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Tuesday, June 08, 2010
Should the Nats convert Harper to the OF?
According to Rizzo, the Nats GM, they are going to convert Harper to the OF so that they can, “...really let him concentrate on the offensive part of the game and let his athleticism take over as an outfielder.”
Now, I don’t know how good Harper is defensively as an MLB prospect. Obviously many players from high school and college move to the left on the defensive spectrum by the time they get to the majors, for obvious reasons. Then again, someone has to eventually play SS, C, CF, 2B, etc.
However, I don’t see Harper as a centerfielder, although I could be wrong, so that leaves RF and LF. In high school and JUCO, he was a catcher, pitcher, and third baseman. The difference between the defensive value of a corner outfielder and catcher is enormous of course (25 runs or so) and the difference between a third baseman and OF is large as well (12 runs).
If he has any chance to be a major league catcher, shouldn’t they consider him there? Even if his offense ends up being a lot less than it would be if he plays another position, isn’t it likely worth the extra 25 runs on defense, even including the fact that he’ll play less games at catcher (plus he can perhaps play another position when being rested at catcher)? And if not C, why not 3B?
The logic that a player is too good offensively to play catcher makes little sense to me. A player should play catcher if that is his best position, whether he can hit well or not. A player’s offense and defensive skills, in terms of what position they eventually play in MLB, should be mostly independent.
Consider this alone: If a player is projected to play corner outfield, can he really be considered a potential superstar coming out of the draft? Not unless he is projected to hit like Barry Bonds or Babe Ruth (and maybe he is, but I doubt it). The starting point (-12 runs) is just too low due to the positional disadvantage. As a corner outfielder, he has to be a very good hitter by the time he gets to the major leagues, just to be major league average overall.
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