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The Marlins corner infielders will be better in 2020

By David Levin

TORONTO, ON - SEPTEMBER 28: Jesus Aguilar #21 of the Tampa Bay Rays reacts to a strike call on him during the sixth inning of their MLB game against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre on September 28, 2019 in Toronto, Canada. (Photo by Cole Burston/Getty Images)
TORONTO, ON - SEPTEMBER 28: Jesus Aguilar #21 of the Tampa Bay Rays reacts to a strike call on him during the sixth inning of their MLB game against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre on September 28, 2019 in Toronto, Canada. (Photo by Cole Burston/Getty Images) /
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Will the Marlins have more stability this coming season with better play from the two corner infield spots in the lineup?

Having more consistency at the corner infield spots this coming season should allow Miami Marlins manager Don Mattingly to breathe a sigh of relief. All too often, the Marlins lineup was juggled last year due to injuries and inconsistent play.

The moves the team made in the offseason, adding Jonathan Villar from Baltimore and Jesus Aguilar from Tampa Bay should help stabilize a big question about who’s one first and third.

When looking at the corner infield combinations in the National League East, the Marlins have gotten better since there should be one man on the bag on a regular basis. There will be times Mattingly alters his lineup. Both American League players were brought in to score runs and hit the long ball.

"If changes must be made, the coaching staff has a few options on both sides of the infield.“Brian Anderson will, too. Villar and Anderson will be in the starting lineup somewhere, but what isn’t clear is where they will play,” writes Todd Zolecki of MLB.com.“Villar is a candidate to play second base, but that will only happen if Isan Diaz doesn’t appear to be the answer by Opening Day. If Villar plays third, Anderson will move to right field.”"

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Anderson is really the wild card in the Marlins lineup as he has been groomed to be the team’s every-day third baseman, but injuries and changes to the lineup have forced him to right field. He has shown he can handle the outfield as well as he can handle the hot corner. He hit 20 home runs in an abbreviated season because of – you guessed it – an injury to his hand.

The Marlins have worked to find players with some versatility to play multiple positions, which gives Mattingly more choices to find cohesion on the diamond. In the third season of this rebuild, the Marlins should be a team that does not have to shuffle its lineup every day because of issues with the batting order. The team should be better offensively this season with the new additions to the infield and outfielder Corey Dickerson.

"“Speaking of moving parts, Garrett Cooper is an option at first base, as well as corner outfield,” Zolecki writes. “And left-handed-hitting Lewin Diaz, ranked by MLB Pipeline as the No. 6 overall first-base prospect, could be knocking on the big league door at some point this year.”"

The team could also add one more veteran bat to the roster before the start of Spring Training.

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