Rickie Weeks won't make any excuses about it. That's what makes him so likeable, but coming off the worst statistical season of his career before he tore his hamstring so bad it needed surgery to repair it, the Brewers' second baseman preps for spring training knowing his $11 million salary makes him a player without a position.
That's because after his injury last season, the Brewers gave full reigns of second base to Scooter Gennett after the injury and Gennett proceeded to hit .353 with a .381 on-base percentage. Weeks, on the other hand did not have a batting average over .186 for all of May last season and had to fight to finish with a .209 average before he was injured August 8 in San Francisco.
Brewers brass has been very clear this offseason about their plans for second base with manager Ron Roenicke saying he is set to start the season with Gennett at second. General Manager Doug Melvin and assistant GM Gord Ash are hoping Weeks comes to Spring Training in Maryvale healthy and can show he can play to show other teams he is a viable piece to trade for.
At 5-foot-10 Weeks is not an option at first base, and cannot play any other infield position, so keeping him on board as a utility infielder is out of the picture.
As for a bench spot for Weeks if he is platooned with Gennett, that does't seem likely either. Again the $11 million tab on his contract pays a part of that and the other part is left-handed Scooter hit just fine against right and left-handed pitching last season. The thought would be to see how he did for a full season.
The bench will be a post for a later day, but if the Brewers go with five position players on the bench, one would be Logan Schaefer and Caleb Gindl would likely be kept as another outfielder. As for infielders, Lyle Overbay or Mark Reynolds would get one spot depending on which was not playing that night. Jeff Bianchi can play the other three infield positions and seems a likely option on the bench, as well. That leaves Martin Maldinado as the backup catcher on the bench. Where that leaves Weeks (and Juan Francisco) is trade bait.
Barring a Gennett injury in Spring Training that means Weeks, the longest tenured Brewer after Corey Hart left has limited time left as a Milwaukee Brewer. It's not a great time for him, but maybe a change in scenery will serve him well. He has not been the same since his severe ankle injury in 2011, the year he made the All-Star team.
As for where Weeks could end up, the Miami Marlins are the only team linked to him this winter publicly. The Brewers will likly only be able to get prospects for Weeks and will have to eat some of his salary themselves. He has done himself well in the clubhouse and he team would do what they could to put him in a position to succeed. It's a story worth watching when camp convenes in February.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment