Quote from Henry Silvestre on January 5, 2023, 10:13 am

Quote from Jeremy Hill on January 5, 2023, 10:03 am

Quote from Henry Silvestre on January 5, 2023, 9:16 am

Quote from Randy Manese on January 5, 2023, 9:04 am

Regarding Tatis Jr.'s suspension, will he be able to participate in spring training or does he have to remain completely isolated from the team until eligible to return to play regular season games?  Seems like he'll be quite a bit behind if he has do prepare on his own after missing almost all on field action last year.

Full participation in ST and can go to minors 1st 20 games...cant be anywhere near MLB clubhouse or team until after suspension is over

He can only spend 15 days in the minors per the CBA. I'm not sure if that's 15 days period or 15 game days.

As a suspended player? Or as an MLB player?

Quote from Jeremy Hill on January 5, 2023, 10:18 am

Players suspended for 50 or more games can only spend 15 days in the minors as part of their suspension.

Quote from fenn68 on January 5, 2023, 10:36 am

Can the difference between his scheduled MLB return date and the max days he can spend in the minors be covered by Tatis remaining is “extended ST” … or continue to work at the AZ site?

Not a big gap in question if he just has to stop at the end of regular ST then go to the minors a few days later to play until the suspension ends.

I guess we should consider if he is not fully back to his performance level (probably if the wrist is not quite as flexible as yet) … he could stay a bit longer in the minors after the suspension is over since he does have minor league options.

Wide range of potential outcomes … if gets a full slate of work during ST and is on his game … probably no worry about the few days he cannot play … that spans all the way to can’t play a full slate in ST and shows significant signs of rust.

We can speculate on Tatis … can speculate the best way to hedge the situation … but have to wait until the end of ST/suspension to set a course of action.

Quote from Henry Silvestre on January 5, 2023, 10:45 am

Not that it makes a huge difference .. but is that rule in place to get back in shape when 50 days are on same season?.. with only 20 Day suspencion left for 2023.. does that change the "CBA" rule?

Quote from WindsorUK on January 5, 2023, 11:52 am

Can they option him to Elsinore for a week before coming to San Diego?

I'm sure FTJ has options, right?

Quote from WindsorUK on January 5, 2023, 11:59 am

Does it bug anyone else that of all our SS qualified players, the worst fielder will be manning the 6?

I also think we're downgrading the 4 as well, although shouldn't take Kim long to adapt to the other side of the bag.

Interesting to see if BoMel moves some of his pieces around in ST, to see where pieces fit best.

Quote from Henry Silvestre on January 5, 2023, 11:59 am

Quote from WindsorUK on January 5, 2023, 11:52 am

Can they option him to Elsinore for a week before coming to San Diego?

I'm sure FTJ has options, right?

No need for option he can play for 15 games After ST.. 2 days to get to EP or SA or LE.. 2 days to get to SD... 15 games done...

Quote from BoosterSD on January 5, 2023, 12:29 pm

Quote from WindsorUK on January 5, 2023, 11:59 am

Does it bug anyone else that of all our SS qualified players, the worst fielder will be manning the 6?

I also think we're downgrading the 4 as well, although shouldn't take Kim long to adapt to the other side of the bag.

Interesting to see if BoMel moves some of his pieces around in ST, to see where pieces fit best.

It kind of does. I think the best defensive alignment would be Machado at 3B, Kim at SS, Crone at 2B, and Bogaerts at 1B. Crone is probably better than Bogaerts at 2B, but Crone has played some 1B, and could be one of the top 10 defensively at 1B this season in the ML. So Bogaerts at 2B, and Crone at 1B makes more sense.

Even with the assumed defensive alignment with Bogaerts at SS and Kim at 2B, I still think that SD has a top 3 INF in all baseball this season. Its what happens when you have 6 SS on the same ML team.

Quote from sportwarrior on January 5, 2023, 2:39 pm

Xander actually had a solid defensive season last year, so there's hope that's the beginning of a trend rather than an abberation.

That said, we "hoped" the same for Hosmer's bat following his walk year in KC. Sooooo we should take last season with many grains of salt.

On balance, though, I'm not extremely worried. I prefer to wait and see. Xander's leadership is going to be a big positive on and off the field (assuming he doesn't clash with anyone) and Kim, while being displaced, will have the distinct honor of being one of the strongest-armed 2B in the league.

I'm more worried about Tatis' maturity. He's going to be spending a lot more time on his heels in the OF than he did in the INF, which could lead to lapses in concentration. And, if Xander doesn't immediately avail himself at SS, I'd worry about Tatis thinking he should be there instead.