headley to get them in the line-up when they had Adrian Gonzalez.

Bat-first 3Bs who don’t have an elite bat are going to get moved around a bit – Mat Gamel, Neil Walker, Brett Wallace, etc.
I think it’s something of a shame in that Liddi’s best tool – his arm – is wasted at 1B, but I think he’ll get some time at 3B even if Martinez is the starter there.

I guess I’m not quite sure what the rush is. Martinez is seen as the 3B of the future, but he’s going to be 21 this year, and while he played at AA last year, I don’t think his performance warrants an automatic promotion. Liddi’s 23 and, despite the serious contact issues, a better bet to hit next year than Martinez. If Liddi’s the first guy to head north if you have a need at 3B (maybe a big if, though I don’t really know who else it’d be), I don’t know why’d you have him play 1B most of the time in AAA.

by marc w on Feb 14, 2012 4:14 PM PST up reply actions

When you say "Liddi's the first guy to head north..."

Do you assume that Figgins/Guillen/Seager all make the team? At this point I’m inclined to agree with Baker that Seager needs a big spring and/or Guillen/Figgy to shit the bed or go away in order to be in the majors in April.

by _Hutch_ on Feb 14, 2012 4:19 PM PST up reply actions